Welcome to Last Word On Hockey’s 2025-26 end-of-season NHL award candidates. In this installment, we will be looking at who the top candidates are for the Vezina Trophy. There have been some changes to our picks since our mid-season awards. Stay tuned as we discuss the Norris and Hart Trophies later this week. Without further ado, let us begin.
2025-26 Vezina Trophy Candidates
In our mid-season Vezina Trophy candidates list, Logan Thompson, Scott Wedgewood, and Andrei Vasilevskiy were the finalists. While all three of these goaltenders have continued to have excellent seasons, other candidates have emerged. All statistics are accurate as of Wednesday, April 15th, 2026.
1. Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning
Vasilevskiy has been a Vezina finalist five times in his career, and he looks to be the favourite to win it this season. He has the inside track on this season’s voting due to his plethora of experience and his consistency. He is ranked fourth in goals saved above expected at 24.7, according to MoneyPuck. It has been seven years since he won the Vezina, but he has built his Hall of Fame resume almost every year since that time. The Tampa Bay Lightning success this season can largely be attributed to his consistent play, night in and night out. He leads the NHL in wins with 38 and ranks third among goalies in save percentage (.913).
Credit Image: © Dirk Shadd/Tampa Bay Times via ZUMA Wire
2. Ilya Sorokin, New York Islanders
Sorokin also presents a strong case to win the Vezina Trophy, although his stock has dipped in the final stretch of the season. Had the New York Islanders made the Stanley Cup Playoffs, he would likely have been the favourite to win it. However, that does not erase the fact that without him, the Islanders would not have been nearly as close to playoff contention as they were this season. Sorokin leads the league in saving high-danger scoring chances, with an .861 save rate and is third in goals saved above expected at 25.3. Additionally, he leads the NHL with seven shutouts on the year. He has been nominated as a Vezina finalist once in his career, in the 2022-23 season.
3. Logan Thompson, Washington Capitals
Thompson has put up strong numbers throughout his career and has helped the Capitals stay in the playoff hunt until the very end. Compared to Vasilevskiy and Sorokin, it is certainly a long shot for Thompson to win it. That is due to Thompson not being as established as a starting goaltender in the NHL as the other two. Prior to this season, he had never played more than 46 games in a regular season. This season, he has cemented himself as a bonafide starter, leading the NHL in goals against above expected with 29.3.
Honourable Mentions and Emerging Young Stars
There have been many strong goalies this season, but only three of them can be the finalists. Both the honourable mentions on our list may have a decent chance at being a finalist as well. Our top honourable mention for the Vezina Trophy is Scott Wedgewood, who stepped up as the starter after Mackenzie Blackwood was sidelined with injury, and has not looked back since then. Previously, Wedgewood had been a backup goaltender for eight seasons, but he has played over half of the games for the Colorado Avalanche this season, with 41 starts so far. He ranks fifth in the league at 22.1 goals saved above expected. Wedgewood leads the league in goals against average and save percentage among goalies with 25 or more starts. He may have earned the starter’s job in Game One of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Jeremy Swayman is our second honourable mention, as he ranks second in goals saved above expected with 28.8. He is a big reason why the Boston Bruins defied expectations and made it into the postseason. With him, the Bruins will stand a chance in any given game in the postseason.
To wrap this up, we also wanted to highlight some younger or less experienced goaltenders who have had exceptional seasons. First of all, Jakub Dobes of the Montreal Canadiens has quelled the talk of poor team goaltending, posting an 11-5-0 record and a .916 save percentage after the Olympic Break. Secondly, Brandon Bussi of the Carolina Hurricanes has an extremely impressive 31-6-2 record on the season, although he is on a very skilled defensive team. If he were a couple of years younger, he would be on the shortlist for the Calder Trophy.
Main Photo Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
