Even in the final on-ice campaign of his hall of fame career, which included multiple Stanley Cups and farewell tributes in arenas all across the NHL, Marc-Andre Fleury was doing the stuff that made him legendary.
Last season with the Minnesota Wild, “Flower” was still a mainstay on the top 10 sports highlight shows for his propensity to flash his glove, dive across the crease or stack his pads to keep the puck out of his net.
Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson (32) makes a save during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Vancouver Canucks, Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Ellen Schmidt)
In sharp contrast, the current Wild goalie tandem of Filip Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt that is working together to fill the crease Fleury left empty when he retired is less flashy. Decidedly so. They could even be called boring.
Unless you happen to think winning is exciting. Wallstedt led the NHL on Friday morning in goals-against average (1.74), shutouts (four) and save percentage (.944).
“Both of them are playing really well for us, and that’s what good teams do,” Wild defenseman Zach Bogosian said. “Goaltending is a hard thing to come by in this league, and when you find not only one, but two that are playing well, that can be a game-changer.”
The Wild’s turnaround after winning just three games in October has been fueled in large part by the play of Gustavsson and Wallstedt who have been sharing the net on an every-other-game basis for the past month.
Heading into Saturday’s late game at Vancouver, the Wild were third in the Western Conference standings.
Shared language, shared style
New Jersey Devils legend Martin Brodeur retired with a list of accomplishments similar to Fleury’s, and the pair are first and second, respectively, for most entries in the NHL goaltending record books. But putting together a highlight reel video of Brodeur’s most spectacular saves is a challenge, as his positionally sound play made most of his nearly 29,000 career stops look routine.
Brodeur has at least two disciples in Minnesota.
Wallstedt, 23, learned the game in his Swedish hometown of Vasteras, about an hour west of Stockholm. He was the Wild’s first-round draft pick in 2021 after they now famously traded up two spots with Edmonton to find the guy who looks like their goalie of the future. Still a rookie, Wallstedt puts his 6-foot-3 frame to good use, believing that simple game is the ideal in the crease.
“I think it’s way nicer when you just get hit,” he said during what has been an 8-0-2 run to start his first full NHL season. “You know where the puck is at, it’s easy to track, you cover the rebound and you get a whistle on it. I think those are the best ones.”
Gustavsson, 27, is from a few hours north of Stockholm, raised in a mining town called Skelleftea. His NHL career began in Ottawa before a 2022 trade brought him to St. Paul, as an understudy to Fleury. Holding one of the most pressure-filled jobs in all of sports, the 6-foot-2 veteran feels that seeing your work highlighted on SportsCenter is far down the priority list.
“It’s more fun to make the cool saves, but it’s more stressful because you feel like you’re not in control, really,” Gustavsson said. “For me, it doesn’t play like that. It’s very stressful to watch.”
After a 2-6-1 start, in which he was the Wild’s every night goalie for much of their October struggles, Gustavsson is on a 5-2-2 stretch heading into his presumed start Monday night in Seattle. And while Wallstedt has quickly become a fan favorite by boldly inserting himself into the conversation for the Calder Trophy, Gustavsson is no step down, per his teammates.
“I hope everyone remembers Gus because he is who he is for a reason,” Wild defenseman Brock Faber said. “They’re both such a huge part of this team, and the way they’ve been playing has really turned this team around.”
Evolving position
Fifty years ago, when kids gathered at a neighborhood rink for a pickup hockey game, the ones who couldn’t skate were usually stuck between the pipes. Modern goalies are often some of the best athletes on the ice, doing everything the forwards and defensemen do, but doing it with the added encumbrance of goalie pads.
Both Wild goalies have even scored a pro goal — Gustavsson for Minnesota in St. Louis early last season, and Wallstedt for the Iowa Wild in a win over the Chicago Wolves in November 2022.
More than anything, bad goaltending can sink a team’s confidence. Goaltending of the variety that the Wild’s duo is providing lately leads to a more relaxed game from everyone on the ice, and allows more free-flowing hockey because the skaters have some assurance that every mistake won’t automatically end up in their net.
“It just bleeds confidence throughout the lineup,” Faber said. “Especially as a D-man, when you turn pucks over and they go in the back of your net, it’s the worst feeling in the world. When you turn pucks over and they stop it for you, it’s so much easier to reset and be positive after that. Go give them a tap and move on.
“You can’t expect that to happen every time, but when that has happened in this stretch, the majority of the time those pucks have stayed out of our net. That’s a huge credit to them.”
Proudly boring
Teammates say that Wallstedt is more talkative on the ice, quick to let teammates know if they’re being pursued when chasing a puck, or if there is an open man up ice. Gustavsson is more vocal in the locker room, and has more future security after signing a five-year contract extension that will pay him annually. Wallstedt is in the initial year of a two-year contract paying him $2.2 million a year.
A post-win celebration that includes a thrust of his goalie stick in the air like a sword has made Wallstedt beloved to Wild fans in a hurry. But while the game is going on, Wallstedt is more similar to his tandem partner.
“I think if I could be boring to watch, that’s a good idea, a good sign,” Wallstedt said after a recent practice at TRIA Rink. “I’m going to try to play high-percentage hockey, make sure I have as much of the net covered (as I can) and try to make it look as simple as possible. If I can skip doing splits and sliding and everything, I think it’s good and it will keep my body healthier in the long term as well. So, I like the way I play.”
A few seasons ago, the Wild promoted Gustavsson with an ad campaign built around his nickname, “The Gus Bus.” Now one of the top-selling T-shirts in Minnesota shows Wallstedt in his victory celebration and sporting his nickname, “The Wall of St. Paul.”
Not bad for a pair of goalies who aim to be boring.
“They’re not acrobatic goalies, making those saves,” Wild captain Jared Spurgeon said of the pair. “They’re so positionally sound, and they’re playing great for us lately and giving us a chance to win every night.”
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