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Nashville Predators are favorites to win Stanley Cup (right now)

By Corey Francis

NASHVILLE, TN - APRIL 27: Kevin Fiala #22 of the Nashville Predators is congratulated by teammates Craig Smith #15, Roman Josi #59, and Colton Sissons #10 after scoring a goal against the Winnipeg Jets during the third period of a 4-1 Jets victory in Game One of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena on April 27, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN - APRIL 27: Kevin Fiala #22 of the Nashville Predators is congratulated by teammates Craig Smith #15, Roman Josi #59, and Colton Sissons #10 after scoring a goal against the Winnipeg Jets during the third period of a 4-1 Jets victory in Game One of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena on April 27, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images) /
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NASHVILLE, TN – DECEMBER 21: Juuse Saros #74 of the Nashville Predators replaces Pekka Rinne #35 in net against the Carolina Hurricanes during an NHL game at Bridgestone Arena on December 21, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN – DECEMBER 21: Juuse Saros #74 of the Nashville Predators replaces Pekka Rinne #35 in net against the Carolina Hurricanes during an NHL game at Bridgestone Arena on December 21, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Two Goalies

There is no denying the luxury the Nashville Predators enjoy in net. Simply put, Pekka Rinne and Juuse Saros are the best goalie tandem in the NHL. You can attempt to make an argument, but so you will see the light. Let’s start with GSAA.

Goals Saved Above Average (or GSAA) is a great metric for assessing goalie performance. It provides a number of goals saved without regard for the team which the goalie plays. Save percentage is good, but is a goalie with a .937 rating who has faced 250 shots really better than one with a .929 rating who as faced 350 shots?

There are 33 goalies who accumulated more than 300 minutes of time in net this season. Both Rinne and Saros are among those players. Rinne has a 6.78 GSAA during 5v5 play this season, third in our sample size. Saros has a 0.54 GSAA, which is 16th. Not outstanding, but still above the average NHL goaltender.

Save percentage is a common metric, but high-danger save percentage is stronger. This tells how well the goalie plays when players are close and reaction times are short. Both Rinne (.903) and Saros (.846) rank in the top 10 so far.

Need one more stat? Let’s stick close to home and talk expected save percentage versus actual save percentage. For starters, xSV% tries to depict how a goal is expected to perform. For Rinne and Saros, their xSV%s are .926 (8th) and .927 (5th), respectively. These are rather good numbers if they were true numbers. However, their real save percentages are better. Rinne boasts a .963 SV% during 5v5 play, while Saros holds a .930 SV%. Needless to say, both goalies are among the top 20 in the league.

Next. Rinne's contract will keep team together. dark

There are 31 teams, meaning 62 goalies at least. The Predators have two top-tier players they can call upon. No tandem is better.

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