3 reasons Thatcher Demko should still be a front-runner for the Vezina Trophy

Five shutouts alone should be enough to convince everyone

Thatcher Demko and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen have both snagged five shutouts this season and while they technically rank second in the league in the category, the other two goaltenders on the list - Tristan Jarry and Connor Ingram - haven’t enjoyed top-tier seasons. 

Meanwhile, Demko and Luukkonen have been among the NHL’s most dominant goaltenders, with Demko holding the edge since he’s played a direct role in helping to make his team great all season. As for Luukkonen, he wasn’t the Buffalo Sabres starting goaltender when the season began, as the honor went to Devon Levi, who lost the job a quarter of the way through the year. 

Luukkonen hasn’t been as consistent as Demko, having figured things out around the first of the calendar year. Demko, like all starting NHL goaltenders, has seen his struggles this season, but he has been the more consistent of the two. 

Luukkonen and Demko aren’t the only candidates who have recorded a fair number of shutouts this season, with Sergei Bobrovsky, Connor Hellebuyck, Pyotr Kochetkov, Jeremy Swayman, Cam Talbot, and Igor Shesterkin snagging three or more. Demko hasn’t fared as well as some of the goaltenders mentioned here, but he and Luukkonen are the only two who have posted Vezina-worthy numbers AND have dominated the shutout category.