Week 3: Fantasy top 25 goalie rankings for 2016-17

All season long, NHL.com's David Satriano will rank the top 25 goalies for standard Yahoo leagues (wins, goals-against average, save percentage, shutouts). Players with long-term injuries have been removed from this list.
These rankings are based on expectations for the rest of the season. Value is quantified by projected starts, peripheral category coverage, time-share situations, team defenses, past performance and overall upside in standard leagues. It is important to note that our rankings reflect sheer fantasy value, not necessarily the most talented goalies in order.

It wasn't a good return for Sergei Bobrovsky owners last season, when he went 15-19-1 with a 2.75 GAA, .908 SV% and one shutout in 37 games, missing significant time with injuries. Many, including yours truly, were hesitant to draft the Columbus Blue Jackets goalie because of the poor numbers, injury risk and a shaky team defense in front of him.
He was a far cry from the player who won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL's top goaltender in 2012-13. But Bobrovsky is healthy again and is playing like the player he was a few years ago. He has four wins, a 2.02 GAA, .941 SV% and two shutouts this season. Bobrovsky has allowed two goals or fewer in six of his eight starts and has made at least 30 saves six times.
Bobrovsky has played every second of the Blue Jackets' first eight games, and should be in line for a heavy workload if he remains healthy. Let's not forget, he won 30 games in 2014-15 and 32 in 2013-14. His career GAA is 2.53 and his SV% is .918. Although the Blue Jackets don't offer much support in front of him, it's been a nice first few weeks to start the season for Bobrovsky, who needs to show he can remain healthy and be consistent to be a valuable asset for fantasy owners.

TRENDING UP

Robin Lehner of the Buffalo Sabres had his ups and downs in the first week of the season before an illness forced him to miss some time. He returned on Sunday and has played like the No. 1 goaltender the Sabres expected him to be when they acquired him from the Ottawa Senators on July 26, 2015. Lehner made 37 saves in a 3-1 win at the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday, then had 27 saves in a 2-1 win at the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday.
His goals-against average is down to 2.34 and his SV% is up to .921. If Lehner can stay healthy (something that's been a problem throughout his career), he could be a pleassant surprise for fantasy owners who took a chance on him.

TRENDING DOWN

Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne stopped 28 of 29 shots in a 5-1 win against the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday. However, prior to that, he lost three straight games, allowing at least three goals in each. Rinne is 2-4-1 with a 2.89 GAA and .914 SV%, and he doesn't have a shutout. The GAA is his highest of any of his eight previous NHL seasons.
Rinne had 31 wins last season and 41 the season before but might not come close to that in 2016-17. The Predators are 3-5-1 and have not looked good defensively. Trading Shea Weber to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for P.K. Subban during the offseason has hurt them defensively. Combine that with the fact that they play in perhaps the toughest division in the League, the Central, which had five teams make the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season - the Predators, St. Louis Blues, Chicago Blackhawks, Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars -- and it's hard to see Nashville being able to keep up with those teams, and Rinne putting up good fantasy numbers.

WORTH NOTING

• Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins returned after missing three games with soreness to have a 24-save shutout against the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday and followed that up with 33 saves in a 4-1 win against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday. He's 5-0-0 with a 1.20 GAA and .962 SV% this season.
  - As good as Rask has been, he's been slightly outdone by Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens. Price is 6-0-0 with a 1.17 GAA, .964 SV% and one shutout after making 42 saves in a 3-0 win against the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday.
  - Craig Anderson was named the NHLs first star of the week after posting a 37-save shutout in a 2-0 win against the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday. He followed that up with 32 saves in a 2-1 overtime win against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday. Anderson is now 6-1-0 with a 2.24 GAA, .929 SV% and two shutouts this season, but took another leave of absence on Thursday to be with his wife who was recently diagnosed with cancer. WIth backup Andrew Hammind injured, recently acquired Mike Condon could be in line for starts.
  - Louis Domingue (7 percent owned in Yahoo leagues) has filled in for an injured Mike Smith with the Arizona Coyotes. Domingue hasn't looked good (2-5-0, 3.95 GAA, .887 SV% in seven games) although he hasn't gotten much help from the defense. Stay away from Arizona goalies at all costs.
  - Devan Dubnyk stopped 94 shots combined in three straight shutouts against the Bruins, Buffalo Sabres and Dallas Stars. Going for his fourth straight, he allowed two goals in 24 shots in a 2-1 loss to the Sabres on Tuesday. Dubnyk is 5-2-1 with a 1.51 GAA and a .948 save percentage.

TOP 25 FANTASY GOALIES

These rankings were last updated Nov. 3.
1. Carey Price, MTL (+1)
2. Braden Holtby, WSH (-1)
3. Devan Dubnyk, MIN (+3)
4. Cory Schneider, NJD (-1)
5. Martin Jones, SJS (+3)
6. Tuukka Rask, BOS (+5)
7. Roberto Luongo, FLA (-3)
8. Jake Allen, STL (-3)
9. Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (SAME)
10. Corey Crawford, CHI (+2)
11. John Gibson, ANA, (+2)
12. Matt Murray, PIT (NEW)
13. Ben Bishop, TBL (-3)
14. Pekka Rinne, NSH (-7)
15. Cam Talbot, EDM (+2)
16. Marc-Andre Fleury, PIT (-2)
17. Petr Mrazek, DET (-2)
18. Craig Anderson, OTT (+3)
19. Jimmy Howard, DET (+1)
20. Jaroslav Halak, NYI (-1)
21. Brian Elliott, CGY (-3)
22. Sergei Bobrovsky, CBJ (+3)
23. Robin Lehner, BUF (NEW)
24. Frederik Andersen, TOR (NEW)
25. Peter Budaj, LAK (NEW)
Dropped out: Jacob Markstrom (VAN), Steve Mason (PHI), Kari Lehtonen (DAL), Andrei Vasilevskiy
(TBL)
Just missed: Connor Hellebuyck (WPG), Ryan Miller (VAN), Semyon Varlamov (COL), Carter Hutton (STL),
Al Montoya (MTL)
Key injuries: Jonathan Quick (LAK), Mike Smith (ARI), Jeff Zatkoff (LAK), Andrew Hammond (OTT)
READ: Last week's Top 25 goalie rankings