Best NHL Goalies of All Time

Dominik Hasek is the greatest NHL goalie of all-time in the SOG Sports rankings. Patrick Roy owns the strongest playoff résumé, Martin Brodeur owns the career records and Jacques Plante changed the position, but Hasek reached the highest individual peak. Six Vezina Trophies and two Hart Trophies capture how far he separated from other goalies during his prime.

This is a strict ranking of 30 NHL goalies, updated through the completed 2025-26 season. It weighs peak performance, dominance relative to era, playoff value, sustained excellence, awards, workload and the degree to which each goalie elevated his team. Stanley Cups matter, but they are treated as team achievements rather than a shortcut to ranking the position.

How We Ranked the Best NHL Goalies of All-Time

The first question is how dominant a goalie was against his own competition. Raw save percentage and goals-against average cannot be carried cleanly from the 1930s into the 1990s or the modern NHL. Equipment, schedules, offensive environments, shot quality, defensive systems and the way teams distribute starts have all changed. Separation from the league around a goalie matters more than pretending every era created the same job.

Peak carries slightly more weight than career volume, but both matter. That balance is why Hasek ranks above Brodeur, why Ken Dryden can reach No. 6 with a short career and why Roberto Luongo remains high without a Stanley Cup. Postseason performance is also central. Roy’s three Conn Smythe Trophies are more meaningful to this ranking than simply counting championship rings.

Vezina totals require historical context. Before the 1981-82 season, the trophy generally went to the goalie or goalies on the team that allowed the fewest regular-season goals. Since 1981-82, NHL general managers have voted for the league’s best goalie, while the William M. Jennings Trophy recognizes the fewest goals allowed. The older awards still matter, but they do not represent the exact same voting process as Hasek’s six Vezinas or Connor Hellebuyck’s three.

Only NHL work controls the ranking. International performance can strengthen a close case, as it does for Hasek, Henrik Lundqvist and Carey Price, but it cannot replace an NHL résumé. Active goalies are judged only on what they completed through 2025-26, with no credit for seasons that have not happened.

Best NHL Goalies of All-Time: Nos. 1-10

The top 10 best NHL goalies of all-time, led by Dominik Hasek, Patrick Roy, Jacques Plante, Glenn Hall and Terry Sawchuk.

1. Dominik Hasek

Dominik Hasek is No. 1 because no goalie created a larger gap between himself and the rest of the league at his peak. He led the NHL in save percentage for six consecutive seasons from 1993-94 through 1998-99 while playing behind Buffalo Sabres teams that rarely had the offensive power of the contenders around them. The saves looked improvised, but the results were relentlessly controlled.

Hasek won six Vezina Trophies and remains the only goalie to win the Hart Trophy twice. His 1997-98 season combined a .932 save percentage, 13 shutouts, the Vezina and the Hart. He later won two Stanley Cups with the Detroit Red Wings, and his 1998 Olympic run for the Czech Republic adds one of the position’s greatest international performances. Roy has the better playoff volume and Brodeur has the better career volume. Hasek’s era-adjusted peak is the separator.

2. Patrick Roy

Patrick Roy is the best playoff goalie in NHL history. He won four Stanley Cups with two franchises, collected a record three Conn Smythe Trophies and remains the career leader with 151 postseason wins. His championships were not one version of the same story. He arrived as a 20-year-old playoff star for the Montreal Canadiens in 1986, dominated again in 1993 and later won twice with the Colorado Avalanche.

Roy also won three Vezina Trophies and 551 regular-season games. He helped popularize the modern butterfly style, but this placement is about more than influence. No goalie combined longevity and high-leverage playoff excellence as convincingly. Hasek stays ahead because his regular-season peak was more overwhelming; Roy is the strongest alternative at No. 1 for anyone who starts with the postseason.

3. Jacques Plante

Jacques Plante changed both the technique and expectations of goaltending. He became the first NHL goalie to wear a mask regularly, handled the puck as an active part of the breakout and brought a more analytical approach to positioning and communication. His influence would matter even without the trophy case.

The trophy case makes him a top-three choice. Plante won a record seven Vezina Trophies and six Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens, including five consecutive championships from 1956 through 1960. His 1961-62 Hart Trophy shows that his individual value was recognized even within a dynasty. Roy and Hasek offer cleaner modern comparisons, but neither reshaped the position while also dominating his era quite like Plante.

4. Glenn Hall

Glenn Hall started 502 consecutive regular-season games, a goalie streak that is almost impossible to imagine under modern workload management. Durability alone does not make him No. 4. He paired it with three Vezina Trophies, seven First-Team All-Star selections and consistently strong play across 18 NHL seasons.

Hall won the 1961 Stanley Cup with the Chicago Black Hawks and captured the 1968 Conn Smythe Trophy even though the St. Louis Blues lost the Final. That losing-team playoff MVP is important because it isolates his value from the final result. Plante’s awards, championships and influence give him the edge at No. 3, but Hall’s combination of peak and unmatched workload holds off the rest of the top five.

5. Terry Sawchuk

Terry Sawchuk set the position’s statistical standards before Brodeur came along. He retired with 445 wins and an NHL-record 103 shutouts, then held the shutout record for nearly four decades. He also won four Vezina Trophies and four Stanley Cups.

His early Detroit Red Wings run drives the placement. Sawchuk won the Calder Trophy in 1950-51 and three Vezinas over the next four seasons. In 1951-52, he won 44 games before Detroit swept all eight playoff games. Hall had the longer uninterrupted run at the highest level, while Sawchuk produced the more imposing early peak. The gap between Nos. 4 and 5 is small.

6. Ken Dryden

Ken Dryden built a top-10 résumé in only eight NHL seasons. He won the 1971 Conn Smythe Trophy before he was eligible to win the Calder, then finished his career with six Stanley Cups and five Vezina Trophies. Few athletes in any major sport compressed that much winning into such a short period.

The Montreal Canadiens in front of Dryden were loaded, so he cannot receive individual credit for every team accomplishment. His own results were still exceptional: a 258-57-74 regular-season record, a .921 save percentage and an 80-32 playoff record. In 1976-77, he went 41-6-8 for a team widely considered one of hockey’s best. Sawchuk’s much larger body of work keeps him ahead; Dryden’s peak and postseason dependability put him above the record-holder at No. 7.

7. Martin Brodeur

Martin Brodeur owns the largest career résumé in NHL goaltending. He leads the position in regular-season wins, shutouts, games played and minutes, and he added an NHL-record 24 playoff shutouts. He also won three Stanley Cups and four Vezina Trophies for the New Jersey Devils.

The Devils’ defensive environment helped, but describing Brodeur as a passenger misses why the system worked. His puck-handling punished dump-ins, shortened offensive-zone possessions and forced opponents to redesign their forecheck. He also started more than 70 games in a season 12 times and maintained that workload deep into his career. The six goalies above him reached a more concentrated peak or separated further from their eras, but nobody beats Brodeur on total career value.

8. Bernie Parent

Bernie Parent’s place is built around one of the greatest two-season peaks the position has produced. In both 1973-74 and 1974-75, he won the Vezina Trophy, Conn Smythe Trophy and Stanley Cup. He did not simply backstop the Broad Street Bullies. His control and consistency were the foundation of their championships.

The first of those seasons included 47 wins and 12 shutouts, while his two Cup runs produced six postseason shutouts. Parent does not have Brodeur’s longevity or Dryden’s sustained run across nearly every season of his career. At his absolute best, however, he was the most decisive goalie in hockey for two straight years. That peak is strong enough for No. 8.

9. Frank Brimsek

Frank Brimsek made an immediate case for the top 10. As a rookie in 1938-39, he went 33-9-1 with a 1.56 goals-against average and 10 shutouts, then won the Calder Trophy, Vezina Trophy and Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins. The nickname “Mr. Zero” was earned quickly.

Brimsek later added a second Vezina and a second Stanley Cup, with three First-Team All-Star selections strengthening his individual case. His career was interrupted by military service during World War II, which limits the final totals. Durnan won more Vezinas in an even shorter NHL career, but Brimsek’s rookie peak, playoff success and slightly broader body of work give him the No. 9 spot.

10. Bill Durnan

Bill Durnan won six Vezina Trophies in seven NHL seasons. Even with the award’s older fewest-goals-against definition, that level of repeated team and individual success cannot be dismissed. He also helped the Montreal Canadiens win Stanley Cups in 1944 and 1946.

Durnan could switch his catching glove and blocker between hands, an unusual skill that matched his reputation for intelligence and positional control. His NHL career began at 27 and ended after only 383 regular-season games, so almost the entire case is peak. That keeps him behind Brimsek but still gives him the final top-10 position over goalies with much longer careers.

Best NHL Goalies of All-Time: Nos. 11-20

Nos. 11 through 20 feature Tony Esposito, Ed Belfour, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Johnny Bower, Henrik Lundqvist and Roberto Luongo.

11. Tony Esposito

Tony Esposito nearly breaks into the top 10 on longevity. His first full NHL season in 1969-70 produced 38 wins, 15 shutouts, the Calder Trophy and the Vezina Trophy. He remained the Chicago Blackhawks’ foundation for most of the next 15 seasons.

Esposito finished with 423 wins, 76 shutouts and three Vezinas. The missing championship as a starter is not disqualifying, but it leaves him without the defining playoff run possessed by Brimsek and Parent. His sustained regular-season value with the Chicago Black Hawks still gives him the edge over Belfour at No. 12.

12. Ed Belfour

Ed Belfour combined a fiery edge with one of the position’s strongest modern résumés. He won 484 regular-season games, earned two Vezina Trophies and backstopped the Dallas Stars to the 1999 Stanley Cup. He also ranks among the NHL’s career leaders in playoff wins.

His 1990-91 rookie season remains the cleanest snapshot: 43 wins, a 2.47 goals-against average and both the Calder and Vezina. Esposito sustained a slightly longer run as his franchise’s identity, but Belfour counters with the superior championship finish. No. 12 reflects how close those cases are.

13. Andrei Vasilevskiy

Andrei Vasilevskiy is the highest-ranked active goalie because he has already completed both sides of an all-time case. He led the Tampa Bay Lightning to consecutive Stanley Cups, won the 2021 Conn Smythe Trophy and captured Vezina Trophies in 2018-19 and 2025-26.

His second Vezina season included an NHL-leading 39 wins, a 2.31 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. The deeper separator is the playoff signature. During the 2021 championship run, Vasilevskiy posted a shutout in all four series-clinching games. Belfour’s career is still much longer, but Vasilevskiy has already moved past the one-peak active-goalie category.

14. Johnny Bower

Johnny Bower did not become a full-time NHL goalie until his mid-30s, then helped the Toronto Maple Leafs win four Stanley Cups during the 1960s. The late arrival limits his NHL totals while making the quality of his prime even harder to ignore.

Bower shared two Vezina Trophies and gave Toronto a steady answer in an era when the franchise repeatedly finished in the spring. Vasilevskiy has the stronger individual modern peak and a Conn Smythe. Bower’s championship volume and late-career excellence keep him ahead of several modern goalies with larger regular-season totals.

15. Henrik Lundqvist

Henrik Lundqvist carried one of the most consistent workloads of the salary-cap era. He won at least 30 games in each of his first seven seasons, finished with 459 victories and posted a .918 save percentage across 887 regular-season games for the New York Rangers.

His 2011-12 Vezina season featured a 1.97 goals-against average and .930 save percentage. He never won the Stanley Cup, but that absence says less about his play than the Rangers’ inability to finish enough scoring chances around him. Olympic gold with Sweden in 2006 and a strong postseason save percentage add to a case built on year-after-year reliability.

16. Connor Hellebuyck

Connor Hellebuyck has created an old-school volume case in a modern league that increasingly protects its starters. He won the Vezina Trophy in 2019-20, 2023-24 and 2024-25, making him one of the most decorated goalies under the current voting system.

The 2024-25 season changed the historical ceiling of his résumé. Hellebuyck went 47-12-3 with a 2.00 goals-against average, .925 save percentage and eight shutouts, then became the first goalie since Carey Price to win the Hart Trophy. Lundqvist owns the longer completed career and better playoff record. Hellebuyck owns the higher individual peak and still has time to climb.

17. Roberto Luongo

Roberto Luongo’s career is the clearest warning against using Stanley Cups as the ranking formula. He finished with 489 wins, 77 shutouts and a .919 save percentage across 1,044 games, numbers that combine elite longevity with excellent rate performance.

Luongo’s 2006-07 season with the Vancouver Canucks produced 47 wins, a .921 save percentage and a Hart finalist finish. He later reached Game 7 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Final and won Olympic gold with Canada in 2010. Hellebuyck’s three Vezinas and Hart create the stronger peak case. Luongo’s career volume remains one of the best ever.

18. Charlie Gardiner

Charlie Gardiner’s seven-season career was short, but his best work was extraordinary. He won two Vezina Trophies, earned three First-Team All-Star selections and captained the Chicago Black Hawks to the 1934 Stanley Cup. He remains the only goalie to captain a team to the championship.

Gardiner died less than two months after winning the Cup, leaving no chance to build the longevity that usually separates the top 20. What he completed is enough. Luongo’s two decades of high-level NHL play rank ahead, while Gardiner’s era dominance and championship peak give him the edge over the position’s first icon at No. 19.

19. Georges Vezina

Georges Vezina was the NHL’s first great goaltending standard. He played every game for the Montreal Canadiens from the formation of the NHL in 1917 until illness forced him from the crease in 1925, and he helped the franchise win the Stanley Cup in 1924.

Statistics from the sport’s formative years do not translate cleanly, so his placement relies on durability, peer reputation and historical importance. The trophy bearing his name has recognized NHL goaltending excellence since 1927. Gardiner has the more measurable award peak, but Vezina’s foundational career remains strong enough for the top 20.

20. Sergei Bobrovsky

Sergei Bobrovsky has one of the strangest great-goalie résumés because the peaks came in very different settings. He won Vezina Trophies with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2012-13 and 2016-17, then supplied the championship layer by helping the Florida Panthers win consecutive Stanley Cups in 2024 and 2025.

The year-to-year line has not always been smooth, but the total case now includes two individual awards, major career volume and repeated playoff success. Vezina’s historical importance holds No. 19. Bobrovsky’s modern peak and two late-career championships separate him from the goalies immediately below.

Best NHL Goalies of All-Time: Nos. 21-30

Nos. 21 through 30 feature Carey Price, Tiny Thompson, Turk Broda, Clint Benedict, George Hainsworth and Tuukka Rask.

21. Carey Price

Carey Price produced one of the best modern goalie seasons in 2014-15. He went 44-16-6 with a 1.96 goals-against average, .933 save percentage and nine shutouts, then won the Hart, Vezina, Jennings and Ted Lindsay awards.

At his best, Price made difficult saves look routine because his reads and movement kept him in position before the shot arrived. Olympic gold in 2014 and his run to the 2021 Stanley Cup Final add high-leverage value. Injuries shortened the back half of the career, and Bobrovsky’s two Vezinas plus two Cups create the more complete résumé. Price’s single-season ceiling still makes No. 21 feel conservative.

22. Tiny Thompson

Tiny Thompson won four Vezina Trophies, helped the Boston Bruins win the 1929 Stanley Cup and finished with 81 career shutouts. His rookie season included a 1.15 goals-against average and three shutouts in five playoff games.

Thompson finished with a 2.07 career goals-against average, an exceptional mark even after accounting for the era. Price owns the more impressive modern peak and the individual Hart. Thompson’s award count and sustained pre-Original Six dominance place him directly behind.

23. Turk Broda

Turk Broda was the goaltending constant behind five Toronto Maple Leafs championships. He won two Vezina Trophies, surpassed 300 regular-season victories and repeatedly delivered in playoff series that demanded a comeback.

Broda’s most famous work came in 1942, when Toronto became the first NHL team to overcome a 3-0 series deficit and win the Stanley Cup. His regular-season statistical peak was not as pronounced as Thompson’s, which keeps him at No. 23. The championship contribution is strong enough to hold off another four-Cup pioneer.

24. Clint Benedict

Clint Benedict was one of the NHL’s first tactical innovators. His habit of dropping to the ice helped force a rule change that allowed goalies to leave their feet to make a save. In 1930, he also became the first NHL goalie to wear a mask, using a leather face shield for several games after a serious facial injury.

Benedict was a four-time Stanley Cup champion and produced three shutouts during the Montreal Maroons’ four-game championship series in 1926. Broda has the cleaner NHL award and longevity case. Benedict’s technique, playoff résumé and influence make him too important to rank much lower.

25. George Hainsworth

George Hainsworth’s 1928-29 season still looks unreal: 22 shutouts in 44 games and a 0.92 goals-against average. The scoring environment was dramatically different, but stopping every shot in half of a season remains one of the position’s defining statistical achievements.

Hainsworth won three Vezina Trophies and two Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens. Benedict’s four championships and greater tactical influence provide the edge at No. 24. Hainsworth answers with the most extreme single-season numbers anywhere in the lower top 30.

26. Tuukka Rask

Tuukka Rask finished with 308 wins and a .921 career save percentage, one of the strongest rate-stat combinations of the modern era. He won the 2013-14 Vezina Trophy after posting a 2.04 goals-against average and .930 save percentage.

Rask’s calm positioning made his game look less dramatic than it was. He helped the Boston Bruins reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2013 and 2019, and his career playoff save percentage was even better than his regular-season mark. Hainsworth’s three Vezinas and singular 22-shutout season win the cross-era comparison, but Rask’s efficiency gives him the first spot among the final five.

27. Tim Thomas

Tim Thomas had a shorter and more volatile career than Rask, but his 2010-11 season reached a higher peak. He posted a .938 regular-season save percentage, won his second Vezina Trophy and then carried the Boston Bruins to the Stanley Cup with a Conn Smythe performance.

That playoff run included a .940 save percentage across 25 games. Thomas attacked shooters far outside the conservative positional model and survived through reads, compete level and reflexes. Rask’s longer record of top-level work gives him No. 26. Thomas owns the better single year.

28. Billy Smith

Billy Smith was the playoff edge behind the New York Islanders dynasty. He won four consecutive Stanley Cups from 1980 through 1983, captured the 1983 Conn Smythe Trophy and became the first Vezina winner under the current best-goalie voting format in 1981-82.

His regular-season save percentage and goals-against average do not compare cleanly with the modern goalies around him, but his postseason role was not replaceable. Thomas’ Vezina peak and 2011 run create the stronger individual case. Smith’s four-year championship performance keeps him above the final two.

29. Harry Lumley

Harry Lumley combined a heavy workload with more than 300 wins, 71 shutouts and the 1953-54 Vezina Trophy. He also helped the Detroit Red Wings win the 1950 Stanley Cup, shutting out the Toronto Maple Leafs twice after Detroit fell behind 3-2 in the semifinal series.

Lumley later produced 13 shutouts in his first season with Toronto and remained a high-volume starter into his mid-30s. Smith’s four championships and Conn Smythe give him the clearer postseason case. Lumley’s longevity and shutout production earn the No. 29 position.

30. Gump Worsley

Gump Worsley closes the top 30 with 335 wins, 43 shutouts, four Stanley Cups and two shared Vezina Trophies. He played without a mask until late in his career and remained effective into his 40s, giving him one of the position’s most durable old-school profiles.

His best team success came with the Montreal Canadiens, but his decade with the New York Rangers required him to absorb enormous shot volume on weaker clubs. Lumley has the stronger individual shutout peak. Worsley’s longevity, championships and ability to survive very different team environments claim the final spot.

Toughest Cuts From the Top 30

Marc-Andre Fleury is the most controversial omission. He retired with 575 wins, three Stanley Cups and the 2020-21 Vezina Trophy. The case against a top-30 placement is that the championship count includes seasons when he did not finish as Pittsburgh’s playoff starter, while his individual peak was less sustained than the goalies selected. His longevity still gives him a completely reasonable top-30 argument.

Grant Fuhr won five Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, captured the 1987-88 Vezina and finished with 403 regular-season wins. His ability to deliver the next save for an aggressive team mattered more than his raw rate statistics suggest. The lower career save percentage and the strength of the roster around him narrowly keep him outside this particular 30.

Jonathan Quick has the strongest omission case based on one postseason peak. He won the 2012 Conn Smythe after a .946 playoff save percentage and was the starter for two Los Angeles Kings championships. Alec Connell, Roy Worters, Mike Vernon, Pekka Rinne, Ryan Miller and Tom Barrasso also belong in the next group considered.

Biggest Debates in the Goalie Rankings

Hasek, Roy or Brodeur at No. 1?

The argument changes with the category. Hasek offers the best era-adjusted peak, Roy owns the most valuable playoff résumé and Brodeur created the largest career record book. This ranking puts the most weight on how far a goalie rose above his competition, which makes Hasek the choice. A postseason-first system would select Roy, while a career-value system could select Brodeur.

Why Is Martin Brodeur Only No. 7?

No. 7 is not a rejection of Brodeur’s records. It reflects the difference between total value and peak separation. New Jersey’s defensive structure helped suppress chances, while Hasek regularly produced a larger save-percentage gap above the league around him. Brodeur’s workload, puck-handling and consistency keep him in the inner circle, but this formula does not allow longevity to settle the ranking by itself.

How Does Ken Dryden Rank So High With a Short Career?

Dryden played only eight NHL seasons, but almost none of them were ordinary. Six Cups, five Vezinas, a Conn Smythe, a Calder and a dominant win-loss record create an extreme concentration of value. The Canadiens’ strength prevents him from challenging the top five, but moving him far lower would overcorrect for his supporting cast and ignore how rarely his own performance slipped.

How High Can Vasilevskiy and Hellebuyck Climb?

Vasilevskiy already has the cleaner top-10 path because his résumé includes two Cups, a Conn Smythe and two Vezinas. Hellebuyck has the superior regular-season award case with three Vezinas and a Hart, but his playoff results lag behind the goalies above him. Both are evaluated only through 2025-26. More seasons at their established level could move either well into the top 15.

Complete Top 30 NHL Goalies of All-Time

The table matches the strict ranking above. The Primary Team column identifies the franchise most closely tied to each goalie’s NHL case, not every team he played for.

Final Verdict on the Greatest NHL Goalies

Hasek ranks first because the gap between his best seasons and the rest of the league was larger than any other goalie’s. Roy is the playoff standard, Plante is the most influential top-three candidate and Brodeur owns records that may never be approached. The hardest part of the exercise is not finding greatness. It is deciding whether peak, postseason performance or total career value should break the tie.

More NHL All-Time Rankings

• Best NHL Goalies Every Year From 1967-2026
• Best NHL Centers of All-Time
• Best NHL Players in the 2010s
• Fastest Shots of All-Time in NHL History

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