Admittedly, the concept of a goalie tandem is becoming increasingly archaic in the NHL.
For example, the Stanley Cup-champion Vegas Golden Knights used five goalies last season and had three of them available in the playoffs. "Goalie quintet rankings" does have a nice ring to it.
So in building our list for the 2023-24 NHL season, the goalie tandem rankings took into account that some teams go three-deep, whether it's another veteran on the roster or a blue-chip prospect in their system. Obviously the netminder who's third on the depth chart isn't going to carry the weight of primary duo, but as the Knights will testify, it's always good to have backups -- and a backup plan.
These rankings were formulated through discussions with a variety of goalie experts -- coaches, analytics gurus, former players -- as well as through stats from sites like Evolving Hockey, Money Puck and Hockey Reference. Rosters are through Oct. 2.
This season, we asked former NHL goalie and current MSG analyst Marty Biron for his input in the rankings as well.
Keep in mind that these are a combination of past performance and projections for the 2023-24 season. As you'll see concerning one key injury, the teams are judged on what these tandems should look like this season rather than what they'll look like on opening night. Let the debates begin!