This article is part of our The Goalie Report series.
A pair of recently promoted goalies are among the top performers last week, while others are getting the chance to take control of the larger share of their team's starting assignments due to their recent efforts and other circumstances.
Risers
Alex Lyon 
Buffalo Sabres
It's looking like Lyon's turn to run with the top goalie role once again, as his teammate, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, has been sidelined with a leg injury. The Sabres didn't miss a beat last week as Lyon won two of his three starts, allowing only seven goals out of 108 shots faced (.935 save percentage). Buffalo remains the hottest team in the East over the past two months, making a determined bid to end an ugly 14-year playoff drought. An improved roster and quality goaltending have been central to this turnaround. Lyon's career-best statistics (2.66 GAA, .914 save percentage) over 26 appearances are emblematic of this uptick in team fortunes.
Elvis Merzlikins 
Columbus Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets are riding a league-best 9-1 mark over their past 10 games to vault themselves into the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race, after being given up for dead a couple of weeks ago. Merzlikins has bounced back from a poor start to his campaign, after being overtaken by Jet Greaves, to playing a majority of the games in this most successful stretch. Last week he earned wins in all three of his starts, limiting the damage to only five goals out of 75 shots (93.3 percent). His resurgence in recent weeks gives the Jackets a pair of viable options in goal for the first time in years.
Nikita Tolopilo 
Vancouver Canucks
A litany of injuries to Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen has been a central reason for the Canucks early demise this season, which lands them at the bottom of the NHL standings at this time. Tolopilo got the promotion from Abbotsford (AHL) in recent weeks to fill in where needed. He hadn't really impressed in his early starts, but last week he excelled over three straight appearances, allowing a total of four goals, while turning away 96 other shots (.960 save percentage). This effort, at a time when the uncertain health of the other goalies is an issue, in the short- and long-term, has given Tolopilo a great chance to build his case to be in this mix going forward.
Mackenzie Blackwood 
Colorado Avalanche
With his goalie partner, Scott Wedgewood, attending to the birth of a child, Blackwood has handled five of the team's last six starts. With the Avs high-octane offense hitting a rut, he's only recorded two wins over that stretch, despite recording four quality starts. Looking ahead, he should continue to split assignments here, and, as the team is expected to regain its scoring touch, his win probability will remain high over the rest of the season. The positive aspect for Blackwood is that he has now run off two periods with a heavy workload and has excelled in both of them this season.
Ilya Sorokin 
New York Islanders
Sorokin is putting together another outstanding season, handling a heavy workload once again for the Islanders, while posting excellent statistics in the process (2.48 GAA, .915 save percentage) along with a league-high six shutouts. He has already gone a long way to building his case as a Vezina trophy candidate for this season. His bid will be a strong one, because unlike other expected contenders, his team is not a league juggernaut, and he deserves a larger share of the credit for his defensive success.
Clay Stevenson 
Washington Capitals
With both veteran goalies on the shelf, the Capitals promoted Stevenson from Hershey (AHL) last week. As the Caps are in a playoff dogfight in the East, there was a certain amount of pressure on Stevenson to produce. He certainly responded well in delivering two wins and three quality starts last week, allowing a total of seven goals against out of 73 shots on goal (.904 save percentage). He will likely be returned to the AHL soon, but the Caps got a good look at a goalie who is younger than both currently sidelined starters and gives an indication that they may have some long-term insurance at this key position.
Fallers
Stuart Skinner 
Pittsburgh Penguins
Skinner's long stretch of solid play finally came to an end last week, as he was blitzed for 10 goals against over his two starts While his early returns in Pittsburgh have been very positive for a significant period, last week's struggles serve as a reminder of why he was dealt by Edmonton earlier this season. He was slapped with an inconsistency label during his time there, despite consecutive playoff runs to the Stanley Cup Final. He may have opened the door for Arturs Silovs to get a chance to make his case for a string of game starts.
Yaroslav Askarov 
San Jose Sharks
Askarov was given the chance to assert himself as the goalie of the future in San Jose this season. The experience and results have been mixed, alternating with positive and negative stretches. Last week was a downturn, as he surrendered 10 goals, while facing only 67 shots (.851 save percentage). His veteran backup, Alex Nedeljkovic, knows his supporting role here and that has to be a comfort for Askarov on multiple levels.
Sergei Bobrovsky 
Florida Panthers
A couple of weeks ago, we highlighted Bobrovsky here for his substandard play, and once again he is among the poorest performers this week. In surrendering 10 more goals out of only 60 shots on goal, his season-long save percentage (.872) is easily the lowest of his distinguished playing career. As the Panthers are well back in the Eastern Conference playoff race and he is playing out the last year of his current long-term contract (10M AAV), the 37-year-old may be seeing the end of his playing days in a Panthers uniform.
Injury News
Logan Thompson, Charlie Lindgren Washington Capitals
As indicated above, the Capitals had to dig into their minor league goalie depth, due to injuries sidelining both Thompson (upper body) and Lindgren (lower body) last week. Clay Stevenson played all three games last week in their combined absence. Both should be back after the Olympic break.
