A good NHL goalie usually makes about 23 to 25 saves per game on average, with league-wide save rate data suggesting roughly 25 saves per game all- time and about 23.6 saves per game in the current season. A “good” goalie is often judged more by save percentage than raw saves, since shot volume changes a lot from team to team.

What that means

  • If a goalie faces 25 shots and allows 2 goals, that’s 23 saves and a .920 save percentage.
  • If a goalie faces 35 shots and allows 3 goals, that’s 32 saves and a .914 save percentage.
  • So a high save total does not always mean a better game; it can just mean the goalie faced more shots.

Good goalie benchmark

In the NHL, a save percentage around .905 to .920 is generally considered good, while anything above .920 is usually elite. Recent reporting also notes the league average has been around .896 this season, showing that shot quality and scoring conditions matter a lot right now.

Simple rule of thumb

For a quick fan-friendly benchmark, think:

  • 20–22 saves : low workload game.
  • 23–25 saves : pretty normal for a solid NHL goalie.
  • 26–30+ saves : busy night, often a strong performance if the goals against stay low.

TL;DR: A “good” NHL goalie usually lands around 23–25 saves per game , but the better measure is save percentage , with .905+ being good and .920+ being excellent.