NHL: Top-5 goaltending tandems for the 2020-21 season
5. Carey Price/Jake Allen, Montreal Canadiens
Carey Price is one of the best goalies in the NHL, and he proved that once again in the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs. After a regular season in which he posted below-average numbers by Carey Price standards, the Montreal star posted a 5-5 record with a 1.78 GAA, and a 93.6 save percentage in the NHL bubble.
His new partner was acquired from the St. Louis Blues in the offseason and now has the Habs looking like an elite goaltending tandem. Allen saw limited action last season behind Jordan Binnington but went 12-6-3 with a 2.15 GAA and a 92.7 save percentage in the regular season. He also made five playoff appearances, going 2-1-1 and posting a 1.89 GAA and a 93.5 save percentage.
Jake Allen‘s role as a backup in recent years is one reason this duo isn’t higher, but the main reason is simply the quality of players still to come on this list. Regardless of the position, though, Price and Allen will have to be at the top of their game to get the Canadiens back to the postseason.
4. Marc-Andre Fleury/Robin Lehner, Vegas Golden Knights
It might be a surprise that this duo checks in at number four, as Marc-Andre Fleury has been one of the best players in Vegas since the team’s inception, and Robin Lehner was a Vezina Trophy candidate in 2019. This just goes to show how many clubs have loaded up when it comes to goaltending.
In the regular season, Fleury was 27-16-5, recording a 2.77 GAA and a 90.5 save percentage. He lost the starting job to Lehner after the trade deadline but managed to improve his numbers in limited postseason play.
Lehner, who split his regular season between Vegas and the Chicago Blackhawks, went 19-10-5 with a 2.89 GAA and a 92 save percentage. In the playoffs with the Golden Knights, he had a 9-7 record, a 1.99 GAA, and a 91.7 save percentage.
There is no doubt that this tandem, matched with an incredibly talented roster, will find success in 2021. It will be worth watching how the playing time is split, as well as whether or not any Fleury trade rumors come to fruition.