The 2023-2024 hockey season has all but concluded. While we await the winner of the NHL’s Stanley Cup and the AHL’s Calder Cup, the focus for most scouts and analysts have been completely locked in on the NHL Draft in July. It’s been a long, but exciting season. From the Hlinka-Gretzky tournament, to Russian MHL action at 6 am local time, to in person high school hockey in Minnesota, to the U18 Worlds, and everything else in between. A lot of goalies were watched, studied, talked to, and talked about, it’s led me to one final draft ranking. Today, we’ll take a look at my final top ten goalie ranking with some in depth analysis as to what makes them worthy of hearing their name called in Las Vegas next month. I’ll also give you ten more goalies who I believe will be drafted. Over the past 10-15 years we normally see about 20-30 goalies drafted in the 7 round NHL Draft. While some years there has been high end goaltenders available, getting first round love and ultimately hearing their name in the first round, there isn’t anyone I see going on day one this year. That said, this goalie class has a lot of untapped potential, who given the right situation and development path, can become NHL goaltenders. Let’s dive into our top 10 2024 NHL Draft goalies.
1. Eemil Vinni (Kiekko, Finland)
Bio: 6’2″/185lbs, 12/18/2005, 37 GP/2.72 GAA/.892 Sv%, Finland
Eemil Vinni is my number one ranked goaltender due to the high ceiling I believe he has. I have now watched Vinni for three years and one thing I have continued to tell myself is how good of a skater he is. His edgework and ability to hold his positioning is remarkable for an 18-year-old. Combining that with elite athleticism makes for a goaltender that I can see becoming an NHL regular. He is still a raw talent as I believe he needs to work on his angles and understanding of his depth positioning in the net, but with good size and quickness, that can be fixed. Vinni struggled to start his first season in pro hockey this year, but has been lights out over the last two months on a weak defensive team.
2. Pavel Moysevich (SKA, Russia)
Bio: 6’5″/178lbs, 09/29/2004, 13 GP/1.25 GAA/.942 Sv% (KHL), Belarus
Moysevich came out of virtually nowhere this season to becoming one of the top goalies in this draft class. 6’5, methodical movements and despite being Belarusian, you can tell he’s with a Russian program in SKA because he has the prototypical Russian athleticism to go with it. Moysevich has a wide butterfly which makes scoring low virtually impossible and tracks pucks very well. His Numbers were off the charts in the KHL, VHL, and MHL. What holds him back is that he’s a double over ager and that sometimes negates a goalie from being drafted higher. Along with that, before this past season he didn’t have a set home and his numbers were just middle of the road. Moysevich, once comfortable in a position to succeed took the net and rode with it. He’s probably the closest to the NHL of any goalie in this class given his age.
3. Mikhail Yegorov (Omaha, USHL)
Bio: 6’4″/190lbs, 03/07/2006, 43 GP/3.86 GAA/.892 Sv%, Russia
The first thing you will notice when looking at the profile of Yegorov is that his stats are not the prettiest. If you take an extra minute to look at where Omaha is in the standings, you will understand why. Yegorov faces well over 30 shots on a nightly basis and when watching the tape, half of those shots are prime scoring opportunities. Couple that with the fact that he is still only 17 and in his USHL rookie season, there is a lot to be hopeful for in Yegorov’s game. 6’4 at his age checks the size box, but the hallmark of Yegorov’s game is his athleticism and ability to battle. He does a really good job of staying composed when the play breaks down. I like how he controls his net and watches pucks into his body, not fighting the puck or just punching at high shots. As he continues to adjust to North American ice and gets older, I think he will have a better reading of the game. His rebound control is one area of weakness, but it’s not a major concern.
4. Evan Gardner (Saskatoon, WHL)
Bio: 6’2″/175lbs, 01/25/2006, 30 GP/1.91 GAA/.927 Sv%, Canada
Gardner is one of the quickest goalies in the class. He moves side to side extremely well and does it with tremendous control. His poise in the net is extremely impressive for a draft eligible goalie. His stats in the WHL backup the eye test. Gardner has worked himself up most draft rankings and that is no different with mine, as he has climbed all the way up to fourth. Gardner rarely loses his net, keeping the puck in front of him all the time. Has good size to go with quick feet. His skating ability and patience helps him to stay with shooters, usually forcing them to make the first move.
5. Kim Saarinen (HPK, Finland)
Bio: 6’4″/185lbs, 07/22/2006, 23 GP/2.41 GAA/.917 Sv% (U20 SM-Sarja), Finland
Saarinen comes in at four again based on the potential and ceiling I see in him. Saarinen had a great season in the U20 SM-Liiga. 6’4, rangey goaltender. I like the way Saarinen uses his size to take up the net, but not rely on it. Saarinen isn’t polished by any means, in fact he has a long way to go before being a legit NHL goalie. That said, Saarinen is really athletic for his size and reminds me of a recent Finnish prospect, Aku Koskenvuo. Koskenvuo was drafted in 2021 and we’re just now starting to see why. Similar to him, whoever drafts Saarinen will need to be patient and work closely with him. Polishing his skating and understanding the depths of goaltending will be the key to Saarinens development.
6. Carter George (Owen Sound, OHL)
Bio: 6’1″/180lbs, 05/20/2006, 56 GP/3.30 GAA/.907 Sv%, Canada
Most have George much higher than I do and I totally get it. Phenomenal draft season, from the Hlinka, to the OHL, and to cap it off, the best goaltender award at the U18 worlds. In terms of the way they play and ABSOLUTELY nothing else, Carter George plays a similar style to Carter Hart. George is an athletic goaltender and a little undersized, but he’s not a crazy athlete in net. He’s composed, plays a simple game, and doesn’t overplay many pucks. George’s fundamentals are excellent, his skating is superb, and he battles to keep his team in games regularly. So why do I have him lower than most? For me it comes down to his ceiling. I don’t see a super high ceiling with him. That said, George will be selected and likely won’t have to wait too long to hear his name on day 2 of the draft. George has a great foundation he’s laid down for himself as his attention to detail in terms of his fundamentals have become the hallmark of his game. The way he moves in the net looks simple and effortless.
7. Ilya Nabokov (Metallurg, Russia)
Bio: 6’1″/180lbs, 03/27/2003, 43 GP/2.15 GAA/.930 Sv%, Russia
It’s impossible to keep Nabokov off my ranking, even despite the fact that he’s a double over ager. The KHL rookie of the year, playoff MVP, and Gagarin Cup champ had an astonishing season. At just 19 years old Nabokov had .930 save percentage in 43 KHL games. Nabokov is another prodigy of this new era of Russian goalies. Great skater, elite athlete, and gives anything and everything to make the saves. One thing I’ve grown to love about Nabokovs game this season is his anticipation of plays. He gets strong pushes toward where the play is going to completely take away scoring chances, usually not giving another chance up in the process. I was a little skeptical about the ceiling of Nabokov given he’s 19 now, but he went from dominating the MHL as a 17/18 year old to dominating the KHL at 19. Given the timeline of transition, I think there’s no doubt we see Nabokov give the North American game a shot. He has the potential to come in and be another Russian stud.
8. Kirill Zarubin (AKM, Russia)
Bio: 6’4″/184lbs, 09/20/2005, 29 GP/1.99 GAA/.944 Sv%, Russia
Zarubin could easily be higher in this class, but I’m going to slot him in at 8 given the fact that he’s only played in the MHL. No international play for him due to being Russian, no VHL or KHL action. That said, Zarubin is an absolute stud in the MHL. I have little to no doubt that Zarubin is another victim of being under ranked due to the fact that the exposure just isn’t there. Not many take the time to watch the MHL and with Russia not playing in IIHF competition we miss out on seeing top end talent. Zarubin has been thrown into the fire a lot. AKM Tula is an academy that has two teams in the MHL, similar to how SKA has. When Zarubin was with the 2nd team, it was him vs the world most games, yet Zarubin was making highlight reel saves. Has strong legs and hips for a wide butterfly. The bottom portion of the net is usually covered and from what I have seen, Zarubin wasn’t beat on first shots a whole lot. Love his compete level and I think there’s a good prospect to be had here. Uses his big frame to his advantage and blends it with that Russian athleticism to make him a versatile prospect. Similar to most Russian prospects, Zarubin is a raw athlete who has the intangibles to play the position at a high level. With most Russian goalies, it’s about the development with Zarubin. Becoming a student of the game and understanding the reads needed to play in North America will be apart of his future.
9. Petteri Rimpinen (Kiekko, Finland)
Bio: 6’0″/175lbs, 04/25/2006, 14 GP/1.94 GAA/.925 Sv% (Mestis)
Rimpinen had an interesting draft season. It started with a dreadful Hlinka Gretzky outing. Then it carried on into the SM-Liiga. However, Kiekko-Espoo faced some injuries with their men’s team and Rimpinen was given the net. Once he got it, he never let it go. Rimpinen was a great goalie on a good team. Not the biggest goalie in the class and that is his biggest knock. Rimpinen is quick, agile, and does a great job keeping himself big when the play breaks down. Outside of a rough performance against the U.S. Rimpinen played pretty well for Finland at the U18s. It’s not often you see a young goalie play better in a pro league than a junior league, but that’s what Rimpinen did. In fact, he’s played above his age level for the past four seasons and done a great job. If he can simplify his game a little bit and not have quite as busy feet, we could see a Juuse Saros esque goalie in Rimpinen. He showed extremely well in his first pro season, earning him a spot on this list.
10. Kambryn Hendrickson (Omaha, USHL)
Bio: 6’2″/185lbs, 01/09/2006, 29 GP/1.01 GAA/.951 Sv% (High School)
The young man oozes confidence in the net. Hendrickson is incredibly poised in the net. He’s been overlooked a lot in his young career and still probably will be in this draft. I’m confident in him in this spot though. His movements are controlled and fluid. Footwork is among the best in the class and he combines that with an athletic style. Hendricksons reads are his calling card though. While athletic, Hendrickson is thinking one step ahead of the attacking players. He shuts down plays before they breakdown and that is extremely impressive for an 18 year old. The maturity and attention to detail has been raved about from coaches who have worked with Kam. He was a captain for his high school team, for a goalie that speaks volumes to the leader he is. Having watched him in person, it also needs to be mentioned that he is vocal on the ice. Vocal to the point that people in the crowd could hear him talking to his teammates directing traffic, this was also in a sold out 19,000 seat arena in the notorious Minnesota state high school tournament. Hendrickson joined the lowly Omaha Lancers in the USHL after his high school season and looked more than the part. Omaha was so impressed they proceeded to draft him with their second pick in the USHL draft. A late growth spurt has Hendrickson penned as the top American goalie for the 2024 NHL Draft.
Honorable Mentions
Noa Vali (TPS, Liiga)
Ryerson Leenders (Mississauga, OHL)
Marcus Gidlöf (Leksands, Sweden)
Nicholas Kempf (USA-U18, NTDP)
Jan Spunar (Portland, WHL)
A.J. Reyelts (Kanai River, NAHL)
Lukas Matecha (Tri-City, WHL)
Caleb Heil (Sioux Falls, USHL)
Albin Boija (Maine, NCAA)
Christian Kirsch (Zug, Switzerland)