Goalie Start 'Em, Sit 'Em ft. Montembault, Binnington, Vejmelka, and More

Hello fellow fantasy enthusiasts, welcome back to Goalie Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em! We are breaking down Thursday night’s slate of 12 games and have some suggestions on which goalies need to be in your starting lineups and which goalies are in desperate need of a sub.

These days, the goalie position is one of the most volatile in all of sports, it’s unpredictability leading many a manager to pull out their own hair or pop open a few too many bottles of cheap lager. One thing we can bank on though, is that the Colorado Avalanche are good.. . damn good. They are currently ranked 1st in the league’s overall standings, 1st in goals forced, 1st in goals against, 1st in shots forced, and 1st in goal differential with a whopping +31 (next closest team is Carolina Hurricanes at +16). It is becoming safe to say that we should be leaning towards subbing out any goalie facing the Avs for the foreseeable future.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have a couple of teams that are now becoming increasingly safe to start our goalies against, specifically the Calgary Flames and Nashville Predators. These are the bottom two teams in the league in both the overall standings and goals forced per game. Calgary, in particular, is an enticing matchup for any twine tender because, in addition to having the lowest goals forced per game at 2.14 (Nashville 2nd to last with 2.45), the Flames are currently in the top ten in shots forced per game (29.5), essentially meaning they will pad your goalies points and categories by providing high save volume, high save percentage, low goals against average, and likely - a win. Any goalie facing them is a must start, with Nashville right in that same tier.

As for the rest of Thursday’s matchups, let’s dive in!

(Please note that the goalies listed are considered “probable” to start. Keep refreshing your Goalie Post app to see which goalies are “confirmed” starting. Don’t have the app? Get it for Apple or Android.)

START ‘EM

Sam Montembault, Montreal Canadiens - Monty hasn’t looked like himself to start the season (4-5-1 record with 3.56 GAA and .858 SV%) but Coach Martin St. Louis keeps turning to the Canadien born keeper in hopes of sparking a fire in him. Thursday night’s home contest against the Washington Capitals, who currently sit 6th worst in the league in goals forced per game, could be the match Montembeault needs to rekindle his flame. Goal support shouldn’t be an issue, as the Canadiens are 12th in the league in scoring and will be facing backup goalie Charlie Lindgren (3.16 GAA, .893 SV%) on the second night of a back to back for the Caps. The Canadiens have sputtered out losses in 6 of their last 7 games, including 3 straight home losses, but look for the bleu, blanc, et rouge to get back on track against the Capitals on Thursday, at least for one night. Start ‘Em!

START ‘EM

Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues - When times look darkest, Jordan Binnington and the Blues have a knack for finding the light. And, boy, do things look dark in St. Louis, these days. The team has a league worst -23 goal differential and goalie Jordan Binnington has only 4 wins on the year in 13 starts, currently sporting a lowly 3.30 GAA and .872 SV%. But this is a Blues team that went from last in the league in January of 2019 to go on to win the Stanley Cup that same year. And Binnington is not only the goalie that sparked that incredible dark horse run, but, also, the goalie that led Team Canada to ultimate victory in the Four Nations Face Off last February. This is a goalie that knows how to win, period. So while the streaks and stats don’t exactly inspire confidence at the moment, the gut says that the Blues are due for good news against Philadelphia on Thursday night. Let’s Start ‘Em!

SIT ‘EM

Igor Shesterkin, New York Rangers - Shesty has been rewarding fantasy managers who turned to him this year, posting a 2.43 GAA with a .911 SV% while collecting 400 saves (2nd in NHL) and 7 wins in 16 games for a middling Rangers club. The Rangers have found success on the road this year (9-2-1 record away from Madison Square Garden), but face the dreaded Colorado Avalanche, who, in addition to the aforementioned accolades, boast a 7-0-2 record at home, which includes a current 9 game home point streak to start the year. The Russian keeper has coughed up 3 or more goals in 4 of his past 5 starts and we should expect to see that trend continue in Colorado. If you’ve got other options, don’t risk a start on this one, better off to Sit ‘Em!

SIT ‘EM

Karel Vejmelka, Utah Mammoth - The Mammoth and Vejmelka, in particular, are in the midst of a downward spiral, having lost 3 straight and 8 out of their last 10, bringing the Czech net minder down to a .883 save percentage on the year. After starting the season with wins in 6 of his first 7 contests, the 29 year old Vejmelka has plummeted towards unreliability, now losing 5 of his last 7 games and letting 23 goals go by him through that stretch. On Thursday night, Utah plays host to the Vegas Golden Knights (who they actually host for two of their next three games, all at home), but we shouldn’t expect them to flip the switch just yet, as Vegas has been a consistent contender and has points in 15 of their 19 games played this year. With 23 other goalies between the pipes on Thursday night, we can let Vejmelka tend to the bench against Vegas. Sit ‘Em!

DESPERATION MODE START

John Gibson, Detroit Red Wings - Much ado was made about John Gibson joining the Red Wings this offseason to provide stability in net and while his season numbers of 3.31 GAA and .875 SV% have been rather pedestrian thus far, Detroit currently sits atop the gauntlet that is the Atlantic division and have been held steady in the crease by the rotation of the 38 year old Cam Talbot and the 32 year old Gibson. At 48% rostered in Fantrax, 25% rostered in Yahoo, and 17% owned in ESPN, Gibson could be worth a gamble against an Islanders team that is playing on the road for the 7th straight game! If you are desperate, then might as well Start ‘Em!

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading! My name is Garrett Finlay and you can follow me on X @garrett_fi51284 and on Bluesky @garrettfinlay.bsky.social where I am often talking goalies and fantasy hockey. I’ll be back here next Thursday to breakdown another busy night of twine tending action! Happy Hockeying and good luck out there!