What is save ratio?
Save ratio tells you how many saves a goalie makes for every goal they allow. It's a more intuitive way to compare goalies than save percentage, and it reflects how hockey fans actually think about the game.
How is save ratio calculated?
Save ratio is simply saves divided by goals allowed:
Did you know?
In both of these examples, Goalie 1 is making 50% more saves per goal allowed than Goalie 2:
In the above examples, if Goalie 1 faced 390 shots, made 360 saves, and allowed 30 goals, then they would have a save percentage of .923 (360/390) and a save ratio of 12.0 (360/30).
If Goalie 2 faced 225 shots, made 200 saves, and allowed 25 goals, they would have a save percentage of .889 (200/225) and a save ratio of 8.0 (200/25).
Save percentage and save ratio are based on the same data! Use the free converter → to translate any goalie's save percentage into saves per goal allowed, or work one out from scratch with the save percentage calculator →
Why is save ratio better than save percentage?
Quick: is a .921 save percentage a lot better than an .860 save percentage? If you're a hockey analyst then the answer is obvious: yes, of course! Those numbers are for the best and worst NHL goalies in 2025-26. How much better? Who knows! But definitely better.
In actuality, most casual fans wouldn't have a clue what those numbers mean. But tell them the best goalie makes 11.7 saves for every goal they allow while the worst makes only 6.1, and they'll know at a glance that the best goalie is way better. Almost twice as good.
The data never changed. Only the scale did, and that makes all the difference. See the full comparison →
What is a good save ratio?
The average save ratio in the NHL in 2025-26 was 8.6 saves per goal allowed. Among goalies who played at least 20 games, the scale ran from 6.1 at the bottom up to 11.7 at the very top. Here's the rough shape of the league:
| Save % | Save ratio | Means |
|---|
The difference between weak and strong goalies is obvious at a glance.
Common questions
- Is save ratio an official NHL stat?
- No. It's a derived stat, a different lens on the same official numbers the league already publishes. Every save ratio you see is computed from public saves and goals-against data.
- Does save ratio say anything save percentage doesn't?
- Mathematically the two carry identical information, and one can always be converted into the other. The difference is legibility. Save percentage compresses the interesting range into thousandths; save ratio spreads it out so meaningful gaps are obvious to any observer.
- What about shutouts?
- A shutout means zero goals allowed. Since you can't divide by zero, the save ratio is actually infinite. That's not a broken result, it's a perfect one. Save Ratio treats it as such: a shutout is shown as Perfect and ranks above every finite save ratio.
- Why save ratio instead of shot ratio?
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Shot ratio (shots faced per goal allowed) is always exactly save ratio plus one. Two problems:
First, it shrinks the gap. Adding one to both goalies drags them closer together. The best and worst NHL starters of 2025-26 were 11.7 and 6.1 in save ratio, a 91% difference. In shot ratio they're 12.7 and 7.1, which is only a 78% difference.
Second, it doesn't turn into a great comparison. With save ratio we can say “the best goalie makes 91% more saves for every goal they allow”. That's an accomplishment! With shot ratio we can say “the best goalie faces 78% more shots for every goal they allow” but facing shots isn't necessarily an accomplishment. It can be considered a comment on their team's defence, not their goaltending.
- Can I use save ratio for any league?
- Yes. It only needs saves and goals against. The Save Ratio app covers the NHL, AHL, PWHL, OHL, WHL, QMJHL, USHL and ECHL.
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Save Ratio ranks and compares goaltenders across 8 leagues, with career history, head-to-head comparison, and 5-on-5 / high-danger splits. Free, and no account required.
