Spencer Knight only needed 10 games to transform into a Vezina candidate

The Chicago Blackhawks can thank one player in particular for their start to the 2025-26 season: goaltender Spencer Knight.

John Buccigross recently shared his thoughts to X, saying, "Spencer Knight off to a Vezina candidate start in Chicago." That's a ringing endorsement, and when you look at Knight's numbers so far, it's hard to make a case against him.

When Knight came to Chicago following the Seth Jones trade, there was a vibe in the Windy City that they had a franchise goaltender in the making. After Knight stabilized the position with an 0.893 save percentage, a 3.18 GAA, and a 0.533 quality starts percentage through 15 games in 2024-25, you knew a big year was coming. "Vezina candidate" seemed far-fetched a month ago, but given Knight's performance in the first month of the season, he's well on pace to be in the discussion.

Knight has looked like a true number one goaltender this season, putting up a 0.919 save percentage, a 2.56 GAA, a 0.700 quality starts percentage, with 294 saves on 320 shots against, or 32 per game. That's a sign the Hawks are still a team in progress, and Knight is a major reason behind their recent success.

Opponents haven't been making things easy on Spencer Knight

Together with No. 2 goaltender Arvid Soderblom, the duo is facing 30.2 shots per game. You can argue that a good number of these shots aren't high quality, which could explain Knight's stats. But one look at Soderblom's numbers puts that argument up for debate.

Unlike Knight, Soderblom has struggled through four starts, posting just a 0.250 quality starts percentage, a 0.885 save percentage, a 3.04 GAA, and 92 saves on 104 shots. Not bad numbers for Soderblom, but you can't even compare them to what Knight has been doing.

You don't expect 24-year-old netminders who didn't see more than 32 games in a single season until the Florida Panthers traded him to what was one of the worst teams in hockey play this well so quickly.

We're only one month into the season, so a drop-off can happen. This is especially true for a young team like the Blackhawks that hasn't seen success in a while.

If Knight can maintain his start he will be mentioned in the Vezina Trophy race.