The 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft will be held June 28-29 at Sphere in Las Vegas. The first round will be June 28 (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS) and Rounds 2-7 are June 29 (11:30 a.m. ET; ESPN+,NHLN, SN, SN1). NHL. Com is counting down to the draft with in- depth profiles on top prospects, podcasts and other features. Today, a look at the top eligible goalies. NHL. Com’s full draft coverage can be found here.
Mikhail Yegorov’s numbers this season with Omaha of the United Hockey League is not what earned him the No. 1 spot in NHL Central Scouting’s final ranking of North American skaters.
It’s the how the 18-year-old continued to progress and develop despite a difficult season.
Yegorov was 8-25-3 with a 3.86 goals – against average and .892 save percentage in 43 games Omaha finished with the worst record in the USHL.
“He didn’t end up playing on a very good team this year, unfortunately, so he faced a lot of shots, a lot of quality shots,” AI Jensen of Central Scouting said. “When he’s on he covers a lot of the net and quickly. I just see a huge upside on him, and it was actually an easy choice for me to put him at No. 1 for the final rankings.”
- Mikhail Yegorov, Omaha (USHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 1 (North American goalies)
Yegorov (6-foot-5, 188 pounds) improved as the season went on, and in his final 10 games he allowed three goals or fewer nine times and had a .906 save percentage. He’s expected to return to Omaha next season, then move onto Boston University in 2025-26.
“He’s very smart and his technical game is sound. … here’s a kind that size, moves well, great structure in his game,” Jensen said. “You’ve got 4-6 years with this kid and to develop. I just see such a huge upside with this kid.”
- Carter George, Owen Sound (OHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 2 (North American goalies)
George (6-1, 194) was 23-21-9 with a 3.30 GAA, .907 Save percentage and four shutouts in 56 Ontario Hockey League games, but helped Canada win the gold medal at the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup in August with a 2.25 GAA, .889 save percentage and one shutout in five games. The 18-year-old capped his season by helping Canada win gold at the 2024 IIHF World Under-18 Championship in April, going 6-0-0 with a 2.33 GAA, .915 save percentage and two shutouts in six games, and being voted the tournament’s best goalie.
“He doesn’t have a huge presence, but this net positioning and his coverage is better than a lot of the big goalies that are that are eligible in this draft,” Jensen said. “ He’s very smart. He’s very strong. He holds his ground well. He handles the puck extremely well too, which is great.
“There’s a lot to like about him even though he doesn’t have that big, tall status. He plays bigger than his size and he’s so consistent. I really like the way this kid plays.”
.Emil Vinni, Jokipojat (FIN-2)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 1 (International goalies)
Vinni (6-3, 187) was 17-9 with 10 ties, a 2.72 GAA and .891 save percentage in 37 games in Mestis, the second-highest professional league in Finland. The 18-year-old also helped Finland win bronze at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup with a 1.75 GAA and . 927 save percentage in four games.
“Vinni is a hybrid type of goalie with active feet,” NHL director of European Scouting Jukka-Pekka Vuorinen said. “ Plays on top of his crease. Uses his glove hand with confidence. Solid in his movements in all directions. Looks strong and balanced with good control while moving. … has good technical abilities and he’s got the quickness to make the big saves.”
Nicholas Kempf, USA U-18 (USHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No 4 (North American goalies )
The 18-year-old was 23-7-2 with a 2.99 GAA, .897 save percentage and three shutouts in 37 games for the USA Hockey National Team Development Program Under-18 team, including 5-1 with a 1.89 GAA and .919 save percentage to help United States win the sliver medal at the world U-18s.
Kempf (6-2, 189) is committed to play at Notre Dame next season.
“I’ve really liked the feel of the game he has, he’s not a cookie-cutter goalie,” Jensen said. “He’s got great instincts. He’s got great competitiveness. I like his footwork. He’s got an excellent butterfly and I just like that part of his strucuture in his game. He’s got great mechanics, and he’s very efficient in his crease movements. There’s a lot hat that I like about his game and one of the key ones is his instincts.| feel he doesn’t rely specifically on just his structure. He’s got his instincts and his compete.”
llya Nabokov, Magnitogorsk (RUS)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 2 (International goalies)
Nabokov (6-foot, 179) was named most valuable player of the kontinental Hockey League playoffs after going 16-6 with a 1.82 GAA and .942 save percentage to help Magnitogorsk win the Gagarin Cup as league champions.
The 21-year-old was 23-13-3 with a 2.15 GAA and .930 save percentage in 43 regular-season games and won the Alexei Cherepanov Award as KHL rookie of the year.
After being passed over the past two years in the draft, this will be Nabokov’s final season of eligibility.
“Nabokov looks composed, has sharp skating and is competitive,” Vuorinen said. “Very athletic and focuses on challenging shooters and playing high in the crease, being aggressive. He’s got very good footwork and moves throughout the crease with control and quickness. He reads the play very well, makes smart challenges with quick reflexes and good athleticism.”
7. Kim Saarinen, HPK Jr. (FIN-JR)
NHL Central Scouting rankings: No.3 (International goalies)
Saarinen (6-4, 176) was named the best goalie in Finland’s junior league after going 14-5-0 with a 2.41 GAA and .917 save percentage in 23 games.
The 17-year-old also made his debut in Liiga, the top league in Finland, and had a 2.46 GAA and .909 save percentage in two games for HPK.
Evan Garden, Saskatoon (WHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 7 (North American goalies)
Gardner (6-foot, 175) led the Western Hockey League with a 1.91 GAA and .927 save percentage in 30 games as a rookie. The 18-year-old was 21-5-2 and tied for second in the league with four shutouts.
In the playoffs, he helped Saskatoon reach the third round, going 10-4 with a 2.33 GAA, .910 save percentage and one shutout in 15 games.
9.Dawson Cowan, Spokane (WHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 5 (North American goalies)
Cowan (6-2,186) was 18-20-2 with a 3.59 GAA and .899 save percentage in 43 games for a Spokane team that allowed 283 goals, most among the 16 teams that reached the WHL Playoffs. The 18-year-old started three of Spokane’s four postseason games in its first-round loss to Prince George.
- Lukas Matecha, Tri-City (WHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 3 (North American goalies)
After being passed over in the 2023 NHL Draft, the 19-year-old left his native Czech Republic to play for Tri-City this season. Matecha (6-3, 196) went 13-19- 1 with a 3.42 GAA and .901 save percentage.
