Juuse Saros is one of the elite goalies in the NHL, but he also happens to be the shortest active goalie.
He stands at 5’11 and is the only goalie shorter than 6’0. The goaltenders that come the closest this season include Devon Levi, Dustin Wolf, and Casey DeSmith at 6’0.
While the size of goalies has increased by a lot over the years, giving them an advantage in covering more of the net, Saros hasn’t let that hold him back.
The Nashville Predators’ starter has led the NHL in saves in each of the past two seasons and games played in each of the past three. Since taking over as the starter from Pekka Rinne in 2020-21, Saros has finished in the top six of Vezina Trophy voting in all four seasons.
Saros has 334 career starts in the NHL and 351 games played with a 182-120-32 record to go along with a 2.63 GAA, .917 SV%, and 23 shutouts. Those are elite numbers whichever way you look at it and with the Predators bolstering their lineup for Stanley Cup aspirations this season, he looks to play even better.
Saros might not take up as much net as any other goalie in the league, but he is very quick and talented. There’s a reason why he does so well every season over some of the taller goalies. While goalies 6’0 and above still have the ability to move like Saros, he makes up for his lack of size as much as he can, putting him in the elite tier of goalies in the NHL.
Related: Predators Shut Out 3-0 by Red Wings in Juuse Saros’ Season Debut
The Predators have Saros under contract for the next nine seasons and is their franchise goalie. The team was fortunate to go right from Rinne to Saros as well so goaltending is never the issue or what’s holding Nashville back. Saros is in the prime of his career and is so close to a Vezina that one could be coming in soon.
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