Vezina Trophy Rankings: Shesterkin motivated to show his worth

Welcome to the first edition of theScore's 2024-25 Vezina Trophy rankings, a monthly look at the top goaltenders across the NHL.

In this exercise, the small sample size of early-season statistics makes for some surprise candidates, but two of the league's best netminders are already making their claims.

A group of usual suspects - Jeremy Swayman, Juuse Saros, Sergei Bobrovsky, Jordan Binnington, and Andrei Vasilevskiy - own middling numbers through the first month of the season, opening the door for an array of newcomers.

This list is guaranteed to have plenty of turnover throughout the season, but here's where things stand at the moment.

GSAA = Goals saved above average
GSAx = Goals saved above expected

5. Joey Daccord, Kraken

Daccord made a name for himself with a strong campaign last season, and while he's still flying under the radar, he's off to a great start in 2024-25. His win-loss record is indicative of a mediocre Seattle roster, but Daccord is posting terrific individual statistics, ranking seventh in GSAA and fifth in GSAx.

The 2015 seventh-round pick had never played more than eight games in an NHL season before appearing in 50 last year, and he doesn't appear to be interested in relinquishing the starter's role any time soon. He's outplayed backup Philipp Grubauer significantly and is quietly cementing himself as one of the NHL's most underrated goaltenders. Daccord will have to author a bulletproof season to actually push for Vezina consideration by season's end, but he's done a good job putting the league on notice in the early stages.

4. Filip Gustavsson, Wild

Gustavsson has put together a fascinating career. His season save percentages since entering the league in 2020-21 are .933, .892, .931, .899, and .917. See a pattern? Every other year, he's a star, and the Wild are currently reaping the benefits of the bizarre trend set by the 26-year-old Swede.

Minnesota had three goaltender options before the season began, and Gustavsson seemed like he could be the odd man out compared to Marc-Andre Fleury and Jesper Wallstedt. One month in, Gustavsson is one of the keys to a blistering start for the Wild; he ranks eighth among all goalies in GSAA and save percentage while also sitting fifth in goals against average. The strong numbers don't tell the entire story, though, as the Wild are the NHL's top team in expected goals against. A strong defensive structure is making Gustavsson's nightly workload easier, and while team success is always a key factor in Vezina voting, Gustavsson needs to prove he can be consistent to barge into the top three.

3. Lukas Dostal, Ducks

The Ducks are terrible, and it's harrowing to wonder where they'd be without Dostal's brilliance between the pipes. Anaheim is allowing the second-most shot attempts and expected goals per 60, but Dostal leads the league in GSAA while sitting second in save percentage GSAx. If the Vezina was handed out in November, he might have it wrapped up. However, an unsustainable workload and unproven track record make him a longshot to win any awards come the summer.

While Dostal's numbers can fall off at any time behind a putrid Ducks roster, the silver lining in Orange County is they've likely found a goalie of the future. John Gibson hasn't played all season due to injury, and Dostal, 24, is providing much better goaltending for nearly $6 million cheaper. Dostal has faced more shots than any other goalie this season - by a significant margin - and that's unlikely to change based on Anaheim's system. It will be fascinating to see how long he can fend off nightly sieges and remain a dark horse in the Vezina race.

2. Connor Hellebuyck, Jets

We've now arrived at the familiar faces. Hellebuyck has lost one start this season and is among the league leaders in all our criteria. We've grown accustomed to the Jets' stalwart posting these types of numbers, but Hellebuyck and trails our leader in nearly every major statistical category, resulting in a silver medal for now. That said, the Winnipeg's backbone will be in the Vezina mix all season as long as he's healthy.

Hellebuyck has the pedigree to earn Vezina votes in any season Winnipeg is a playoff team, and the Jets have already built themselves quite a cushion in that department this season. The 31-year-old is a two-time Vezina winner and a four-time finalist. If he captures the award this season, or again at any point in his career, he's essentially looking at a free pass into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Only 12 netminders have won a trio of Vezinas, many of whom played before the league expanded beyond six teams. The modern-era names to do so include Dominik Hasek, Martin Brodeur, and Patrick Roy.

1. Igor Shesterkin, Rangers

Shesterkin placed tremendous pressure on himself to perform this season after reportedly turning down the richest goalie contract in NHL history, but his early-season performance may be forcing Chris Drury's hand into paying his most important player a king's ransom. Shesterkin is no worse than fourth in any of the stats in the chart above, and the Rangers have the second-best points percentage (.773) in the Metropolitan Division.

New York being in the hunt for a division title isn't a shock, but the Rangers' defensive numbers may be surprising to some. The Blueshirts are a bottom-five team in shots against per game and expected goals against per 60 but have a plus-20 goal differential thanks to their No. 1 goalie. The Rangers are fortunate to have some elite options on the attack, but even on nights where their array of offensive options provides plenty of support, Shesterkin is constantly cleaning up messes in the defensive zone.

Shesterkin appears to be stubborn in his quest to become the highest-paid player at his position. So far this season, he'd be worth every penny.

Keep an eye on:

• Jake Oettinger, Stars
• Anthony Stolarz, Maple Leafs
• Ilya Sorokin, Islanders
• Cam Talbot, Red Wings
• Frederik Andersen, Hurricanes
• Kevin Lankinen, Canucks

(Analytics source: Evolving-Hockey)