NHL Draft 2020: Top-5 North American and European Goaltenders

Top-5 North American and European Goaltenders in the 2020 NHL Draft

Oct 6, 2020

This article originally appeared on AnaheimDucks.com on October 2, 2020.

By Kyle Shohara/AnaheimDucks.com

As we get closer to the 2020 NHL Draft on Oct. 6-7, AnaheimDucks.com is looking at some of the top-ranked skaters by position. We finish with the top-ranked North American and European goaltenders, in order of final draft rankings per the NHL's Central Scouting Bureau.

Several references were used when describing each of these prospects, including The Athletic's Corey Pronman and Scott Wheeler, and TSN's Craig Button and Bob McKenzie.

The Ducks currently hold two picks in the first round (6th and 27th) and three in the top-36.

Visit the Gulls Draft Hub for all of your draft information!

North American Goaltenders

1. Nicolas Daws

NHL.com Scouting Report: Very calm, relaxed and composed. Solid positionally and technically sound. Smart at reading and reacting to situations with efficient and controlled body movements. Gives his team a chance to win every game.

Age: 19 (12/22/00)
Height: 6-4
Weight: 199
Birthplace: Munich, Germany
Catches: Left

Though Daws was born in Germany, he's spent almost all of his life in Canada after moving to Burlington, Ontario at around six months of age. Daws has dual German-Canadian citizenship and represents Canada on the international stage. He was lights out with OHL Guelph last season, turning in a 23-8-6 record while leading all OHL goaltenders in save percentage (.924) and shutouts (5). He was the inaugural recipient of the Jim Rutherford Trophy in 2019-20 awarded annually to the OHL's goaltender of the year and was named an OHL First Team All-Star.

"Daws was one of the best players in the OHL, as a defensive force in a league where stopping goals was optional last season and a member of Canada's U20 team. Daws is in his second eligible season for the draft after a pedestrian start to his junior career, but he is very likely to be picked. He is a 6-foot-4 goalie with great poise and sense. He moves around his crease quite efficiently, squaring up a lot of pucks, and is rarely out of position or needing to scramble. I question how quick he is. His lateral ability is good and he gets around his crease fine, but for the NHL level I don't know if he can move at the pace needed to get to the tough save." -- The Athletic's Corey Pronman

"Daws was the Storm's most important player as an overager, with a .924 save percentage on a team that played pretty loose all year (as evidenced by the .881 save percentage his backup, Owen Bennett, posted). He plays more of a blocking style than an athletic one, using his size to fill the net and swallow the first save so that he doesn't have to bounce around his net or make a ton of recovery saves. I do worry about his positioning when teams get him going side-to-side, as the compactness of his game can break down a little when he has to move a lot. If he strays at the pro level when the game is moving faster, he may not have the athleticism to be able to recover." -- The Athletic's Scott Wheeler

2. Drew Commesso

Age: 18 (7/19/02)
Height: 6-2
Weight: 180
Birthplace: Norwell, Massachusetts
Catches: Left

Commesso spent the 2019-20 season with the U.S. NTDP where he posted an 18-7-1 record, 2.05 goals-against average, .920 save percentage and three shutouts in 30 appearances. It was a step forward in his development after serving as the No. 1 netminder for the U.S. National Under-17 Team during 2018-19 (3.24 GAA, .886 SV%, 3 SO). On the international stage, Commesso represented the United States at the 2019 and 2020 5 Nations Tournaments and the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge. He's committed to Boston University for the 2020-21 season.

"Commesso had an excellent season, being one of the better NTDP goalies in recent seasons and one of the best players on that team. Commesso impressed me the more I watched him. I had skepticism coming into the season on whether he had NHL quality quickness or sense, but he showed that over the course of the campaign. He's a quick goalie, I debated putting a 60 on his athleticism, but in control with how he moves around the crease. He reacts quickly and tracks pucks well, so despite not having elite quickness, he can get to a lot of pucks. While he's often square, he can make the high difficulty save when he needs to. He's a player uniquely affected by the shortened season and no U18 worlds because he only had 27 starts on the campaign. I'm not overly confident in his production due to the sample size, but he's also one of the youngest players in the draft so there's a lot of room for projection." -- The Athletic's Corey Pronman

"My No. 2-ranked goalie, Commesso has this quiet excellence to his game that persisted for most of the season with USA Hockey. Outside of maybe being an inch or two taller, most of what you want in a modern goalie is there for Commesso. He stays center to his line even as the play in front of him breaks down, he's a student of the game, he plays the angles and the percentages on his challenges, he reads the play effectively through traffic. He's also still really young and will be entering a BU program that has a clear opening in net for him to take and run with. He's also a sound technical goalie through his butterfly, where he rarely gets beat, and glove side, where he's not often frozen. He's also an above-average athlete, which helps him make difficult saves, even if that's not the hallmark of his game. I wouldn't fault a team for taking him in the mid-to-late second round." -- The Athletic's Scott Wheeler

3. Samuel Hlavaj

Age: 19 (5/29/01)
Height: 6-4
Weight: 218
Birthplace: Martin, Slovakia
Catches: Left

Hlavaj had a monster year with QMJHL Sherbrooke last season, posting a 33-3-2 record, 2.25 goals-against average, .915 save percentage and three shutouts. He ranked in the top-five among all Q netminders (minimum 15 games played) in wins (2nd), GAA (1st), SV% (3rd) and shutouts (t-3rd). Furthermore, he won 11 consecutive games from Dec. 1, 2019-Jan. 28, 2020. He's already a veteran on the international stage, having represented Slovakia at the 2019 and 2020 World Junior Championship and 2018 and 2019 Under-18 Championship.

He can become the fifth Slovakian-born goaltender to appear in an NHL game, joining Jaroslav Halak (520 GP), Peter Budaj (368 GP), Rastislav Stana (6 GP) and Jan Lasak (6 GP).

4. Will Cranley

Age: 18 (2/26/02)
Height: 6-4
Weight: 183
Birthplace: Peterborough, Ontario
Catches: Left

Cranley had a strong season with OHL Ottawa during 2019-20, finishing with an 18-2-0 record and four shutouts while serving as the club's No. 2 netminder. He ranked second among OHL rookie goaltenders with 18 wins last season, while his 2.81 GAA ranked fifth among all league netminders (min. 10 GP). Cranley won 12 consecutive appearances from Nov. 1, 2019-Feb. 14, 2020 and was teamed with 67's goaltender Cedrick Andree to win the 2019-20 Dave Pinkney Trophy for allowing the fewest goals against.

5. Garin Bjorklund

Age: 18 (5/28/02)
Height: 6-2
Weight: 173
Birthplace: Grand Prairie, Alberta
Catches: Left

Bjorklund ranked third among WHL rookie netminders with 20 wins last season (20-5-4) for WHL Medicine Hat. He split goaltending duties with teammate Mads Sogaard (drafted 37th overall by Ottawa in 2019) during the 2019-20 campaign, recording 1,609 minutes of duty. Bjorklund won an Alberta Midget AAA championship with the Calgary Buffaloes in 2018-19 after posting a 1.76 GAA and .934 SV% in 11 playoff appearances.

European Goaltenders

1. Yaroslav Askarov

NHL.com Scouting Report: Tall, athletic goaltender who likes to stay upright. High hockey IQ. Quick, involved, active and very mobile. Communicates loudly with his skaters.

Age: 18 (6/16/02)
Height: 6-3
Weight: 176
Birthplace: Omsk, Russia
Catches: Right

Pegged by nearly everyone as a lock to go in the first round, Askarov spent the majority of the 2019-20 season with Neva St. Petersburg in Russia's second division where he posted a 12-3-3 record, 2.45 goals-against average and .920 save percentage. On Nov. 27, 2019, at 17 years of age, Askarov became the second-youngest goalie in history at the time of his KHL debut when he made 23 saves in a 4-2 victory for SKA St. Petersburg. On the international level, he's backstopped Team Russia to gold medals at the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge (where he was named a tournament all-star) and the 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. He was named the best goaltender and a tournament all-star at the 2019 Under-18 World Championship where he helped Russia earn a silver medal and was on Team Russia's silver medal-winning squad at the 2020 World Junior Championship.

"Fascinating guy for a variety of reasons. No. 1 he's a right-hand catcher. You don't see that very often. He's also being billed as the most exciting goaltending prospect since Carey Price, who went fifth overall in 2005 to the Montreal Canadiens. At the very least, a lot of scouts believe he's the next Andrei Vasilevskiy, the fine Tampa Bay netminder who went 19th overall in 2012. He steals games. He steals medals in tournaments that his team would otherwise lose. But, he didn't play well at the World Junior Championship, and that raised a little bit of doubt as to how early people might step up on him. It's going to be fascinating to see. We've got him at 11. He can crack the top 10, but he could also slide. You just never know with the goalies." -- TSN's Bob McKenzie

"Yaroslav has the full package of attributes to be a dominant goalie beginning with his exceptional ability to read the play. He can get to the right spots and is so capable of denying an opponent's challenges because of his anticipation. When we look at the scouting report, he has the triad of skills necessary to dominate. The [hockey] sense, his use of size to close down the net and his outstanding quickness, both in his movement and in his mind. I see him as an elite franchise goalie in the mold of Carey Price. He's the best goaltender I've seen entering the draft since Carey Price was selected in 2005." -- TSN's Craig Button

"Askarov is one of the best goalie prospects I've seen as a first-year draft-eligible. He was unusually successful versus men as a 17-year-old, including a brief KHL appearance. He helped take down a very talented Canada U18 team almost single-handedly, same for a powerhouse USA U18 team as the best goalie at the U18 worlds in 2019. He has elite attributes in terms of his athleticism, in how he reads the game and how aggressive he is. His quickness allows him to make the tough saves, although I don't find him scrambling and diving around the net a lot given how well he anticipates the play. He's a little jumpy in the net just due to how quick he is, but he's in control most of the time, staying with the play even when the puck is moving quickly. Askarov is often challenging shooters even in unorthodox situations, but he isn't often beat when he is aggressive, which speaks to his hockey IQ. He was terrible at the world juniors, letting in a lot of soft goals, but that is not the player I've seen for most of the past two years in international play at various levels. He will need to work on making sure fewer mid-distance shots go in, but his home plate play is elite. I think he will become an upper-echelon goalie in the NHL." -- The Athletic's Corey Pronman

"After bouncing between the KHL and the second-tier VHL to start the new year (due to SKA's depth in net with Alexander Samonov and Magnus Hellberg), Askarov grabbed the KHL reins in relief and a follow-up shutout. Askarov has pretty much everything teams look for in a goalie. He's one of those rare prospects (along with 2021's Jesper Wallstedt, believe it or not) who is worth taking in the first round. He's big, he's athletic, he swallows rebounds, he can make those tough second-chance recovery saves, he does a good job staying center, he has an extended domestic and international track record of success and he only turned 18 in June. If I have one concern with his game that kept him out of my top 10, it's the jitteriness I've talked about in his play before. He doesn't load up on his push-off leg like most goalies when he's going post-to-post. Instead, he bounces and hops around the net. And though it's a peculiar trait, he says it works for him in helping to keep him engaged and focused. He also catches right (rare on its own) and despite holding his glove high in his stance, occasionally gets frozen by good shooters. Still, when Askarov is dialed in, his agility - and the compact nature of it at that! - can make him borderline unflappable. Give him a year or two to earn starts in the KHL and I wouldn't be surprised if he comes over a little sooner than some other top Russian goalie prospects have in recent memory." -- The Athletic's Scott Wheeler

2. Jan Bednar

Age: 18 (8/26/02)
Height: 6-4
Weight: 196
Birthplace: Rokycany, Czech Republic
Catches: Left

Bednar spent most of the 2019-20 season with Sokolov in the Czech Republic's second division where he made 24 appearances (3.26 GAA, .873 SV% and one shutout). He also saw time in the top pro league, playing 13 games with Karlovy Vary. He was named the Czech Extraliga Rookie of the Year in 2018-19 after posting a 2.73 GAA and .917 SV% in 10 games. On the international stage, Bednar represented the Czech Republic at the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, 2019 Under-18 World Championship and 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

"Bednar is a very tough evaluation case. He has the 6-foot-4 frame and high-end athleticism that can make you a believer. On his best night, he looks dominant with the ability to steal a game at the NHL level. His ability to get to pucks across the crease for a goalie his size is fantastic, and he can make some real highlight reel saves. But Bednar can be a bit all over the place in the crease. He tracks pucks well through traffic, but his reads on passing plays are average, and he is out of position a bit too much. He has played against men for most of the past two seasons so he may have just been in over his head, but his consistency has been a significant issue." -- The Athletic's Corey Pronman

3. Joel Blomqvist

Age: 18 (1/10/02)
Height: 6-2
Weight: 183
Birthplace: Uusikaarlepyy, Finland
Catches: Left

Blomqvist led the top Finnish junior league last season with a .931 save percentage in 34 appearances for Karpat. He also had a strong GAA (1.66) and recorded five shutouts. He played an integral part in leading Karpat's junior club to a league championship in 2018-19 where he was named to the First All-Star Team and awarded the Jorma Valtonen Award as best goaltender. He earned a silver medal with Team Finland at the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and represented his country at the 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

"Blomqvist had a very good season, leading the Finnish junior circuit in save percentage and being the No. 1 goalie for Finland's U18 team. He has a powerful lower body, allowing him to move across the crease very well and make tough saves. While he is very quick, his movements are often in control as he is rarely way out of position. His puck tracking is fantastic. Blomqvist is rarely fooled by opponents passing plays and stays square even when the puck is bouncing through traffic. The main issue with him is his 6-foot-1 frame. He plays the way you want a smaller goalie to play. He's aggressive and challenges when he needs to, and he doesn't automatically go into a butterfly for mid to long-distance shots. But every time a puck goes over his shoulder you wonder how it will translate to the pro level." -- The Athletic's Corey Pronman

"Blomqvist isn't the tallest goalie but he looks bigger in the net than his height suggests. He relies on that size to challenge shooters and explode from his posts with a powerful push. I wouldn't say he's particularly quick in his net per se, in terms of his ability to adjust on the fly, but he can get to his spots when he loads up on one of his legs and he knows what's coming. He was frozen a couple of times in two ugly appearances in Liiga last season, and some of his stellar Jr. His numbers were a byproduct of the stingy team in front of him but he's strong enough and sound enough positionally to merit a mid-round pick." -- The Athletic's Scott Wheeler

4. Calle Clang

Age: 18 (5/20/02)
Height: 6-2
Weight: 194
Birthplace: Olofstrom, Sweden
Catches: Left

Clang spent the majority of the 2019-20 season with Rogle in Sweden's top junior league where he finished with a 2.64 GAA, .913 SV% and two shutouts in 34 appearances. At the international level, Clang's represented Sweden at the 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, 2020 5 Nations Tournament and 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

"Clang was a solid goalie at the junior and international levels, and finished off his season strong in the second half. He is very smart and steady. There is not a lot of extra movement in his game and he reads opponents' puck movements very well. He rarely loses his technique and sets quickly. With Clang, the question is, while he's not small or slow (around pro-average in both) if the toolkit is good enough for the NHL and if he will be able to stop some of the plays at the quicker paces. I know some NHL scouts whose opinions of him improved as the year went along, but I'm on the fence on projecting him to the league, even if I see some NHL potential. He will play versus men next season, which will be a big test." -- The Athletic's Corey Pronman

5. Amir Miftakhov

Age: 20 (4/26/00)
Height: 6-0
Weight: 172
Birthplace: Kazan, Russia
Catches: Left

We finish the list with Miftakhov, who appeared in 22 games with Bars Kazan in Russia's second division pro league last season. He concluded with a 2.19 GAA, .913 SV% and two shutouts, and also made two appearances with the top pro team before the season was done. He's got plenty of international experience, which includes the 2020 World Junior Championship, 2018 IIHF World Championship and 2017 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

"Miftakhov is a third-year draft-eligible prospect - a player I've listed twice and continue to stubbornly believe should be drafted. He's small, there's no getting around that as a true six-foot goaltender. He didn't have an amazing season either at the second division pro level in Russia. Miftakhov is an exceptional athlete, though. His ability to make the high-end save and to get to pucks he has no business getting to is right at the top of his age group and this draft class. He improvises in tough situations so well and, despite his tremendous quickness, I would not describe him as an out of control goalie. He makes great reads and stays with the play. He's small, pucks go over his shoulder more than you like so the NHL is unlikely, but he's so talented that he's worth being picked." -- The Athletic's Corey Pronman

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