AHL Notebook: Eastern Conference boasts pool of young, talented goalies

American Hockey League goalie graduates continue to make impressions around the NHL.

After a strong first half with San Antonio, Jordan Binnington went to the St. Louis Blues and has turned around their season. He was named the NHL Rookie of the Month in February after becoming the ninth rookie goalie to win at least 10 games in a calendar month, the first since Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings in 2010. He is 16-3-1 with a 1.80 goals-against average and .929 save percentage and five shutouts in 22 games for the Blues this season.
Carter Hart started his first professional season with Lehigh Valley before being pressed into duty with the Philadelphia Flyers. The 20-year-old was the NHL Rookie of the Month in January and is 13-8-1 with a 2.79 GAA and .917 save percentage in 22 NHL games.
While matching the NHL feats of Binnington and Hart (who is sidelined with an ankle injury) is a tall order, there is more young goaltending talent in the AHL. Below is a look at the top goalie prospects from the Eastern Conference who could be a phone call away from the NHL and will likely make an impact in the interim on the race for the Calder Cup Playoffs. We will look at the Western Conference goalies next week.

Alex Nedeljkovic, Charlotte (Carolina Hurricanes)

Nedeljkovic is in his third professional season after being selected by the Hurricanes in the second round (No. 37) of the 2014 NHL Draft.
Charlotte raced out to an early lead in the Atlantic Division and has held it since. Part of a dynamic group of young talent, Nedeljkovic (6-foot, 189 pounds) might be overlooked at times, but coach Mike Vellucci knows better.
"All he does is prove people wrong," Vellucci said. "Everybody wants the big goalie, but his intangibles are off-the-chart. I love the chip-on-his-shoulder mentality that he has, and it is all of the other things that does as much as anything that adds up to a winning goalie."
The 23-year-old has been a workhorse in Charlotte for the past two seasons. After playing 49 regular-season games last season, his 40 games this season tie him for the AHL lead with Eric Comrie of Manitoba and Jean-Francois Berube of Cleveland. He is 27-6-4 with a .911 save percentage and a 2.41 GAA.

Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek, Hershey (Washington Capitals)

Hershey has been a goaltending factory for the Capitals, and that tradition is continuing after a rocky first half.
Samsonov (6-3, 200) arrived in Hershey as a much-heralded prospect after the Capitals selected him in the first round (No. 22) of the 2015 NHL Draft. Despite three strong seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League with Metallurg Magnitogorsk, the AHL proved to be a tough introduction on and off the ice.
Washington and Hershey have built a strong support network for AHL prospects, but there often is no substitute for time and patience as a player takes on the adjustments associated with a dramatic life change.
After a difficult first half, Samsonov, 22, has started to figure out the AHL. In his past 13 games, he has a .942 save percentage that has taken his season total to 15-12-1 with a 2.78 GAA and .893 save percentage in 29 games. Hershey also went on a franchise-record 17-game point streak (16-0-1) to climb out of last place and move into third in the Atlantic Division.
"I feel much more comfortable," Samsonov said. "The start of the season was really difficult for me. Different language, my first time changing teams. No parents. No family. It was hard."
Vanecek (6-1, 187) had a strong first half to help hold Hershey together. The 23-year-old was selected by the Capitals in the second round (No. 39) in the 2014 draft. He is 15-9-3 with a 2.81 GAA and .902 save percentage in 27 games. He also represented Hershey at the AHL All-Star Classic in January.

Marcus Hogberg, Belleville (Ottawa Senators)

Amid a hectic season of change throughout the Ottawa organization, Hogberg (6-5, 209) has emerged as the No. 1 goalie in Belleville.
Ottawa took the 24-year-old in the third round (No. 78) of the 2013 NHL Draft. Hogberg made the full-time move to North America last season after three seasons in the Swedish Hockey League. He divided his first North American season between Belleville and Brampton of the ECHL.
He has pushed past heralded prospect Filip Gustavsson to make nine consecutive starts for Belleville and has a .937 save percentage in that span. The team has gone on a 17-game point streak (12-0-5) and moved into a tie with Utica for fourth place in the North Division.
Hogberg, who is 14-4-5 in 24 games, is third in the AHL with a 2.32 GAA and tied for fifth with a .918 save percentage.