Connor Hellebuyck‘s Vezina-and-Hart-Trophy-winning campaign in 2024-25 looked like a throwback to another era. While tandems have largely defined the modern crease, Hellebuyck, along with a handful of others, suggests the classic No. 1 goaltender is far from extinct. We might just have to redefine it.
Let’s look at the last 16 seasons of data — eight seasons before the Vegas expansion, eight seasons since. From 2009-10 to 2016-17, the average crease share of a top-12 fantasy goalie was 74.1%, with an average of 35.2 wins and 215.7 fantasy points. Among all teams, 25% had a goaltender with 75% crease share or higher and 54.2% had at least 65%.
From 2017-18 to 2024-25, the average crease share of a top-12 fantasy goalie was 65.0%, with an average of 32.6 wins and 181.2 fantasy points. This time, only 7.9% had a goaltender with 75% crease share or higher and 33.3% had at least 65%.
(The 2012-13, 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons have all been prorated to 82 games.)
The average goalie spent a lot less time in the crease since the most recent expansion. Only two goalies had a crease share larger than 75% in 2024-25, and you know exactly who they are, as Hellebuyck and Andrei Vasilevskiy are responsible for 11 of 20 such campaigns. Hellebuyck and Vasilevskiy are a clear concentration of power here. Aside from them, only Juuse Saros and Carey Price have hit 75% twice.
In the 2009-10 to 2016-17 stretch, prior to expansion, there were 17 goalies with multiple individual seasons of at least 75% crease share and only 11 others who managed it just once. It wasn’t a concentration of power then; goaltenders with massive workloads were common.
But if we lower the bar just a little, instead of the classic 75% threshold, we get some growth in single-goalie usage when we make 65% the minimum for a “No. 1.” Whereas we had only eight in 2023-24, there were 15 that took at least 65% of their team’s crease last season.
Tying it all together, 65.0% is a fair threshold for crease share for a top-12 fantasy goalie since 2017-18. It’s a good target for the set-and-forget variety of goaltender, especially in leagues with weekly lineup changes that don’t allow you to shuffle in backups for a night.
That’s 15 goalies that received and should continue to receive 65% of their team’s crease. Blackwood and Knight didn’t get 65% on the season as a whole, but cleared it when considering just the time with their new teams.
But we can add a few more to the list. Injuries and veterans in the way played a role in keeping five other goaltenders from clearing the bar last season but we can pencil them in for this season, with no tandem in sight.
There is still a need to monitor tandems for the coming season. Firstly, just because a goaltender gets the workload, doesn’t mean they get the fantasy results. Just ask Saros and the Predators from last season.
Secondly, there is value, especially in daily lineup leagues, in leaning into tandem deployments because of the cost of acquisition, as they go in drafts much later than the full-time starters.
Thirdly, tandems don’t have to stay tandems forever. Goaltenders, especially young ones still getting their feet wet in the NHL, can emerge from a time-share to become a force in fantasy.
So let’s check on the 12 remaining NHL teams that don’t necessarily have a goaltender projected to get 54 or more starts (65%) for the coming campaign, presented in alphabetical order.
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2024-25 season
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Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen: 64.8% crease share, 33.2 fantasy points (26.5 years old)
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James Reimer: 33.9% crease share, 32.6 fantasy points (37.5 years old)
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Devon Levi: 9.8% crease share, -13.0 fantasy points (23.7 years old)
2025-26 roster
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Alexandar Georgiev: 54.79% crease share (with COL, SJS), -35.4 fantasy points (29.6 years old)
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Devon Levi
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Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
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Alex Lyon: 31.66% crease share (with DET), 40.2 fantasy points (32.8 years old)
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see all four goaltenders get reps this season, but Luukkonen has the most upside. The bottom line to remember is that unless the Sabres are way more competitive than they are projected to be, there isn’t likely to be much fantasy value. Even the “starter” barely cracked 30 points last year.
2024-25 season
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Pyotr Kochetkov: 57.0% crease share, 84.8 fantasy points (26.2 years old)
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Frederik Andersen: 27.0% crease share, 44.0 fantasy points (36.0 years old)
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Spencer Martin: 8.5% crease share, -8.4 fantasy points (30.3 years old)
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Dustin Tokarski: 7.3% crease share, 16.8 fantasy points (36.0 years old)
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Yaniv Perets: 0.2% crease share, -0.8 fantasy points (25.6 years old)
2025-26 roster
Andersen and Kochetkov are probably destined to split time, as Kochetkov has earned enough trust. If the Canes weren’t in a compete window, we would probably see more of a changing of the guard, but they are, so we should see plenty of the reliable Andersen. This tandem might be one of the rare ones worth drafting into, as both Andersen and Kochetkov should return value.
2024-25 season
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Elvis Merzlikins: 64.3% crease share, 53.6 fantasy points (31.4 years old)
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Daniil Tarasov: 22.3% crease share, -1.0 fantasy points (26.5 years old)
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Jet Greaves: 13.4% crease share, 57.4 fantasy points (24.5 years old)
2025-26 roster
Fedotov adds some competition, but Greaves posted stellar numbers in just 11 appearances last season, so he certainly has the most shine heading into 2025-26. The Blue Jackets appear poised to win more, meaning whoever emerges from the fray could be a sleeper, but any kind of split puts a cap on non-streaming usage for all. That said, Greaves is someone to stash for keeper leagues if he and the team continue to take strides.
2024-25 season
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Cam Talbot: 53.6% crease share, 70.4 fantasy points (38.2 years old)
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Alex Lyon: 31.7% crease share, 40.2 fantasy points (32.8 years old)
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Petr Mrazek: 25.0% crease share, 9.4 fantasy points (33.6 years old)
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Ville Husso: 12.6% crease share, -13.0 fantasy points (30.6 years old)
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Sebastian Cossa: 0.9% crease share, 2.4 fantasy points (22.8 years old)
2025-26 roster
Ideally this isn’t even close to a tandem, as Gibson should be a No. 1 for a club at this stage of his career. But he’s toiled through so many down years with the Ducks that it’s a genuine question as to whether he’s faded overall or just needed this change of scenery. Think back to Darcy Kuemper at this time last season: Usurped in Washington and off the fantasy radar; only to storm in, recapture his magic and finish near the top of the pack for goaltending. Gibson is a solid investment at the draft if you’re willing to wait.
2024-25 season
2025-26 roster
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Calvin Pickard
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Stuart Skinner
Is this a tandem? Ideally for the Oilers, it’s not even close to one. But Skinner keeps leaving the door ajar for Pickard to steal away starts. Even though this is a team destined for 50-plus wins and Skinner is certainly the 1A, it’s just hard to trust recent results. Did you even remember that they both won the same number of games in the playoffs this past summer? Skinner will be given the chance to take the ball and run with it, but he certainly shouldn’t get drafted as if that’s fait accompli.
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2024-25 season
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Samuel Ersson: 52.8% crease share, 32.6 fantasy points (25.9 years old)
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Ivan Fedotov: 29.0% crease share, -12.0 fantasy points (28.8 years old)
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Aleksei Kolosov: 18.3% crease share, -16.6 fantasy points (23.7 years old)
2025-26 roster
Can I get away with just writing “nothing to see here”? I’m going to try. Let’s see if it gets published.
*Editor’s note: Fine
2024-25 season
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Tristan Jarry: 40.9% crease share, 39.4 fantasy points (30.4 years old)
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Alex Nedeljkovic: 43.5% crease share, 28.8 fantasy points (29.7 years old)
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Joel Blomqvist: 15.6% crease share, -5.8 fantasy points (23.7 years old)
2025-26 roster
We saw some signs of potential from Blomqvist early in the season, some signs of life from Jarry late in the season and Silovs is a wild card. The big picture is that the Pens are likely in the draft lottery competition more than the wins column, so fantasy results in the crease will be limited. But with Sidney Crosby still driving the bus, we can’t completely discount the possibility that the Penguins stumble into a groove and that one of these three benefits from it.
2024-25 season
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Alexandar Georgiev: 56.8% crease share, -35.2 fantasy points (29.6 years old)
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Mackenzie Blackwood: 54.1% crease share, 29.4 fantasy points (28.8 years old)
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Vitek Vanecek: 26.2% crease share, -17.0 fantasy points (29.7 years old)
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Yaroslav Askarov: 14.6% crease share, 8.0 fantasy points (23.3 years old)
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Georgi Romanov: 8.5% crease share, -15.6 fantasy points (25.8 years old)
2025-26 roster
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Yaroslav Askarov
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Alex Nedeljkovic: 43.51% crease share (with PIT), 28.8 fantasy points (29.7 years old)
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Jakub Skarek: 1.55% crease share (with NYI), -3.2 fantasy points (25.9 years old)
Sometime in the next two to three seasons, the Sharks will emerge as a contender. That bodes very well for Askarov as he develops into a full-time starter. With Nedeljkovic likely forming a tandem this season, Askarov is still a season or two from full-time status, but don’t look away if San Jose heats up. In the meantime, Askarov should be stashed in keeper leagues.
2024-25 season
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Anthony Stolarz: 40.5% crease share, 133.6 fantasy points (31.7 years old)
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Joseph Woll: 49.8% crease share, 110.6 fantasy points (27.2 years old)
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Matt Murray (TOR): 2.4% crease share, 0.2 fantasy points (31.3 years old)
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Dennis Hildeby: 7.3% crease share, -0.6 fantasy points (24.1 years old)
2025-26 roster
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Dennis Hildeby
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Anthony Stolarz
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Joseph Woll
This is our gold standard for tandems, with both goaltenders eclipsing 100 fantasy points last season. They finished No. 11 and No. 16 in fantasy points from the crease, despite neither cracking 50% in share. The Leafs return with an equally formidable defensive game under coach Craig Berube, and early ADP trends clearly favor Stolarz (82.3 vs. 207.9), which makes Woll the goaltender to target.
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2024-25 season
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Arturs Silovs: 11.0% crease share, -15.8 fantasy points (24.5 years old)
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Kevin Lankinen: 61.0% crease share, 100.0 fantasy points (30.4 years old)
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Thatcher Demko: 26.3% crease share, 21.2 fantasy points (29.8 years old)
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Nikita Tolopilo: 1.7% crease share, 2.2 fantasy points (25.5 years old)
2025-26 roster
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Thatcher Demko
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Kevin Lankinen
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Nikita Tolopilo
Demko remains on a team-friendly deal this season, but his salary jumps next year, locking the Canucks into $13 million for the Demko-Lankinen duo through at least 2028-29. Lankinen was a strong fantasy pickup while Demko was injured last season, though both stumbled down the stretch. Demko has top-tier fantasy potential with a heavy workload, but Lankinen’s emergence likely limits him to around 45 starts if both stay healthy. Demko is a solid mid-round pick, though you may want to insure him with Lankinen in the late rounds.
2024-25 season
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Adin Hill: 59.7% crease share, 137.2 fantasy points (29.4 years old)
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Ilya Samsonov: 35.5% crease share, 43.8 fantasy points (28.6 years old)
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Akira Schmid: 4.8% crease share, 16.0 fantasy points (25.4 years old)
2025-26 roster
Hill is the prime age for goaltenders (literally; in the data above, the average age of a top-12 fantasy goaltender is 29). His 59.7% crease share was a career high, and this season his stamina will be tested, with only Schmid backing him up. There’s a strong case for including Hill among the starters mentioned above. His ADP as the eighth goalie off the board is justified — a true tandem seems unlikely in Vegas this season.
2024-25 season
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Charlie Lindgren: 46.3% crease share, 54.8 fantasy points (31.8 years old)
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Logan Thompson: 51.3% crease share, 139.4 fantasy points (28.6 years old)
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Hunter Shepard: 1.2% crease share, -10.2 fantasy points (29.9 years old)
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Clay Stevenson: 1.2% crease share, -3.4 fantasy points (26.6 years old)
2025-26 roster
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Charlie Lindgren
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Logan Thompson
Although last season was nearly a 50-50 tandem, Thompson emerged as the superior goalie. He likely earned a larger share this season, but it may not be enough to crack the fantasy elite at his position. There’s also the question of whether the Capitals will repeat anything close to their surprise President’s Trophy-winning campaign. That said, Thompson’s ADP as the No. 13 goalie is a discount, and Lindgren is worth considering as insurance.
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