NHL Fantasy – Daily Goalie Rankings – Saturday, January 6th, 2024

by: Domagoj Erbežnik

We have 12 games on a busy Saturday schedule in NHL today with an early start in Philadelphia at 1 pm Eastern time so make sure you have your fantasy team set up early today. There are great games throughout the day as possible the best game being played at 4 pm Eastern time between the Avalanche and the Panthers in Colorado.

Jones and Markstrom are at the top of our list today as they provided great fantasy value over the last week and are facing limited offenses. Their teams are in good form lately so expect another good fantasy haul from both of them again today. Ullmak has been solid again this season so despite him going against the Lightning we have him ranked in the top 5.

Carolina and New Jersey are on back-to-back and both teams face tough opponents so we would avoid starting their goalies.

1
Martin Jones vs San Jose Sharks
Grade: A

Jones has been great this season for the Leafs as he currently holds a .930 save percentage and has allowed only 1 goal in the last 2 games while facing 59 shots. The Sharks have lost 10 straight games in regulation and this should be another win for the Leafs to end their 3-game road trip in California. Make sure to start Jones again today.

2
Jacob Markstrom vs Philadelphia Flyers
Grade: A

Since returning from injury Markstrom has a 4-2-0 record and only once in those 6 games he had a save percentage below .900. Also in the same span, he has allowed 0 or 1 goals in the game three times. His numbers look great and with him in good form, the Flames are playing better and are 6-2-2 over their last 10 games and have gained ground in their fight to be in a playoff conversation. Tonight he will face the Flyers team that has been ice-cold lately as the have recorded only 1 win in their last 7 games.

3
Igor Shesterkin/Jonathan Quick vs Montreal Canadiens
Grade: A-

Shesterkin holds a 6-1-0 record over his last 7 starts and has looked much better lately as he had a shaky start to the season. If Quick starts he is a great waiver option for today as he has been better goalie for the Rangers this season with .917 save percentage. The Rangers are one of the best teams in the league and with them going against the Canadiens tonight who are 1-4-0 over the last 5 games make sure Igor is in your starting lineup.

4
Marc-Andre Fleury vs Columbus Blue Jackets
Grade: B+

Fleury is coming off two hard losses to the Flames and the Lightning as he allowed only 5 goals in those two games combined. The Blue Jackets have scored only 5 goals over the last three games and look very limited offensively and the Wild should snap their losing streak tonight.

5
Linus Ullmark vs Tampa Bay Lightning
Grade: B

Ullmark brings his 12-5-2 record into a highly anticipated game against the Lightning tonight. The Bruins have a lot of shots with 32.1 per game and have allowed the 8th most shots per game in the league. The Bruins are coming off a 6-5 loss to the Penguins on Thursday and will for sure tighten their defenses in this game. Over the last two seasons with the Bruins Ullmak is 4-1-0 over his 5 starts against the Lightning with a save percentage of over .935. Despite a tough matchup on the paper make sure Ullmark is in your starting lineup.

6
Logan Thompson vs New York Islanders
Grade: B

the Golden Knights have lost 6 out of their last 7 games and have faced in 5 of those games teams that will likely finish the season as a top 10 team. Tonight they will face the Islanders who will play their last game of the road trip in Vegas tonight. They are coming off a 5-1 win in Arizona and this will likely be a low-scoring game but the home team should have a slight advantage.

7
Thatcher Demko vs New Jersey Devils
Grade: B-

After his red-hot start of the season, he has cooled down as he had a .897 save percentage in 8 games played in December. Also, his road record isn’t impressive as he holds a 5-5-1 record with a .902 save percentage, The Devils are on back-to-back and the Cauncks should be a favorite but be aware of those numbers if you are expecting great fantasy numbers from Demko.

8
Juuse Saros/Kevin Lankinen vs Dallas Stars
Grade: C+

Since the start of December Saros holds an impressive 8-4-1 record with a save percentage just below .910. This is a very important game for the Predators as they need points to stay in the hunt for a playoff position and divisional games are very important. Saros has lost their first matchup this season allowing three goals on 34 shots. Oettinger likely still isn’t ready to return and Saros and the Predators should take advantage of the Stars team playing without Jake Oettinger and their best defenseman Miro Heiskanen. If by any chance Lankinen ends up in goal today drop him 5 or 6 places.

9
Stuart Skinner vs Ottawa Senators
Grade: C+

Skinner rides a four-game winning streak and has allowed only 8 goals in those games. Since the start of December, he has looked as a top 10 goalie in the league recording 7 wins in 9 starts, and along with that his save percentage is just below .920 over those 9 games. The Senators are one of the worst teams in the NHL and have won only 3 games over the last 10 games. Make sure Skinner is in your starting lineup today.

10
Tristan Jarry vs Buffalo Sabers
Grade: C

The Penguins look good lately and have a 7-2-1 record over the last 10 games as they look like a team that will be in a fight for playoff position in a very competitive Metro division. The Sabers have been one of the worst teams in the East this season and haven’t improved much lately. The Penguins should win this game and if you own Jarry you should start him despite him having a few shaky starts lately.

11
Carter Hart vs Calgary Flames
Grade: C

The Flyers play good hockey at home as they allow only 27.9 shots per game and that puts them tied for 5th best in the league. On average, only 5.5 goals are being scored when they play at home and another low-scoring game should be expected today. The Flames are still favorites and should win this game but if this game stays low scoring Hart should bring solid fantasy points to your team.

12
Sergei Bobrovsky vs Colorado Avalanche
Grade: C

Bobrovsky and the Panthers are playing great hockey and Bobrovsky has a 5-game winning streak and during that streak, he has allowed only 9 goals and hasn’t allowed more than three in the same game. But tonight he will go against the highest-scoring team on their home ice as the Avalance score 4.35 goals per game at Bell Centre. This should be a high-scoring game but a slight advantage should be given to the Panthers as they are one of the best teams in the league in every aspect of the game. So start Bobrovsky in front of Georgiev.

13
Ilya Sorokin vs Vegas Golden Knights
Grade: C-

Sorokin hasn’t had another great season so far this season as his save percentage is at .912 (.922 save percentage for his career) and has recorded only 12 wins in 26 games played. Over his last 5 games he has a 2-2-1 record and has allowed 14 goals and tonight he will face the Vegas team that hasn’t played great lately and they come into this game with only 3 wins in the last 10 games. The Vegas Golden Knights are desperate for this win and this could be a tricky game for the Islanders and Sorokin.

14
Alexandar Georgiev vs Florida Panthers
Grade: C-

Georgiev has already played in 32 games this season and despite his save percentage being at only .897 he has recorded 21 wins and provided a bunch of fantasy points. He has won the last 4 games and in the last 2 of those games, he allowed 4 goals. The Avalanche are a high-scoring team but tonight they are going against one of the best teams in the league and Georgiev has a very hard task in front of him. This could be a high-scoring game and as the Panthers look like a top 3 team in the league look to avoid starting Georgiev if you have better options.

15
Jordan Binnington vs Carolina Hurricanes
Grade: C-

Binnington has had up and up-and-down season so far and most of those down sections have been on the road as he has a 3-7-1 record with only a .893 save percentage on the road. Tonight he goes against the Hurricanes who won 5 straight games and will look to extend that streak. In net on the other side will likely be Antti Raanta who hasn’t been impressive and the Canes are on back-to-back. This could be a high-scoring game we would avoid staring either goalie in this game.

16
Andrei Vasilevskiy vs Boston Bruins
Grade: D+

Vasilevskiy hasn’t been great this season as he holds a 9-8-0 record with only a .902 save percentage. Tonight he will face the best team in the division in the Bruins in a very difficult matchup for both teams. Vasilevskiy has won only one out of the last four games (losses to the Rangers, Jets, and Panthers).

17
Nico Daws vs Vancouver Canucks
Grade: D+

Daws has won in both starts this season but tonight he will have by far the toughest test so far this season as his Devils will face the best team in the Pacific in Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks are the highest-scoring team per game with 3.76 goals per game so avoid starting Daws in most fantasy formats.

18
Scott Wedgewood vs Nashville Predators
Grade: D
19
Antti Raanta vs St. Louis Blues
Grade: D
20
Devon Levi/Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen vs Pittsburgh Penguins
Grade: D
21
Daniil Tarasov vs Minnesota Wild
Grade: D-
22
Sam Montembeault vs New York Rangers
Grade: E
23
Anton Forsberg vs Edmonton Oilers
Grade: E
24
Mackenzie Blackwood vs Toronto Maple Leafs
Grade: E
Wedgewood and Raanta are goalies that can be started in some fantasy formats as they are a part of great teams that have a good chance to win every night but their performance hasn't been great lately so expect them to concede 3+ goals even if they win the game. Other goalies ranked below shouldn't be started in most fantasy formats as their teams will likely concede 3+ goals and they don't have a good chance to get away with a win.