The fifth week of the 2023-24 NHL season is underway and there are goalies to be added. Whether you need options for your fantasy hockey team this week or a longer term, we’ll cover the best netminders to add. When looking for goalie streams in fantasy hockey, it’s best to look at back-to-backs and if there are injuries to starters. That is what we have for you here today. This is a look at the three best options in net to stream in Week 5 of the fantasy hockey season.
Fantasy Hockey Week 5 Goalie Streams
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres have their starter, Devon Levi, back, but while he was out, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen played well. With Eric Comrie injured, the other goalie in the mix, the duties in net fall on the two young netminders. Levi may be back, but he is also being eased back in. He only started one game last week, and that was due to it being the second half of a back-to-back. Luukkonen also struggled for the first time in the first game.
There is another back-to-back coming up later this week for the Sabres and Luukkonen will definitely see at least one start. I can see the Sabres splitting the time between their two goalies for now as they are both important pieces. Luukkonen is 3-2-0 with a .901 save percentage (SV%), but he also has a shutout already. He will get the start against either the struggling Minnesota Wild or the struggling Pittsburgh Penguins. These have the capability of being strong outings.
Casey DeSmith, Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are Canada’s team right now and they are rolling. While Thatcher Demko is the best goalie in the NHL right now, the team won’t want to overplay him. Casey DeSmith has proven to be a capable backup his entire career. He is only to be considered a streaming option unless it is a very deep league.
The 32-year-old is 2-0-1 this season and has two quality starts. The Canucks match up against four Canadian teams this week, all who have lost more games than they have won this season. Since DeSmith relieved Demko for a short time in the first game of the season against the Edmonton Oilers and then started the next game against them, resulting in two wins (one given to Demko), he may very well get the start against the Oilers again. Then the Canucks have a back-to-back against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens. Expect him to start the second game against the easier opponent. These are two potentially very good matchups for DeSmith this week.
Charlie Lindgren, Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals have been an interesting team this season so far. They started the season out very poorly, but have come back strong. In net, there is an obvious difference between the play of starter Darcy Kuemper and backup Charlie Lindgren. Kuemper has struggled for the most part while Lindgren has been solid in his two starts. While the Capitals still likely trust Kuemper more, they also still want to win and will play who is giving them that chance.
Lindgren should start to see a few more starts and will definitely get into the back-to-back later this week against either the New Jersey Devils or the New York Islanders. It is likely the latter. I wouldn’t put it past the Capitals to start him against the Florida Panthers earlier in the week either since the starts are 7-2 in favor of Kuemper thus far. If Lindgren keeps up the strong play, he’ll be a reliable streaming option for the time being.
Don’t waste any time taking advantage of these goalies for this week. The longer you wait, the more of a chance someone you may want is picked up before you get to them. While a couple of these goaltenders should get at least one start this week, be sure to keep an eye on any other options throughout the week that may become solid options as well.