Most underrated goalie in League today debated by NHL.com

Welcome to Goalie Week. NHL Social is celebrating goaltending with NHL Goalie Week from Sept. 2-7, reveling in the uniqueness and artistry of puck-stoppers through the decades. Today, in a special version of an NHL.com roundtable, the game's under-the-radar goalies are identified and celebrated.

Goaltending is such a star-making position. As the last line of defense and in personalized equipment that stands out from the other players on the ice, the goalie often is the focus of any game.

He's hailed for his contributions to a win and demonized for his faults in a loss.

Yet, somehow, some of these masked men across the League remain under the radar while others become poster boys for the position.

But a lower profile doesn't mean lesser ability; in fact, often those toiling in the spotlight's shadows are just as good as the leading men they go up against.

So, NHL.com thought it was time to give some love to the goalies who aren't as well-known or popular as the giants in the game today and asked nine NHL.com staffers for their opinion on the most underrated goalie in the League.

Here are the answers:

Mackenzie Blackwood, Colorado Avalanche

When a management person with Canada's 4 Nations Face-Off team mentioned last October that Blackwood was one of the goalies being scouted for the February tournament, I was skeptical. The 28-year-old had four straight seasons (2020-24) with a goals-against average of 3.00 or higher with the New Jersey Devils and San Jose Sharks. Hardly seemed like a candidate to play for a Canada national team with a legacy of top-end goaltenders like Patrick Roy, Martin Brodeur, Curtis Joseph, Roberto Luongo and Carey Price. But, the Canada executive wondered, how much were those numbers attributed to the teams in front of him? Consider the 2024-25 season. In 19 games with the struggling Sharks he was 6-9-3 with a 3.00 GAA even though he had a respectable .911 save percentage. After being traded to the skilled Avalanche those numbers greatly improved to 22-12-3 with a 2.33 GAA and .913 save percentage in 37 games. Maybe now, with a better supporting cast around him, we are seeing the real Blackwood. -- Mike Zeisberger, staff writer

Joey Daccord, Seattle Kraken

There's nothing gaudy about Daccord, but he is sneaky good. The 29-year-old has taken a circuitous route to the NHL. He played his college hockey at Arizona State University and was selected by the Ottawa Senators in the seventh round (No.199) of the 2015 NHL Draft. He played in the ECHL, was claimed by the Kraken in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft and sent to Coachella Valley, an expansion franchise in the American Hockey League. Yet, all Daccord has done is excel, including helping Coachella Valley reach the Calder Cup Finals in 2023. This past spring, he combined with Jeremy Swayman to lead the United States to its first IIHF World Championship gold medal in 92 years. More importantly, he is the No. 1 goalie for the Kraken, coming off a season in which he went 27-23-5 with a 2.75 GAA and a .906 save percentage in 57 games. -- Shawn P. Roarke, senior director of editorial

Lukas Dostal, Anaheim Ducks

It's remarkable that the Ducks goalie has put together back-to-back seasons with at least a .900 save percentage, a combined .902 in 98 games, on a team that has allowed the second-most shots on goal per game (32.4) and the fourth-most goals per game (3.38) the past two seasons. He has been solid behind one of the League's weakest defenses and in the face of constant pressure. Now he's out of John Gibson's shadow and the 25-year-old has a lot to play for as the unquestioned No. 1 on a team that started to show improvement in all areas last season. Dostal also has a chance to play for Czechia in the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 this February. He signed a five-year contract July 17 and has an opportunity to prove himself as one of the top goalies in the League. He won't be underrated for long. -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

Filip Gustavsson, Minnesota Wild

It is not easy to unseat a future Hall of Fame goalie in Marc-Andre Fleury the way Gustavsson did with the Wild last season. But he started 58 of their 82 games and went 31-19-6 with a 2.56 goals-against average and .914 save percentage. He then started all six games in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, going 2-3 with a 2.71 GAA and .914 save percentage. The 27-year-old has found a home in Minnesota, and with Fleury having retired, is expected to take on an ever bigger workload this season. Gustavsson is a goalie on the rise, still approaching his prime, and has the potential to develop into one of the best in the League. -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

Adin Hill, Vegas Golden Knights

Can a Stanley Cup champion be underrated? In the case of Hill, sure. The goalie who helped lead the Golden Knights to the 2023 Stanley Cup seems to get lost in the shuffle when the talk is about how good Vegas is each season. Last season he was 32-13-5 with a 2.47 goals-against average and .906 save percentage in 50 games; the 32 wins was fifth best in the NHL. Some will say he's a product of Vegas' defensive scheme, but I say he doesn't get enough credit for how cool and calm he is in goal. -- Bill Price, Editor-in-Chief

Darcy Kuemper, Los Angeles Kings

The Kings strike me as a team that's greater than the sum of its parts. Yes, Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar are future Hall of Famers, and Quinton Byfield and Adrian Kempe are emerging stars. But one of the most overlooked reasons for the Kings' success last season was Kuemper. In his first season with Los Angeles, he was second in the NHL in goals-against average (2.02; minimum 25 games), third in save percentage (.922) and tied for fourth in shutouts (five). He was a significant reason the Kings were second in the NHL at 2.48 goals-against per game, and were able to finish second in the Pacific Division while matching Los Angeles records for wins (48) and points (105) in a season. The 35-year-old has proven he can be a reliable, if under-appreciated, backbone for a team that should again be a Stanley Cup contender. -- Adam Kimelman, deputy managing editor

Sam Montembeault, Montreal Canadiens

I've always been a fan of late bloomers, those given a chance through patience and development who find the right organization and is at, or near, peak performance in their mid to late 20s or older. Montembeault fits that mold. This 28-year-old was claimed off waivers by the Canadiens from the Florida Panthers on Oct. 2, 2021, and signed a three-year, $9.45 million contract ($3.15 million average annual value) Dec. 1, 2023. That contract began last season, which he started with a 48-save, 1-0 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 9, an NHL record for saves in a season-opening shutout. He finished last season with NHL career bests in wins (31), goals-against average (2.82), shutouts (four) and games (62), helped Montreal reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2021, and was invited to Canada's orientation camp for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 in August. And he's still underrated. -- Jon Lane, staff writer

Logan Thompson, Washington Capitals

My colleague Tom Gulitti chronicled in May how Thompson feels that he's been perennially passed over almost his entire hockey-playing life. And last season's stats for the 28-year-old netminder show that the under-appreciated trend outside of his team continues. Thompson helped the Capitals to an unexpected first-place finish in the Eastern Conference (51-22-9) by going 31-6-6 with a 2.49 goals-against average, .910 save percentage and two shutouts in 43 regular-season games (42 starts). He was 5-5 in 10 Stanley Cup Playoff games (all starts), with a 2.41 GAA and .917 save percentage. Yet he didn't make Canada's 4 Nations Face-Off roster or get an invitation to Canada's national team orientation camp last month ahead of the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. Just more fuel for Thompson's fire for the upcoming NHL season. -- William Douglas, staff writer

Karel Vejmelka, Utah Mammoth

The Mammoth are an up-and-coming team in the NHL after nearly making the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season, their first in the League. One of the players who nearly got them there last season, and probably will get them there soon enough, is Vejmelka, which is why he's my underrated goalie selection. The 29-year-old had his best NHL season in 2024-25, when he was 26-22-8 with a 2.58 goals-against average, .904 save percentage and one shutout in 58 games (55 starts). It's the first time he's had a GAA under 3.00 and the second time he's had a save percentage above .900. As Vejmelka enters his fifth NHL season, he's hitting his stride and just in time to do big things for the Mammoth. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer