The early-season NHL goaltender awards: Carey Price and everyone else

Scoring goals is all well and good, but a hockey team can’t survive a season without the guy between the pipes firing on all cylinders.

Some of the NHL’s last lines of defense have been out to awesome starts this campaign, whether it has been with multiple shutouts, a highlight-reel worthy save or simply the ability to step up when the team needs it the most. Here is a look at the goaltenders who are putting on the best show so far this season.

Best All-Around Start: Carey Price, Montreal Canadiens

It’s hard to write something new about Price’s return and performance because he is one of the most written-about players in the NHL, and for good reason. Price has been playing out of his mind so far in his comeback season as he steers the ship of the league-leading Habs, so naturally he is one of the biggest headline-stealers. It’s no wonder that the team in front of him — which has been damn good, take away one hideous effort against Columbus — continues to lean so heavily on him and his 1.40 goals-against average.

Best “Surprise” Great Start: Devan Dubnyk, Minnesota Wild

Three consecutive shutouts seems like reason enough to dub the Minnesota Wild starter a star in the early season’s goalie class. It’s a pleasant sight following a 2015-16 season in which he had a heavier workload and his numbers weren’t as good. So far he is registering a solid 1.65 goals-against average and .947 save percentage, which is even more impressive considering the number of injuries that the Wild has endured in just the first month of the season.

Best Youngster: Matt Murray, Pittsburgh Penguins

I actually debated listing the Pittsburgh Penguins’ netminder as my top pick so far this season, then hesitated because he has a smaller sample size of games under his belt than Price. In his first couple of starts sine returning from injury, however, his numbers are incredible (1.25 goals-against average and .961 save percentage, along with one shutout.) Off paper, Murray is even more impressive, maintaining the calm and collected demeanor of a seasoned veteran in just his second season.

Best Step-Up Guy: Peter Budaj, Los Angeles Kings

When Kings starting goalie Jonathan Quick went down in the first game of the season, the overwhelming assumption was that L.A.’s season was over before it started. But Budaj, who started the season in the AHL, has risen to the occasion and given the Southern California club a chance in the Pacific. (Granted, the Kings weren’t giving him much help when they got shut out three straight games, but that’s a whole other argument.) The 34-year-old Slovakian is doing a sizable job keeping up with the elite netminders in the league, logging seven wins and two shutouts.

Most Improved Starts from Last Season: Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Jimmy Howard, Detroit Red Wings

Bobrovsky leads a Columbus Blue Jackets team that as a whole is off to a much better start than last season. He has, to date, tallied three shutouts on the season, tying him for first in the league with Dubnyk.

Howard is quite the story, coming off a disappointing 2015-16 season that saw him lose the starting job for the Detroit Red Wings and share responsibilities with young buck Petr Mrazek. In the current campaign, however, Howard has found a dominant groove, even being considered the savior for the Red Wings in a couple wins this season.

Best Turnaround: Pekka Rinne, Nashville Predators

In the month of October, the Predators’ starter had a 1-4-1 record, and keeping the puck out of the back of the net wasn't exactly his strong suit. So far in November, however, he is 4-0-2 with a 1.17 goals-against average and .958 save percentage, additionally pitching a shutout against the Anaheim Ducks over the weekend. Of course, the question now is whether or not he can continue that upward trend or at the very least keep fewer pucks from finding the back of the net. Rinne told Adam Vingan of the Tennessean that his “main goal is just to be consistent and be able to maintain a level where I feel like I'm playing my best game every single night.” Another month of hockey will show how that consistency holds up.

Best of the Rest

There are a couple of goaltenders who have been clawing their way into the conversation recently and should be recognized. Corey Crawford is a pivotal piece in the Chicago Blackhawks going 8-0-2 in their last 10 games. In fact, during the Chicago seven-game win streak, Crawford surrendered two or fewer goals in every game but one, which was an overtime loss at that. Tuukka Rask has been brilliant for the Bruins, particularly on the road, where he now holds a 7-0-0 record with a 1.27 GAA and .956 save percentage. And Rangers starter Henrik Lundqvist, who wasn’t looking very sharp a couple weeks ago, is now playing at the stellar level the team in front of him has come to expect. As a result, New York has won four of his last five starts.