Ranking the NHL's 12 Best Goalie Mask Designs for 2023-24

Sometimes rankings seem like a breeze and the final numbers feel pretty unassailable. Like ranking Connor McDavid as the best player in the league.

But ranking the best of the best goalie mask design is an art in and of itself—and the exact opposite of unassailable.

There are so many brilliant designs from the artists who put visions together for goalies: ideas that range from old-school tributes, to plays on a nickname, to something based on the city they play in, to something completely out of the depths of everyone's else's creativity.

Much like how it goes when we're ranking out our favorite jerseys, the best mask art is truly subjective, and we're expecting that there will be a lot of differing opinions. And that's OK!

Scouring through photos and mask artists Instagram pages means the top 12 we've put together changed roughly 100 times before settling on this final group. There's just so much great work out there that we had to make some cuts.

But let us know in the comments what you think and what you believe we missed the boat on.

There is so much to love about Elvis Merzlikins' mask, especially if you're into video games and legendary golden oldies music.

Merzlikins has a pixelated rendering of Elvis Presley on one side of his mask, and when your own first name is Elvis, it's really in your best interest to lean into that as much as possible. Only instead of a painted portrait of The King of Rock 'n' Roll, Merzlikins has a Minecraft-like boxy version of a white jumpsuit-clad Presley on one side and a pixelated version of the Blue Jackets logo on the other.

It's a really unique style of art, and it's something I can't recall another player using as an inspiration for their mask before. But Merzlikins doing it, and it's a lot of fun to look at.

It is a really busy look and Merzlikins' No. 90 in pixels on the chin really leans into the gamer-like vibe, but he's consistently one of the most creative goalies when it comes to his mask art in general.

For an American goalie to play in Toronto, finding ways to mix in some of the good ole U-S-A into gear in the Great White North can be tricky. For Joseph Woll, he kept it simple with a design that makes us think of Ed Belfour.

Woll's blue mask has a white bald eagle in profile on each side of it, with realistic-looking white maple leaves adorning the mask in full in front of a brick wall. Must be nice to have a last name that can double as the perfect pun for a goalie, right?

Woll's helmet feels like one you'd see in the '70s or '80s with its seemingly simplistic design, but this is not a basic layout by any stretch. The level of design David Gunnarsson put into the realistic look of the eagles as well as the leaves is great, and laying it all in front of a brick wall for punny goodness makes it seem like it was almost too easy to come up with.

Woll is off to a great start with Toronto, and if that means he gets more starts and we all get to see this Belfour-like mask more often, then that's a net win for everyone.

If you haven't heard by now, Buffalo Sabres goalie Devon Levi is a Star Wars fan. If you've caught one of his games, you may have seen video of him on his knees in meditation in a similar style to Liam Neeson what displayed in Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

That's more than enough inspiration for a goalie mask design, and both Levi's blue-and-gold mask and his latest red-and-black mask to go with the Sabres "goat head" alternate jerseys use the force.

His blue-and-gold mask pictured above has lightsabers coming down into the chin as well as an icy blue buffalo tearing through the one side with the Sabres logo etched into the buffalo's forehead. It's a bold, wicked look that really stands out with the Sabres colors.

His red-and-black helmet has yet to see game action, but one look at it on Instagram shows Darth Vader's red lightsaber featured through the middle of it as well as force lightning and the Sabres alternate logo from the goat head days on one side as well. It also has the words, "May the force be with you" and more Star Wars dialogue on it as well.

Star Wars fans rejoice, one of our own has gone all-in with bringing the looks to the ice.

Simple is sometimes the best way to go about a mask design, especially when it plays well with the set of pads and gloves. This is the way Jake Allen went about it for his Montreal Canadiens mask this season.

A white helmet with the Canadiens logo on the crown seems basic, and it is, but it's the thick red and blue stripes on the sides that at first glance seem standard. But when you take a closer look at the detail from Sylabrush, the glittering red and blue really pops and adds another aspect to it that sticks out.

The fleur-de-lis-like design on the chin in what looks almost like neon red and blue looks great, and there are more personal designs on the back plate for nice touches as well. We get it, it's simple, but the way the mask pops with the simplicity of his leg pads, blocker and trapper makes it all look really, really clean.

But it's the mask that ties it all together so well. Basic beauty is still beauty and Allen's mask is a real gem.

When it comes to creating a design that are both really great and terrifying to look at, Nashville's No. 1 guy, Juuse Saros, knocks it out of the park with his new look.

Saros' mask features a take on a deep-cut Predators alternate logo, the skull of a sabre tooth tiger, prominently on the crown. It's grim to look at and genuinely creepy and unsettling to see. Funny how skulls have that effect, right?

The fangs of the tiger go from the top to the mask down below the cage where Saros' No. 74 is scratched out artistically. If it wasn't so brightly colored, you could call it a gothic kind of look thanks to the skull. Fortunately, the only thing that will cause nightmares is how Saros shuts down opposing scorers.

The sides of the mask have the Predators' actual logo in profile, and it has blue and gold paint splatters as well. It's a wicked look from David Gunnarsson and positively haunting to see.

The easiest way to become a favorite of a fanbase is to pay tribute to the fans. Cam Talbot picked out one particular Los Angeles Kings fan to honor with his new mask: Will Ferrell.

The comedian is about as big of a Kings fan as you'll find, and he's almost always in attendance at games. Talbot made sure to have Ferrell's Anchorman character, Ron Burgundy, featured prominently on his latest beauty of a mask.

Talbot's had a long history of having some of the most fun designs throughout his career. Last season he had Deadpool adorning his mask with the Ottawa Senators. Hey, Ryan Reynolds was thinking about buying the team, so why not, right? Going with Deadpool was a departure from his regular Ghostbusters-inspired designs he's used in the past with the Wild, Rangers and Oilers.

This time around, the cinematic silver-and-black look with Ferrell's Burgundy in profile all over the one side and the classic Kings crown on the other, makes for a really fun design.

What's upsetting about it is the reminder that Anchorman came out nearly 20 years ago in 2004. You mean we've got to quote newer movies?! I'm in a glass case of emotion over here.

With the Boston Bruins celebrating their 100th anniversary this season, it's brought the best out of all of their designs. From the perfect set of uniforms they're wearing this season to the gear both Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman are rocking, it all looks stupendous.

But Ullmark's mask, designed by David Gunnarsson, is able to pay tribute to two of the most incredible moments from Bruins history: Bobby Orr's Stanley Cup-winning goal in 1970 and the Patrice Bergeron game-winning goal in the Bruins' third-period comeback in Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2013 in which they overcame a 4-1 deficit to win 5-4.

The mask has the Bruins logo on each side, with two bruin silhouettes on each side, each with an image from those moments. The mask also has the game-winning-goal scoring details on top of the mask. It's a beautiful, unique look for a one-year special of a mask. We're sure that upsetting Leafs fans is just a bonus for Ullmark in this design.

If the Washington Capitals ever decide they want to go back to the "screaming eagle" logo of the late '90s and early 2000s, Darcy Kuemper is well prepared for that day.

Kuemper's mask this season feels like a throwback to Olaf Kolzig's days in goal, but it's very distinctly new. Kuemper has the screaming eagle in red, white and blue on the front and the Capitals alternate logo "Weagle" on each side of the mask.

Mix in some stars and his No. 35 on the chin in the same font from the screaming eagle days and it's a really nice modern turn on a semi-classic look that's made a comeback in recent years thanks to the team's Reverse Retro jerseys.

David Gunnarsson was the designer of this look, and it's such a distinctly Capitals mask that it sings. If the Capitals are going to struggle this season, at least Kuemper will look good trying to keep the team in games.

Igor Shesterkin is always one of the best goalies in the NHL, but he's also one of the best-dressed netminders when it comes to his mask art year to year.

The red, white and blue mask with a color-swapped Lady Liberty on the sides this season really stands out in its uniqueness. It can be easy to do too much with the Rangers logo or letters and numbers, but this mask from the king of mask art design, David Gunnarsson, is a throwback kind of look with some modern appeal.

The reverse negative of the Statue of Liberty is what really sticks out on this, which makes you think of Mike Richter's mask from the '90s—but it's nothing at all like that. Something Gunnarsson has worked into many of his recent designs is a sort of 3D effect, and it's apparent enough in this one to make it look really good but also kind of disturbing.

But seeing "Rangers" down the side in the team font with stripes as well as Shesterkin's No. 31 on the chin, helps add to the throwback kind of style that's going on with this mask.

Not every mask needs to have intricate designs or special tricks within the layout to make the art look three dimensional or play tricks on your eyes. Sometimes making something simple and clean can be perfect, and that's precisely what Detroit's Ville Husso has done for his mask this season.

This paint job from Joni Hallikainen feels like the kind of mask you would've seen a Red Wings goalie wear back in the day. The lines are clean and the design makes the mask look every part of the wings—from the logo on the sides to the number on the chin, which is just simple and beautiful.

There's a part of the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto that has masks from past eras, and Husso's looks like one that was taken directly from that exhibit. It's bold and red and distinctly Detroit, and with the Wings winning more often than not, it's the kind of mask you could've seen Mike Vernon wearing for them in the mid-'90s.

With how simple and perfect the design of Red Wings uniforms is, having a mask that fits that look and do it one better is really impressive.

Goalies paying tribute to athletes from the city they play in or other celebrities from there is pretty common, but Jacob Markstrom did one better by bringing the Man in Black, Johnny Cash to his mask this year.

Perhaps the biggest hit of Cash's career, Ring of Fire plays really well with Calgary's team moniker and that and other song titles can be found around the face of the mask along with countless images of Cash with guitar in hand.

Jordon Bourgeault designed this mask for Markstrom, and he also did his incredible mask for the Heritage Classic that resembled a knitted version of the skull mask Markstrom wore in previous seasons with the Flames.

The art with Cash and the theme spanning his career and tying it into the Flames' perfect color scheme makes this mask a fine piece of work. Markstrom is a huge fan of Cash (who wouldn't be, really?) and paying tribute to him like this was a really cool idea.

My goodness, look at this beauty.

First off, the glittering gold throughout the mask stands out immediately. The mask mixed with his gear setup makes him maybe the best-dressed goalie on the ice in the NHL, but this mask hits all the right notes.

It's got a kind of '90s/'00s classic style to it with his nickname on the front below the cage. It's got an intricate design within the face of the mask itself to give it the Roman gladiator kind of feel we've come to expect from Senators goalies in the past. Plus, there's a little bit of history in there as well, with Marvin the Martian making an appearance in a nod to Patrick Lalime, who made Marvin the main character on his Sens goalie masks back in the day.

This is another incredible piece of work from Sylvie Marsolais and Alexandre Mathys in Québec. It's the kind of mask that almost makes you say, "They don't make them like that anymore..." except they are making them like that.

Clearly, we've got a big ole soft spot for masks done in the supremely classic 1980s style, but Korpisalo's mask has enough of the old feels to go with all the new and fun features to really demand our attention. Because of all that and being aesthetically pleasing, it gets the top spot on our list.