Philipp Grubauer Autograph Card

For a long time, the Washington Capitals had plenty of goaltending prospects in the pipeline but, because of a lack of a clear #1 under whom the others could start as understudies, strong goalies the likes of Semyon Varlamov and Michal Neuvirth didn't take the pole position quickly enough for the team and were sacrificed, with Braden Holtby eventually grabbing the reins.

And now that Holtby is among the NHL's elite, his backup is posting numbers that are just as good; indeed, Philipp Grubauer's season and career numbers are impressive:

His save percentage is pretty consistent throughout, despite having yet to record a shutout (something I can definitely relate to).

There are only 30 starting gigs in the NHL, so the 24-year-old may have to wait a bit to catch on somewhere permanently, though there will eventually be spots opening up, notably with the Florida Panthers as Roberto Luongo turns 37 next year. The Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames, San Jose Sharks, Arizona Coyotes and Dallas Stars might also likely need a boost on the back end at some point in the near future.

In the meantime, here he is wearing the Caps' #31 red (home) uniform, from Panini's 2013-14 Score set and Hot Rookies and Dual Rookie Class sub-sets:

It's the signed insert version of card #619, featuring an on-sticker autograph in blue sharpie.