King's Coach, Keeper Decisions, and Rheaume's Rise

Hey there hockey fans! We’ve got quite the series going in the Stanley Cup Finals, with the Vegas Golden Knights and the Carolina Hurricanes currently deadlocked at 2 wins each. Frederik Andersen and Carter Hart have done their best to ensure a forward receives the Conn Smythe, but with a few games left there’s still some runway for them to add to their bids. A couple of shut out victories to close out the series by either keeper would really get that conversation going again. Though, Andersen may have ceded the remaining starts to Brandon Bussi after Bussi was able to step up for Carolina’s game 4 victory.

Out west we saw another coaching hire, as former New York Rangers coach Peter Laviolette was brought in to lead the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings are at a bit of an impasse with their franchise. After 5 straight 1st round playoff exits (and 7 times total in 7 postseason appearances since they last hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2013-14), they are left deciding whether they need a little roster retool, or if what they really need is to tear the whole thing down and rebuild. Given the hiring of Laviolette (the 7th winningest coach in NHL history), it appears they are going to try to retool with what they’ve got and push in their chips for another whack at a Stanley Cup.

Laviolette (846-562-186 all-time record as head coach) is best known for his offensive approach and his hiring is good news for former Ranger forward Artemi Panarin. The Breadman set a career high of 120 points under Laviolette’s tutelage in 2023-24, but fell to “just 84 points” last season. It will, also, be interesting to see if Laviolette’s presence can bring more offense out of former #2 overall draft pick Quinton Byfield, or if the King’s look to move him for a more immediately impactful player.

The 2 goalies at the top of the Kings depth chart, Darcy Kuemper and Anton Forsberg, are both signed through the end of next season, so barring any big trades we should expect to see that same tandem through 2026. Kuemper is 36, while crease mate Forsberg will turn 34 in November. Between injury and age, don’t expect either goalie to start more than 50 games for the Kings next season. Fantasy managers should expect the Goals Against and the Save Percentage to be average to below-average for this duo, but given the Kings’ recent commitment to win now, look for the Wins to go up this year in L.A.’s crease.

With the postseason coming to a close and with just a few weeks left before the 2026 NHL draft, now may be a good time for fantasy managers in keeper and dynasty leagues to revisit their rosters without their rose-colored shades. I recently took a second look at a keeper keeper decision (yes, that’s right - it was a keeper decision about goalies, so it works) and what seemed like a difficult choice in April appeared quite simply and plainly to me in June. Let’s examine:

The league is a 16 team, head-to-head categories league, with goalie categories of Goals Against Average, Save Percentage, Wins, and SHut Outs. There is a minimum of 3 goalie starts per week and a maximum of 3 goalies allowed on each team’s roster.

My team currently has 3 goalies rostered, but only 1 keeper can be kept at the end of each season. So I have to choose 1 goalie to keep between - Mackenzie Blackwood (my incumbent keeper), Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, and Karel Vejmelka.

Back in April, my thought pattern about this ran something like - Blackwood could play 40-50 games for the best team in the league, but 6K has a shot at being the starter for a Buffalo team that has the talent to top the East for years to come, but Vejmelka has the undisputed volume, so with 3 good options, what do I do?

After stepping away from the decision for a couple of months, I returned to it with a fresh take: out of the 3 options, Vejmelka’s situation is the most sure thing.

Blackwood could still play 40-50 games for the best team in the NHL, but he could just as easily play 30-35 games for a team that takes a step back following the abrupt departure of GM Chris MacFarland and the likelihood that the Pacific Division improves its play (COL 19-2-3 vs Pacific Division foes last year). Plus, the Avs were not shy about letting Wedgewood handle the reigns.

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s metrics have flip flopped back and forth over the years and there are questions as to whether we get the 2.50 GAA, .910 SV% version or the 3.50 GAA, .890 SV% rendition. The same question could be asked of the Buffalo Sabres, who are well versed in the Dr. Jekyll/ Mr. Hyde act. And then there is Alex Lyon … and Colton Ellis … and Devon Levi …

For Vejmelka, the competition in the crease just isn’t there. In the past 2 seasons, the Mammoth keeper has appeared in 122 games, racking up 64 wins while still hovering around a .900 SV%. It’s quantity more than quality and it’s safety over high-stakes, but with the criteria of 3 minimum goalie starts per week, having a reliable volume-based goalie will allow me to load up on forwards and d-men early in the draft, and in-season, it may afford me the chance to stash a “wait and see” goalie off the waiver wire before they’ve reached their peak. Perhaps scoring next year’s Brandon Bussi in the process.

Of course, I intend to explore trade options in the offseason, and we’re not even into the NHL’s free agency period, so much can and likely will change before the keeper decision must be submitted, but I felt like a more objective fantasy GM looking at this dilemma in June, versus in April when I was caught up in the throes of the fantasy playoffs.

Congratulations to former Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Manon Rheaume for her rise to general manager of PWHL Detroit! Rheaume was the first woman to play in the NHL, way back in 1992, as well as, the first woman to play in the QMJHL, and we wish her nothing but success in taking on this new role.

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, so until then - Happy Hockeying and good luck out there!