Goalie Announcements (Dec 6)

Finally, I get a chance to sit down and look at the goalies again this week.  It's been a bit crazy at the office over the last couple of days, so these posts have fallen to the wayside.

I can confirm that Tuesday night saw all four teams remaining in the goalie survivor game pick up their wins, so that won't be a contentious part of these posts this week.  It will just be the weekly scoring races, for the most part here today and the rest of the week.

Grant continues to hold a lead after a very quick start to the week, as his team sits alone on top with 16 points on Thursday morning.  Kristy & Don, Wes, Dale C. and Benson are all at 13 points, while Troy isn't far behind at 12 points.  With still four nights to play this week, lots of movement is still to happen.

At the bottom of the weekly standings, Brenda & Seward and Eric are both down at 4 points, while Scott and Steve are 2 points clear and four more teams are 3 points clear, making for a decent race to the basement.

11 games on the schedule tonight, so let's get cracking!

Jonathan Bernier (Brenda & Seward) versus Garret Sparks (Grant)
Well, how about that?  Two teams at opposite ends of the weekly spectrum with goalies going against each other tonight in Toronto and I think it's fair to say that the favourite belongs to the team that is atop the standings, more so than the team at the bottom.  Grant gets a rare start from Sparks, while the duo gets a pretty rare start out of Bernier, so one of these teams will certainly make the most out of these 2 points.

Philipp Grubauer (Jesse) versus Roberto Luongo (John P.)
Both Jesse and John are at 10 points this week, both have two possible starts tonight from their goaltenders, both sitting right in the middle of the standings.  There are quite a few parallels for this game and the match-up looks solid on the ice, so this could be a good game to watch, if you're bored and have the ability to do so.

Sergei Bobrovsky (Kristy & Don) versus Anthony Stolarz (N/A)
The Blue Jackets have been stumbling a little bit, especially defensively, making their star goalie look really bad and well, Sergei Bobrovsky wasn't helping his own cause much in the last couple of games, but he does get a chance at redemption against the Flyers tonight, much to the delight of Kristy & Don, which, as we know, are in the hunt for the Mover & Shaker this week.

Thomas Greiss (Stuart) versus Casey DeSmith (Benson)
It looks like a brotherly match-up in Pittsburgh tonight, as Benson's team tries to get on the come back trail with a start from his fresh, new goalie, Casey DeSmith and the Penguins.  They'll host the New York Islanders, who are likely to start Thomas Greiss again tonight.  Benson has the upper-hand tonight, if the weekly scoring numbers are any indication.  Then again, the Islanders own a playoff spot and the Penguins do not. 

Carey Price (Stacey M.) versus Craig Anderson (Mike)
Montreal and Ottawa play tonight in an Atlantic Division battle and both Stacey and Mike are watching their goalies go in this one and the winner moves one step closer to the Mover & Shaker, but they have a number of teams to climb over to get there as well.  Neither team has hit the double-digit mark yet in the weekly scoring, but a win will ensure that one team will get there by the end of the night.

Tuukka Rask (Jesse) versus Louis Domingue (Eric)
Jesse gets his second start of the night with Tuukka Rask and the Bruins visiting the Lightning, who are going with their second-stringer, Louis Domingue.  Eric's team really needs these 2 points this week and this is a good chance at getting them.  Eric's team has already suffered two Basement Dweller weeks this season and could ill-afford to get another, if he wants to make a comeback this season.

Alex Stalock (Ryan) versus Mike Smith (Brian)
Ryan almost got two starts out of this one game, but the Flames pulled a fast one on him and opted to go with Brian's goalie, Mike Smith, when they take on the Minnesota Wild tonight.  Ryan's only start comes from the other side and his Waiver Draft pickup, Alex Stalock.  This will be Stalock's first action for Ryan's team and a welcomed 2 points could get his team right in the thick of the Mover & Shaker hunt.

Pheonix Copley (N/A) versus Adin Hill (N/A)
Two goalies that no one had any interest in at the Waiver Draft go head-to-head in Arizona tonight, when the Capitals take on the Coyotes.  Hill has been putting up some serious numbers in the last week and a bit, but his name was so fresh on the list, that no one was prepared to take a chance on a number three (or four) guy in the Arizona depth chart.

Pekka Rinne (John P.) versus Jacob Markstrom (Chelsea)
The Nashville Predators were pretty tight-lipped about who they are going to start over their next couple of games, but hinted that both goalies would get a start before the end of the week, so your guess is as good as mine.  The Canucks, however, will give Chelsea a start tonight with Jacob Markstrom in net for the home side.  Chelsea's team isn't doing too bad this week, 8 points through Wednesday night's action.  That's a fairly comfortable number, right in the middle of the pack.

Cam Ward (Scott) versus Marc-Andre Fleury (Troy)
The Blackhawks will play the back half of back-to-back nights in Vegas tonight, so it is confidently assumed that they will go with the goalie that didn't start last night, Cam Ward, giving Scott a start in net there.  The Golden Knights have indeed confirmed another start for Marc-Andre Fleury, offering Troy's team another start.  A big road win could go a long ways for Scott this week, while Troy's team is in the fight for top spot, but more importantly, the one in the overall standings.

Keith Kinkaid (Neil) versus Jonathan Quick (Derek B.)
Finally, in the late, late game in Los Angeles, it will see the Devils and the Kings square off and their number ones will get the call in this game.  Both Neil and Derek are sitting at 7 points in the weekly scoring race, 3 points clear of the bottom and they are eyeing up this game as a way to stay well clear of that infamous mention for another week.  Kinkaid and Quick should be a good goalie match-up tonight too.