Goalie Start 'Em, Sit 'Em ft: Fowler, Skinner, Ellis and More

Hello hockey fans! We are about a quarter of the way through the season and the trends are starting to reveal themselves for good. Not everything is a known commodity, we’re still talking about fantasy’s most volatile position, but there are a few more conclusions to hang our goalie masks on these days. The Ducks, Canadiens, Sabres, Golden Knights, Flames, Kraken, Red Wings, Rangers, Flyers, Blue Jackets, Mammoth, Oilers, Sharks and Kings all just want to win and will simply ride whatever goalie feels most likely to carry them towards victory, regardless of paychecks, egos, fan input, draft positioning, training camps, or pedigree. If you drafted their predicted starter back in September, you are likely sorely disappointed. Then again, if you nabbed their new hot hand off the waiver wire you are likely feeling pretty good about yourself. Savor these emotions, they likely won’t last long, whether they are good, bad, or ugly.

Now, this fine Thursday in fantasy hockey features 11 games, including one at high noon between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Seattle Kraken being played overseas in Finland (which hopefully you remembered to set your lineup for), so let’s ride the streaks, crunch the numbers, check our guts, and let’s dive right into Goalie Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em!

(Please note that at the time of writing this article, most of the goalies listed are considered “probable” to start. Keep refreshing your Goalie Post app to see which goalies are “confirmed” starting. Don’t have the app? Get it for Apple or Android. Stats from FrozenTools.)

Start ‘Em

Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins and Jacob Fowler, Montreal Canadiens: The Bruins enter this heavyweight contest against the Montreal Canadiens with a fantastic 8-1 record at home. The boys of Beantown have earned four straight victories and have won seven of their last 10 games overall. Their 27-year-old netminder, Jeremy Swayman, has posted nine wins alongside a sparkling 2.21 GAA and .920 SV% through 13 starts. Of course, their opponents on Thursday night are no slouches, either. The Montreal Canadiens come into this bout having won seven of their last 10 games overall. The Habs boast a stellar 6-1-1 record on the road, and will be playing in front of one of the league’s hottest goaltenders in Jacob Fowler, who has turned in an impressive 8 victories with a 2.14 GAA and .925 SV% through 11 games so far this season. Which side will give in on Thursday night? Neither. This game has the looks of a high stakes chess match. The Bruins will do what they do and the Habs will play how they play, likely leaving both Swayman and Fowler locked into a battle of the minds that ends when the first one flinches, likely in overtime by a 3-2 score when all is said and done. If you are rostering either Swayman (save percentage of .913 or higher in three of last four starts) or Jacob Fowler (save percentage of .917 or higher in five of last seven starts) then don’t overthink this one. As a matter of fact, give yourself a pat on the back because your goalie is great and their team is hot. So go ahead and put your goalie in the starting slot, grab a drink and enjoy this game tonight. Somebody has to lose, but somebody will win this game, too, and save percentages above .900 are worth the start in almost any league format. Dueling goalies Start ‘Em!

Sit ‘Em

Stuart Skinner, Winnipeg Jets: Don’t look now, but Stuart Skinner is on a three game wining streak! So why is he on the Sit ‘Em side of things this week? Well, the numbers look rough under the hood, and well, over the hood, too. Despite the wins, Skinner has just one quality start in his past five outings, posting a shaky and unreliable .822 SV% over that span. The Jets have played surprisingly competitive hockey this season, but still hold a minus-12 overall goal differential and have picked up only three wins in their nine games away from Canada Life Centre. On the other side of things, Skinner will square off against the Dallas Stars who have points in eight of their last 10 games and are, also, coming into this matchup off of four days of rest and recovery. Compare that to the Winnipeg Jets, who enter this game immediately following their emotional (and triumphant) victory over the team that stole their man and broke their hearts, the now Connor Hellebuyck-ful New Jersey Devils, and both the early and late stages of the game should favor Dallas on Thursday night. The Jets were building up towards that Hellebuyck reunion game and good on them for it, but now that it has passed, you may want to pass on starting Stuart Skinner for a while. Sit ‘Em!

Joel Hofer, St. Louis Blues: The Blues enter this contest with the Mammoth having dropped three straight road games. Hofer, though, has done his part recently, letting in two goals or fewer in three straight starts and four of his last five overall. But the Mammoth have popped off for five or more goals in each one of their four home wins this season, and while they will be playing on the second half of a back-to-back in Thursday’s matchup, they will, also, likely be starting Karel Vejmelka, as a result. The Mammoth twine tender has allowed three goals or more in six straight starts. And while that is a good sign for a potential Blues victory, it’s, also, a sign that this game could turn into a high scoring Western shootout. The Mammoth may have to score five or more if they want to win this one and with the ninth-ranked scoring offense in the league, they are certainly capable of it. Following Hofer’s strong showing in Detroit already this week, you may be better off safe, than sorry in this one. Sit ‘Em!

Desperation Mode Play

Colten Ellis, Buffalo Sabres: The Sabres are coming off an embarrassing loss to the Lightning on Wednesday night, but all that means for this game is that Colten Ellis should be feeling ready and loose after taking over for Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen in the final frame just last night. Ellis (3-3-0, 3.39 GAA, .873 SV%) has been kind of all over the place in terms of his fantasy production this season, but he, like the Sabres, will have the benefit of facing a Chicago Blackhawks club that is dead last in the NHL in scoring this year (2.17 Goals Forced per Game). The Blackhawks have just a single victory in their last ten games, are one of two teams left with single digit standings points (9). Their recent woes have them just two standings points ahead of the Vancouver Canucks for rights to last place in the entire league. And all of these Blackhawks' deficiencies are what makes this start for Ellis, who is only 22% rostered on Fantrax and 5% rostered on Yahoo, an intriguing fantasy play on Thursday night, especially for those in need of goaltending help. Desperation Mode Start ‘Em!

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. You can also find me providing injury news and updates every Wednesday on Dobber Hockey. I’ll be back here next Thursday to try to breakdown the night’s goaltending slate, so until then - Happy Hockeying and good luck out there!