Nashville’s Scott Wedgewood is just the 14th goaltender to notch a win for Preds since 1998.
-- Photo By John Amis | ApScott Wedgewood has entered an exclusive club, being one of the few goaltenders to record a victory between the pipes for the Nashville Predators.
When Wedgewood backstopped the Predators to a 4-3 overtime victory against the Columbus Blue Jackets Oct. 26, he became just the 14th goaltender in Predators history to do so.
For a franchise that entered the NHL in 1998, that’s a pretty amazing statistic. Much of the credit for the low quantity of goaltenders used goes to the nation of Finland, aka the Land of the Rising Goaltender.
Pekka Rinne made 683 appearances in his Predators career, winning 369. Juuse Saros is nearing his 360th career appearance and with an eight-year contract extension kicking in next season, there are many more to come.
Nine goaltenders have appeared in at least one game for Nashville and not recorded a victory.
By comparison, Nashville’s expansion brethren have largely utilized more goaltenders in their respective histories.
The Atlanta Thrashers entered the NHL one season after the Predators. The franchise, which has since relocated to Winnipeg as the second iteration of the Jets, has used 25 different goaltenders in their history, with 23 of those winning at least one game.
Columbus and the Minnesota Wild both entered the NHL in the 2000-01 season. Columbus has used 33 goalies, with 28 earning at least one win, and Minnesota has used 22 with 20 getting at least one victory.
Even the Vegas Golden Knights, which are in their eighth NHL season, have had 11 goaltenders record at least one win in their limited history.
Making just his second start of the season, and first since being called upon opening night due to a nagging lower-body injury that kept Saros sidelined for that game, Wedgewood was much better in his second appearance in gold, turning aside 25 of the 28 shots he faced in the game.
With the Predators playing from behind most of the game, Wedgewood faced several odd man rushes against as the team looked to try and catch the Blue Jackets. He also denied Columbus’ Adam Fantilli early in overtime before Jonathan Marchessault scoring the eventual game-winning goal.
“He battled,” head coach Andrew Brunette said after the game. “Especially down the stretch, I’m not that comfortable giving up that many opportunities.”
Having steady and reliable play from the backup goaltender will be important for the Predators, who will be looking to lighten the load on Saros’ shoulders. Since the start of the 2021-22 season, no NHL goaltender has started and played in more games than Saros.