This article is part of our Crashing the Crease series.
With the final Wednesday of the NHL regular season upon us, it's time to look at a pair of studs and two duds in net that were able to make or break many fantasy campaigns.
Few people if anyone had Sergei Bobrovsky pegged as a top-10 netminder coming into this season. An injury-plagued 2015-16 campaign saw him struggle to the tune of a 2.75 GAA and .908 save percentage, and there were questions as to whether the Russian would ever regain his 2013 Vezina form. Luckily for those who took a chance on him, Bobrovsky bounced back and then some. He leads the league across the board with a 2.02 GAA, .933 save percentage and 41 wins, and will surely be responsible for quite a few fantasy championships given his draft day price.
It made perfect sense to stay away from Cam Talbot on draft day. The 29-year-old had just posted a 2.55 GAA and .917 save percentage in his first season as a full-time starter, and was no lock to surpass his career high of 21 wins for an Oilers team that had picked first overall four times since 2010. Those who trusted in Talbot were handsomely rewarded, as Edmonton's youth finally matured while strong health and a lack of alternatives gifted him a league-high workload. His 2.40 GAA and .919 save percentage have been more than passable, and Talbot sits just one win back of the league lead with 40.
While a few guys had their value diminished
With the final Wednesday of the NHL regular season upon us, it's time to look at a pair of studs and two duds in net that were able to make or break many fantasy campaigns.
Few people if anyone had Sergei Bobrovsky pegged as a top-10 netminder coming into this season. An injury-plagued 2015-16 campaign saw him struggle to the tune of a 2.75 GAA and .908 save percentage, and there were questions as to whether the Russian would ever regain his 2013 Vezina form. Luckily for those who took a chance on him, Bobrovsky bounced back and then some. He leads the league across the board with a 2.02 GAA, .933 save percentage and 41 wins, and will surely be responsible for quite a few fantasy championships given his draft day price.
It made perfect sense to stay away from Cam Talbot on draft day. The 29-year-old had just posted a 2.55 GAA and .917 save percentage in his first season as a full-time starter, and was no lock to surpass his career high of 21 wins for an Oilers team that had picked first overall four times since 2010. Those who trusted in Talbot were handsomely rewarded, as Edmonton's youth finally matured while strong health and a lack of alternatives gifted him a league-high workload. His 2.40 GAA and .919 save percentage have been more than passable, and Talbot sits just one win back of the league lead with 40.
While a few guys had their value diminished by injuries, Cory Schneider has been plain bad. Reaching 30 wins for the first was always going to be a struggle given the Devils team around him, but the offseason acquisition of Taylor Hall for pennies on the dollar gave New Jersey some offensive upside to complement the high floor of Schneider's six consecutive campaigns with a save percentage of .921 or better. In reality, New Jersey's 28th-ranked offense has been as inept as ever while the team's poor defense has combined with Schneider's struggles to produce disastrous results. He has just 20 wins in 58 appearances, and has hurt owners across the board with a 2.72 GAA and .912 save percentage.
It's easy to say "I told you so" now, but many pegged Petr Mrazek as this season's breakout star in net. Detroit had found a way to make the playoffs in 25 consecutive seasons, so it was fair to expect their 24-year-old netminder to emerge as the driving force in another postseason berth after posting a 21-10-5 record, 1.94 GAA and .933 save percentage in his first 38 appearances of 2015-16. Unfortunately for those who paid up for his potential, Mrazek has been plagued by the same issues that saw him post an .866 save percentage in his last 16 appearances of that campaign. His 18 wins, 3.05 GAA and .901 save percentage in 49 outings are clearly the result of the Czech netminder's own deficiencies, as teammate Jimmy Howard has excelled when healthy. At least those who still believe in Mrazek will be able to get him for next to nothing next season.
Now let's shorten the scope to the recent past with the top performers, three rising and three falling:
Top Performers
Tuukka Rask, BOS - Rask has rebounded from one of his worst stretches of the season in spectacular fashion. He's 4-0-0 with three goals allowed and two shutouts since Mar. 28 after allowing 15 goals in dropping each of his previous four decisions. Boston will do everything in its power to avoid dropping to fourth in the Atlantic Division and into the Metropolitan playoff bracket, so expect to see Rask in the Bruins' final two games.
Carey Price, MTL - Price has regained his 2014-15 Hart and Vezina Trophy form since Claude Julien took over the head coaching gig. He's 13-4-0 with a .943 save percentage under Julien and has allowed just five goals during his current four-game win streak. Unfortunately for Price owners, Montreal can afford to rest its star netminder a couple more times given the team's separation from the rest of the Atlantic Division.
Matt Murray, PIT - Murray is building momentum heading into the postseason, having gone 3-0-0 with a 1.95 GAA and .944 save percentage in wins over the Rangers, Hurricanes and Blue Jackets. His first full NHL season has yielded a superb 31-10-4 record, 2.37 GAA and .924 save percentage with three games to play.
Three Rising
Jaroslav Halak, NYI - Halak has been tremendous since getting recalled from the minors, posting four wins with a 1.82 GAA and .939 save percentage in five appearances. He has taken the top job back from a struggling Thomas Greiss, and is trying to will the Islanders into the playoffs. They're still on the outside looking in despite Halak allowing just four goals during his current three-game winning streak, but at least fantasy owners can benefit from the veteran's late-season resurgence.
Philipp Grubauer, WAS - Washington's cushion in the standings has allowed the Capitals to start their backup goaltender in two of the past four contests, and he pulled out victories in both by holding the Avalanche and Maple Leafs to four combined goals on 63 shots. The strong play in front of him has helped Grubauer achieve a 12-6-2 record, 2.07 GAA and .926 save percentage, so those last two wins were far from flukes. He should get at least one more appearance with Washington closing the season on a back-to-back set, and deserves strong consideration from DFS owners or streamers.
Carter Hutton, STL - Hutton's appearances have been spaced out, but he's making them count. In six starts and one relief outing since Feb. 6, the former Nashville backstop is 5-1-0 with a 1.02 GAA and .963 save percentage. Starter Jake Allen just got yanked Tuesday against the Jets, and any continued struggles from him could earn Hutton an increased role in the team's final three regular season games and possibly the postseason.
Three Falling
Craig Anderson, OTT - Anderson's 24-save shutout against the Red Wings on Tuesday wasn't enough to keep him out of this section, as his previous four starts resulted in 14 goals allowed without a win. His overall numbers from that the past five games are 2.73 GAA and .901 save percentage. That's quite the decrease in form for a netminder that still ranks third in save percentage at .925.
Robin Lehner, BUF - Lehner started both games of Buffalo's Sunday-Monday back-to-back, with disastrous results. Between the two contests, he allowed seven goals on 31 shots while lasting just 5:09 before being pulled Monday. He still sports a solid .920 save percentage, but Lehner's 2.70 GAA and 22-25-8 record both leave much to be desired.
Reto Berra, FLA - It's hard to blame owners who took a flier on Berra with both Roberto Luongo and James Reimer sidelined, but the gamble most certainly hasn't paid off. While the Swiss netminder did start each of the Panthers' past three games, he went without a win in that stretch while allowing 13 goals. With Reimer nearing a return, it's safe to cut ties with Berra regardless of format.
