It feels like hockey just returned, and yet we're already around 20% through the 2021-22 NHL season.
As such, we're starting to see players separate themselves from the pack - in good ways and bad.
We're going to highlight a few today as we dive deeper into the Vezina Trophy market.
| PLAYER | ODDS (Nov. 22) | ODDS (Oct. 11) |
|---|---|---|
| Andrei Vasilevskiy | +500 | +380 |
| Igor Shesterkin | +750 | +2100 |
| Frederik Andersen | +750 | +1800 |
| Jacob Markstrom | +1000 | +4000 |
| Sergei Bobrovsky | +1000 | +3300 |
| Jack Campbell | +1200 | +2400 |
| Connor Hellebuyck | +1400 | +900 |
| Ilya Sorokin | +1400 | +2500 |
| Robin Lehner | +1600 | +1600 |
| Juuse Saros | +1800 | +2400 |
| Jordan Binnington | +1800 | +2300 |
| Darcy Kuemper | +2000 | +1000 |
| Semyon Varlamov | +2000 | +1700 |
| Marc-Andre Fleury | +2000 | +1000 |
| Carter Hart | +2200 | +3200 |
| Thatcher Demko | +2500 | +1700 |
| Elvis Merzlikins | +2500 | +4000 |
| John Gibson | +3000 | +3500 |
| Cam Talbot | +3000 | +3200 |
| Philipp Grubauer | +3000 | +1500 |
| Cal Petersen | +3000 | +3800 |
| Alex Nedeljkovic | +3000 | +2400 |
| Carey Price | +3000 | +1400 |
| Anton Khudobin | +3500 | +3300 |
| Chris Driedger | +3500 | +2500 |
| Vitek Vanecek | +3500 | +6000 |
| Spencer Knight | +4000 | +2200 |
| Linus Ullmark | +4000 | +3400 |
| Petr Mrazek | +4000 | +1800 |
| Mike Smith | +4000 | +7500 |
| Tristan Jarry | +5000 | +6300 |
| Tuukka Rask | +5000 | N/A |
| Mackenzie Blackwood | +5000 | +4000 |
*Only listing players with odds 50-1 or shorter
Trending up
Igor Shesterkin (+750)
The New York Rangers haven't played great hockey, especially in their own zone. They rank 29th in expected goals against and 30th in scoring chances against per 60 minutes at five-on-five. Despite their terrible defensive play, they own an 11-4-3 record and sit sixth in points percentage, and Shesterkin is the biggest reason why. He owns a sparkling .931 save percentage and sits sixth in the NHL having stopped 11.4 goals above expectation.
Frederik Andersen (+750)
Andersen's been the MVP for a team that owns the league's best record at 14-2-0. He's posted a ridiculous .937 save percentage while appearing in 13 of 16 games for the Carolina Hurricanes. Only two goaltenders rank above Andersen in goals saved above expectation and GSAE per start. Though the Hurricanes are obviously a strong team, it's not as if life has been easy for Andersen. Carolina ranks 30th in expected goals against per 60 minutes. He's faced one of the more difficult workloads among goaltenders and still managed to dominate.
Jacob Markstrom (+1000)
The Calgary Flames surprisingly sit third in the NHL in points and fourth in points percentage. A lot of players have picked it up in Darryl Sutter's first full season as Calgary's head coach - perhaps none more so than Markstrom. He posted a highly mediocre .904 save percentage a season ago but has rebounded in a huge way. He ranks second in the league with a .942 save percentage and has helped the Flames pick up at least a point in 11 of his 14 starts.
Jack Campbell (+1200)
Campbell was nothing short of spectacular for the Toronto Maple Leafs a season ago, and yet he's found a way to take things up a couple of notches. In his first year as the team's undisputed starter, Campbell's posted a league-leading .944 save percentage and saved more goals above expectation than everyone but Sergei Bobrovsky.
Trending down
Philipp Grubauer (+3000)
There likely isn't a bigger disappointment in the league than Grubauer. He was a finalist for the Vezina just a year ago and converted that into a lucrative contract to be a stabilizer for the Seattle Kraken in their inaugural season. He's been anything but stable, though. Grubauer has won only a third of his starts and allowed 14.5 more goals than expected, and he owns a woeful .882 save percentage. No other netminder with at least 10 starts has conceded more than four goals above expectation; Grubauer is in a league of his own in the basement of the NHL.
Spencer Knight (+4000)
Knight entered the year with a realistic shot at claiming the starting job for the Florida Panthers. He hasn't come close to stealing it from Bobrovsky, and it's not just because the latter has played lights-out. Knight has really struggled to date, posting a pedestrian .904 save percentage for a Panthers team that finds itself atop the league in points.
Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.
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