Start 'Em, Sit 'Em ft. Daccord, Andersen and More

This article was written by Garrett Finlay

Hey, hey, you hockey nuts - welcome to another addition of Goalie Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em! Today, we will be looking at this Thursday night’s 12 game slate and giving recommendations on which goalies to start and which goalies to sit, using both the numbers and our own gut feelings. What could go wrong? Well plenty because goalies in fantasy hockey are the jelly beans of your trick or treat basket. Sure it looks like strawberry, with its shiny pink gloss gleam, but take a bite and wait for the flavor — and yes it will be puke! Everything on the outside of a matchup looks like the flavor you want a taste of, but until you sink your teeth in, you really don’t know if you’ll end up with key lime pie or booger. So let’s just plug our noses and bite into it!

(Please note that the goalies listed are considered “probable” to start. Keep refreshing your Goalie Post app to see which goalies are “confirmed” starting. Don’t have the app? Get it for Apple or Android.)

Start ‘Em

Joey Daccord, Seattle Kraken - Disclaimer: This is not a matchup Seattle is likely to win; if you have other viable options in net, then you should start them instead. However, if you are a Daccord owner then you, like me and the rest of us, started him in what looked like a juicy matchup on Monday night against the Flyers, only to have all of our goalie categories absolutely blitzed to the onslaught of 5 Philadelphia goals in just 2 periods of play, leaving a disheartening hole of 7.59 GAA and .762 SV% to climb out of. And after such a poor start to our fantasy hockey weeks, the only possibility we have at coming back in category leagues is volume, volume, volume. And so, it is with little choice that we elect to start Daccord in what looks like a fairly awful road matchup against the red hot Jets in Winnipeg. The Kraken’s injuries are adding up and they will be on the last night of a 6 game road trip, in which they have only managed 1 win out of, yet somehow Daccord should improve on his weeks numbers, if only because they were so, so bad on Monday. For that reason, if you are a Daccord shareholder (may the hockey gods take pity on us) then he must be started Thursday against Winnipeg. Take a deep breath, and Start ‘Em!

Start ‘Em

Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning - We shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not to start the former Vezina and Conn Smythe winner, as he has been such a reliable keeper for the Lightning that he was the fastest goalie to reach 300 wins in NHL history, doing so in only 490 games, but here we are, over two weeks into the season and the Russian twine tender has accumulated 0 wins to go along with an ugly 3.50 GAA and .884 SV%. There are leagues out there where Vasi has been dropped! Well we’ve been fooled by appearances before, but this Thursday’s matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks may be exactly what it looks like - a must start for Andrei Vasilevskiy. In fact, the “Big Cat” has never lost to the Blackhawks - posting a perfect 13-0 record with a crispy 2.14 GAA and a tender .930 SV%. This game is starting at an odd 6:45pm time slot, so check your rosters now - if you have Vasi on your bench, get him into a starting slot! Forget this years numbers, this is a gut check - Start ‘Em!

Sit ‘Em

Frederik Andersen, Carolina Hurricanes - It’s hard to bet on the Hurricanes losing two in a row (dropped 4-1 by Vegas on Tuesday), but the Canes are on a road-trip against the West’s best and a matchup in mile-high Colorado seems too risky a play for our Thursday night. The “Great Dane” enters this matchup with an impressive 3-1 record and 2.46 GAA, but a less impressive .894 SV%. Because the Hurricanes do such a good job with driving possession and limiting shots (1st in NHL in shots forced, 3rd in shots against), a 3 goal against night for Freddy is much worse than a 3 goal against night for say the San Jose Sharks, where letting in “only” 3 goals still leaves a goaltender with a save percentage above .900. That’s why this matchup ends up being a “Sit” for Andersen, whose team still may very well win; this game between two cup contenders has the look of scoring 4-3 or more, which regardless of which side of the win column Freddy ends up on, his save percentage will be at risk. In a category league where 23 other goalies are making an appearance, let’s keep Andersen on the bench and keep our categories in tact. Sit ‘Em.

Sit ‘Em

Tristan Jarry, Pittsburgh Penguins - The Penguins are 5-2 and lead the league in shutouts, just as we all presumed.. . Wait what? Ok, so the Pittsburgh Penguins really are 5-2, and yes, really lead the league with 2 shutouts in 7 games played and goaltender Tristan Jarry comes into a Thursday night matchup against the Florida Panthers with a healthy and hearty 2.35 GAA and .922 SV%. So it goes for October hockey. But this dance with the back to back defending Stanley Cup champions may be the stumbling start of the reality check we all have been waiting to see. After an emotional game on Tuesday night (Brad Marchand’s return to Boston) that saw the Panthers get back into the win column after dropping 4 in a row, the Cats will be looking to pounce on a Pittsburgh Penguin roster that, let’s face it, has clearly over-preformed up to this point. The Penguins are riding a 3 game win streak while the Panthers have lost 4 of 5, but don’t trust the numbers on this one. Look somewhere else for help in net, or just leave Jarry on the bench. Sit ‘Em.

Desperation Mode Play

David Rittich, New York Islanders Rittich has played in only 1 game for the Islanders this season, stopping 31 of the 33 shots he faced while managing to pick up the win for his club. This Thursday, he will be going against a Red Wings team that is first in the Atlantic division with a 5-1 record, but playing in the second half of a back to back set, after facing the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday. We should note that the Islanders just made a change to their coaching staff, letting go of long time goalie coach Piero Greco and promoting Sergei Naumovs to take his place. Coaching changes can often really motivate the team in front of them, at least immediately following the change, so we have a chance here to cash in on a more concerted effort from the New York Islanders’ goalies and defense. At only 6% rostered on Fantrax and 1% on Yahoo and ESPN, Rittich is readily available to stream and could be the desperation play you need to get back into your week’s matchup.

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading! My name is Garrett Finlay and you can follow me on X @garrett_fi51284 and on Bluesky @garrettfinlay.bsky.social where I am often talking goalies and fantasy hockey. I’ll be back here next Thursday to breakdown another busy night of twine tending action! Happy Hockeying and good luck out there!