The key to winning any games in hockey is preventing goals and outscoring your opponents, and the best way to prevent goals is to have a strong goalie.
Perhaps the simplest way to set your team up for the future is to ensure that you have a solid goalie in net, a goal that you should accomplish quickly with your franchise.
Choose NHL 22’s best young goalies
This page will look at the best up-and-coming goalies in NHL 22, with Spencer Knight, Lukáš Dostál, and Hugo Alnefelt making an appearance.
Each player was chosen based on a mix of potential, overall rating, and age.
Spencer Knight 82 OVR (Potential: Elite Med)
Team: Florida Panthers
Age: 20
Position: Goalie
Type: Hybrid Goalie
Gloves: Left
Contract: $0.925M, 2 Years Left, Two-Way
Best Attributes: 90 Agility, 90 Speed, 88 Recover
The highest overall rated player on this list, Spencer Knight also carries the best potential of the goalies listed.
He is by far the fastest goalie aged 21 and younger with a 90 in both speed and agility. He also has a rating of 88 in recover, pairing well with the two 90s.
He has great ratings in reflexes. His five-hole and glove low are 87, stick high/low both 86, angles and glove high 85, and breakaway 84. He is solid all around, with no notable weakness.
The 2019 first-rounder played both the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons with Boston College. In 2019-20, Knight played 33 games with 1.97 goals against average, a .931 save percentage, and five shutouts. In 2020-21 for BC, he played 21 games, and saw his GAA go up to 2.18 while his save percentage slightly ticked up to .932. He had three shutouts. He played in four games for the Panthers that same season with a 2.32 GAA and .919 save percentage.
Jesper Wallstedt 71 OVR (Potential: Elite Low)
Team: Minnesota Wild
Age: 18
Position: Goalie
Type: Hybrid Goalie
Gloves: Left
Contract: $0.750M, 0 Years Left, Two-Way
Best Attributes: 85 Durability, 84 Agility, 82 Speed
One of two 18-year-olds featured on this list, Jesper Wallstedt should develop into his potential as your future long-time goalie.
He is another whose movement is good, with 84 in agility and 82 in speed. A durability of 85 should keep him mostly uninjured, and he also has good enough vision at 81.
While he can improve, he is also only 18, and when considering his age, he is already a strong player. He has 81 in angles, rebound control, and recover, so he should stop shots from unique angles most of the time while being able to keep the puck close. He rounds out his reflexes with 78 in breakaway, glove low, and stick low, and 77 in five-hole, glove high, and stick high.
The 2021 first-rounder spent most of the 2020-21 season with Luleå HF, playing 22 games and ending the season with a GAA of 2.33, a .908 save percentage, and two shutouts. In 2019-20, he played on the J20 team for 28 games with a 2.53 GAA, .923 save percentage, and two shutouts.
Lukáš Dostál 70 OVR (Potential: Starter Med)
Team: Anaheim Ducks
Age: 21
Position: Goalie
Type: Hybrid Goalie
Gloves: Left
Contract: $0.825M, 2 Years Left, Two-Way
Best Attributes: 80 Poise, 80 Rebound Control, 79 Angles
A 2018 third-rounder yet to see the NHL ice, Lukáš Dostál has decent enough ratings with potential and age that should make him a steal should you develop him right.
His two best ratings are poise and rebound control, both 80. A goalie who does not panic and maintains his composure, especially when the front of the net gets crowded, is crucial to have in net. Aside from 74 in passing, all of his other ratings are between 76 and 79, meaning that he has the potential to be a good all-around goalie.
In 24 games with the San Diego Gulls in 2020-21, Dostál had a GAA of 2.87 and a .916 save percentage, recording no shutouts. On loan to Ilves that same year, he played 11 games, recording one shutout, a GAA of 1.64, and a save percentage of .941.
Olivier Rodrigue 68 OVR (Potential: Starter Med)
Team: Edmonton Oilers
Age: 21
Position: Goalie
Type: Hybrid Goalie
Gloves: Left
Contract: $0.795M, 2 Years Left, Two-Way
Best Attributes: 85 Durability, 83 Agility, 83 Speed
Olivier Rodrigue is another 2018 first-rounder yet to see NHL playing time. He has potential, but will need time to develop into a potential long-term starter.
He has good durability at 85, and his speed and agility are both 83, making him a quick goalie. He has decent puck control with 80 in passing, poke check, and puck playing frequency, with a 77 in rebound control and recover. His seven ratings in reflexes range between 75 and 77, though his poise of 70 needs stark improvement.
In 23 games on loan to Graz99ers in 2020-21, Rodrigue had a 3.11 GAA and .908 save percentage. With the Bakersfield Condors in 11 games, he had a 2.99 GAA and .894 save percentage.
Mads Søgaard 67 OVR (Potential: Starter Med)
Team: Ottawa Senators
Age: 20
Position: Goalie
Type: Hybrid Goalie
Gloves: Left
Contract: $0.925M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way
Best Attributes: 85 Durability, 83 Agility, 83 Speed
The best name on this list, Mads Søgaard is another project, though given that he is one year younger than Rodrigue, you may be more inclined to give him the time for development.
Søgaard, like Rodrigue, has good durability (85) and speed ratings (83 in both). His next best rating is a 77 in angles, breakaway, stick low, puck playing frequency, and vision.
Every other rating is below 77. Glove low is 76, five-hole 75, glove high 74, and stick high 73. His other puck control skills are similar, with 76 in recover, 75 in rebound control, 74 in poke check, and 72 in passing. However, his poise is a paltry 65, maybe the first area in need of improvement.
During the 2020-21 season, the Dane played seven games for the Belleville Senators with a 2.40 GAA and .917 save percentage. In 2019-20 with the Medicine Hat Tigers, Søgaard had a 2.53 GAA and .908 save percentage in 37 games, and amassed four shutouts.
Sebastian Cossa 66 OVR (Potential: Starter Med)
Team: Detroit Red Wings
Age: 18
Position: Goalie
Type: Hybrid Goalie
Gloves: Left
Contract: $0.925M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way
Best Attributes: 85 Durability, 82 Agility, 77 Rebound Control
The 15th overall pick in the 2021 draft, Sebastian Cossa could prove worthy of his first round selection with your franchise.
He has good durability (85) and agility (82), and though like nearly every 18-year-old rookie he has a lot to develop, his initial ratings demonstrate why he was a first rounder. He has 77 in puck playing frequency, rebound control, and recover, adding a 76 in stick low, passing, poke check, and vision. His poise needs improvement (70), but his other ratings are decent enough to develop as your long-term starter.
Cossa spent the previous two seasons with the Edmonton Oil Kings, his current team. In 2019-20, he played 33 games, accumulating four shutouts with a 2.23 GAA and .921 save percentage. In 2020-21, he played in 19 games, but dramatically bettered both his GAA and save percentage to 1.57 and .941 respectively. He also had another four shutouts.
Hugo Alnefelt 66 OVR (Potential: Starter Med)
Team: Tampa Bay Lightning
Age: 20
Position: Goalie
Type: Hybrid Goalie
Gloves: Left
Contract: $0.850M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way
Best Attributes: 85 Durability, 83 Agility, 83 Speed
Hugo Alnefelt gets the nod over Hunter Jones – both rated 66 with the same potential – due to the fact that he is one year younger and has one more year of contractual control, albeit at $25,000 more.
Like other goalies on this list, he has good durability (85), agility (83), and speed (83). Aside from his poise (65) that needs immense work, his puck control skills are decent enough with 80 in passing and puck playing frequency followed by 77 in poke check, rebound control, and recover.
The areas which need the most work – besides poise – are his reflexes, all of which are between 74 and 76. Improving them to at least 80 will be a good start in making him your goalie of the future.
With HV71 in 2020-21, Alnefelt played 22 games with a 3.16 GAA and .904 save percentage. The year prior he played 18 games, recording a 2.57 GAA and .905 save percentage.
All the best young goalies in NHL 22
The below table includes all of the best young goalies in NHL 22.
| Name | Potential | Overall | Age | Position | Contract | Team |
| Spencer Knight | Elite Med | 82 | 20 | Goalie | $0.925M, 2 Years Left, Two-Way | Florida Panthers |
| Jesper Wallstedt | Elite Low | 71 | 18 | Goalie | $0.750M, 0 Years Left, Two-Way | Minnesota Wild |
| Lukáš Dostál | Starter Med | 70 | 21 | Goalie | $0.825M, 2 Years Left, Two-Way | Anaheim Ducks |
| Olivier Rodrigue | Starter Med | 68 | 21 | Goalie | $0.795M, 2 Years Left, Two-Way | Edmonton Oilers |
| Mads Søgard | Starter Med | 67 | 20 | Goalie | $0.925M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way | Ottawa Senators |
| Sebastian Cossa | Starter Med | 66 | 18 | Goalie | $0.925M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way | Detroit Red Wings |
| Hugo Alnefelt | Starter Med | 66 | 20 | Goalie | $0.850M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way | Tampa Bay Lightning |
| Hunter Jones | Starter Med | 66 | 21 | Goalie | $0.825M, 2 Years Left, Two-Way | Minnesota Wild |
| Garin Bjorklund | Starter Med | 65 | 19 | Goalie | $0.750M, 0 Years Left, Two-Way | Washington Capitals |
| Olof Lindbom | Starter Med | 56 | 21 | Goalie | $0.750M, 1 Year Left, Two-Way | New York Rangers |
| Jan Bednar | Starter Med | 55 | 29 | Goalie | $0.750M, 0 Years Left, Two-Way | Detroit Red Wings |
| Tristan Lennox | Starter Med | 52 | 18 | Goalie | $0.750M, 0 Years Left, Two-Way | New York Islanders |
| Juho Markkanen | Starter Med | 52 | 19 | Goalie | $0.750M, 0 Years Left, Two-Way | Los Angeles Kings |
| Dustin Wolf | Starter Low | 70 | 20 | Goalie | $0.815M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way | Calgary Flames |
| Arturs Silovs | Starter Low | 65 | 20 | Goalie | $0.785M, 3 Years Left, Two-Way | Vancouver Canucks |
Which young goalie will you make your stalwart for the years to come?
