Monday Ramblings: Prospect Goaltenders On The Rise Ft. Dobes, Nabokov, Wallstedt and More

Welcome fantasy managers to another week of the Monday Ramblings. At this point in the season most fantasy managers have a relatively good idea what their respective rosters are made of. You either have yourself a lineup ready to challenge for your league's title or you begin to focus on your fantasy leagues trade deadline with an eye towards the future. For those who find themselves tied to the latter, here are some young netminders who’s stock continues to rise as we continue our march through the second half of the fantasy season.
Let’s get to it!

Dobes Phenomenal For Habs

Jakub Dobes is certainly putting to rest any lingering issue to the teams backup role with his sensational play to begin his NHL career. The 6’4” 215 lbs netminder has an impeccable 5-0-1 record accompanied by a miniscule 1.93 goals against and impressive .933 save percentage with one shutout. Dobes’ play has been outstanding giving the Habs a chance to win in each one of his starts, which is all you can ask for especially from a young goaltender.

Montreal’s 5th round pick (136th overall) in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft is allowing the Canadiens to scale back Sam Montembeault’s starts, something they had difficulty in doing with Cayden Primeau’s early season struggles. This of course keeps Montembeault at a reasonable workload while at the same time giving Montreal an extended look at their goaltending pipeline.

The 23-year-old product out of Ostrava, Czechia is giving Montreal’s brass plenty to think about as the team continues to navigate its goaltending position through its ongoing rebuild. Offering up yet another possible avenue in which to chart a path forward with Montreal’s apparent goaltender of the future Jabob Fowler waiting in the wings.

As it relates to a fantasy perspective, Dobes is quite an interesting file. If the young netminder can continue a strong run of play in the second half of the season one can very much see a world where he steals starts from the Habs number one. Fantasy managers would be wise to continue monitoring the situation as Montembeault's hold on the starters role is less than ironclad.

Nabokov Net Presence

Ilya Nabokov has been nothing short of incredible since his promotion to the KHL over the past two seasons. In his rookie year he became the starting goaltender for one of the league's top teams in Metallurg Magnitogorsk, compiling a 23-13-3 record with a tidy 2.15 goals against and .930 save percentage to go along with three shutouts.

The native of Kasil, Russia then followed that performance with an even more impressive run in the playoffs going 16-6 with a sizzling 1.82 goals against and incredible .942 save percentage plus four shutouts in winning the KHL title (Gagarin Cup) as well as becoming the league's youngest playoff MVP in the process.

If that wasn't enough, the Colorado Avalanche prospect also took home KHL Rookie Of The Year honours for good measure before Joe Sakic, Chris MacFarland and Avs management had seen enough to make him their 2nd round pick (38th overall) in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. In his draft + 1 year he has only cemented Colorado’s decision in selecting him by fashioning a 16-12-4 record to go along with a 2.18 goals against and .926 save percentage for a Metallurg team that finds itself middle of the pack in the KHL standing this year.

From a fantasy perspective, there have been reports that the young Nabokov has nixed any new deal in the KHL with a desire to bring his talents to North America. That being said, with the signing of Mackenzie Blackwood to a 5-year deal most certainly gives the Avs highly touted prospect time to develop on this side of the pond. However, keep in mind that as an overage draft pick he is a bit more seasoned than your average18-year-old fresh from junior hockey, giving him a leg up on the competition and potentially paving the way for a quicker promotion to the NHL.

Wallstedt Working His Way To Wild

The Minnesota Wild’s current tandem of Filip Gustavsson / Marc-Andre Fleury will see this organization through to the end of the 2024-2025 NHL season, however once the Wild’s season has come to an end there should be a plum opportunity for the 6’3” 214 lbs Wallstedt to seize the backup role behind the aforementioned Gustavsson.

Fleury’s impending retirement should allow fantasy managers to get a good long look at what Wallstedt's value could be behind a very solid roster such as the Wild. As an added bonus if he can demonstrate the skills and attributes that made him a first round selection it may not be long before we see Wallsteadt in a starter’s role with Gustavsson only being signed though the 2025-2026 season.

Now in his third year with the Wild’s AHL affiliate the Iowa Wild, the young Swedish netminder has compiled a 45-41-10 record accompanied by a 2.85 goals against with a .904 save percentage. These totals may not jump off the page but if you take a closer look Wallstedt is doing this on a middling team over the past three seasons. I would fully expect a small bump in his peripheral numbers under a more structured system in Minnesota provided that he indeed does make the jump to the pros.

From a fantasy perspective he is a must have for any rebuilding / retooling team due to the opportunity that lies ahead with the aforementioned Fleury retirement. Wallstedt could conceivably find himself with the inside track to the Wild’s backup role come next fall which would increase his value significantly.

Levi Playing At High Level

Devon Levi may not be plying his trade at the NHL level, however, he is still a big part of the Buffalo Sabres long term plan moving forward. Levi currently finds himself with the Sabres AHL affiliate the Rochester Americans where he has assumed starters duties while putting together a 12-4-2 record to go along with a 2.31 goals against and .914 save percentage.

The young Levi should have plenty of time to properly develop within Buffalo’s system, seeing as the teams number one Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is signed until the end of the 2028-2029 season. This of course allows the 23-year-old to acclimatise himself to the rigours of a starters workload in a less pressure filled environment.

There have been some pretty lean times in Buffalo for well over a decade now, however, with UPL currently patrolling the Sabres crease and Levi getting his reps in Rochester, the Buffalo fanbase should feel much more comfortable with the state of the teams goaltending for a number of years to come.

From a fantasy perspective Devon Levi would be more of a stash at the moment but with a clear opening at the backup position come season's end, one can certainly see Levi up with the Sabres as the organizations new number two for the 2025-2026 NHL season, increasing his value substantially.

There you have it folks, a look into some young prospect goaltenders who continue to increase their respective value through a high level of play.

Be sure to download the The Goalie Post app for daily goalie updates and information!

Thanks for reading and feel free to follow me on X @mikeouellet9

See you all again next Monday!