This season’s fantasy hockey cheat sheet is here (and it’s perfect). So, it’s officially time to start preparing for the draft. And this year, that starts with one of the most volatile positions to assess: goaltenders. It’s tricky from a fantasy context, too, because it’s so easy to overprioritize one position and player. A goalie’s importance all depends on league scoring and settings — some managers can legitimately afford to wait for a starter below the elite tier. Others need to value netminders earlier, and higher in the draft. Some leagues call for a goalie who wins above all else, while other managers need high-volume saves. Let’s whip through different types and levels of starting goalies for this upcoming season. The acesConnor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg JetsHellebuyck is coming off of one of the worst regular seasons of his career, and it’s not even clear where he will play this year after requesting a trade. Still, he is worth betting on no matter where he plays. It’s hard to see Hellebuyck accepting a trade to a team too far outside of the contender’s circle, so wins shouldn’t be a concern. And his track record is long enough to think a bounce back is incoming. Aging is a concern, but his injury and surroundings likely had more to do with last season’s depressed numbers. Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay LightningWhile Vasilevskiy’s postseason numbers are starting to raise red flags, his regular-season play shouldn’t. He is coming off another strong season, saving 23.6 goals above expected. The big question in Tampa Bay is whether Father Time is starting to come for some of its core players and if there is enough support to make up for that. But even as currently constructed with those concerns, this looks like a playoff-caliber team. So Vasilevskiy should be counted on for great numbers and wins once again. Igor Shesterkin, New York RangersThe Rangers made some solid moves to improve their defense this offseason, which should give Shesterkin more support in front of the blue paint. In theory, that should help clean up his more traditional stats and lead to wins. But even if this team is absolutely chaotic in its own zone again, expect Shesterkin to keep racking up the saves. No matter how disastrous the Rangers have been, he has consistently been a difference-maker behind them. Logan Thompson, Washington CapitalsNot everyone bought into Thompson’s 2024-25 breakout campaign in Washington. His play style is pretty unorthodox and erratic, and he obviously hasn’t had a ton of starting success to date. But last season he proved that his first year with the Capitals wasn’t a flash in the pan. He led all goalies with a GSAx of 35.6. And now, after some savvy offseason deals, the team should have more goal support on the other end of his ice. Thompson is another reliable starter to draft. Ilya Sorokin, New York IslandersSorokin had a fantastic season — until he didn’t. His end-of-year collapse hurt his numbers at a pretty crucial time of the year for both the Islanders and fantasy managers.But two things are worth keeping in mind: He stood on his head behind one of the worst defensive teams in the league last year, and that eventually caught up to him, and while the Islanders didn’t make enough needle-moving moves this summer, they do have Peter DeBoer behind the bench. DeBoer isn’t a perfect coach, but he generally instills more defensive structure. So if the Islanders can clean up play in front of Sorokin and one of the Islanders’ backups can take a few games off his plate, he should level right back up. Jeremy Swayman, Boston BruinsSwayman, on the other hand, will probably go without much defensive support this year in Boston. The Bruins’ lack of speed on the backend seriously burned them against the Sabres in Round 1 last spring, and management didn’t address that enough this summer. But Swayman proved he can carry this team despite that — his high level of play was the driving force behind his 31 wins and Boston’s playoff-caliber 100-point season. No.1 goaliesJake Oettinger, Dallas StarsDrop down a tier, and there are a handful of other solid goalies worth betting on. Oettinger’s numbers didn’t stack up to most of the above aces last season. The team in front of him had some suspect moments below the surface in front of him, too. But Dallas is a projected contender, and Oettinger is still a quality goaltender, which should help him contribute across the board. The key is picking him at the right time — this isn’t a goalie to draft too early; prioritize some of those aces first.