This is Part I of a two-part series where we will look at the best player at each position group from each U.S. Division team. This week is a glance at the goaltenders, an area that has seen strong performances of late.
Portland Winterhawks: Jan Spunar
18 GP: 13-3-0-1, 1.73 GAA, 0.933 SV%
One of the most well-rounded teams in the WHL might just have one of the best goaltending situations with the tandem of Jan Spunar and Nick Avakyan finally being at full health. When it comes to identifying who most likely gets the nod going into the playoffs, it’s hard to look away from the abilities of Spunar.
Spunar won WHL Goaltender of the Month in September/October but went down with a lower-body injury in mid-November, sidelining him for over two months. Portland has had it rough on the injury end with goalies, at one point being down to their fourth-string netminder. Fortunately, this tough stretch didn’t phase the Winterhawks, who still sit in first place in the Western Conference.
Spunar, still leading the league for goals against average at 1.73, returned to the lineup this past Friday against the Kelowna Rockets. He didn’t skip a beat, only allowing one goal while stopping 28 Rockets shots, then stopping 25 of 26 shots the following night against Seattle.
Spunar is ranked No. 21 by NHL Central Scouting for North American Goaltenders.
Honorable Mention: Nick Avakyan (13-7-1-0, 3.81 GAA, 0.876 SV%)
Everett Silvertips: Tyler Palmer
34 GP: 21-8-1-2, 2.57 GAA, 0.909 SV%
It’s hard to pick just one goalie from a true tandem that the Silvertips have going, especially with the amount of success their goalies have brought this season. Everett currently holds the second seed in the Western Conference, but if our rankings are based off statistics and eye test alone, Tyler Palmer has been the rock in net for the Silvertips. Palmer, like the rest of the Silvertips, shines brightest at Angel of the Winds Arena, where he has gone 13-3-1 on the year.
Palmer displayed his impressive athleticism on Sunday with a 28-save performance against the Wenatchee Wild. He took home the first star that night as the Silvertips cruised to a 6-1 win.
Honorable Mention: Ethan Chadwick (12-9-0-0, 3.31 GAA, 0.888 SV%)
Wenatchee Wild: Daniel Hauser
37 GP, 17-14-3-0, 3.41 GAA, 0.904 SV%
A veteran by Western Hockey League standards at this point, Daniel Hauser has a ridiculous .785 win percentage since entering the league in 2020-21. While the winning has slowed considerably this season for Hauser, who has seen more losses in 2023-24 than the entirety of his time with the now-defunct Winnipeg Ice, he’s still producing and helping lead the Wild down the stretch into the playoffs.
Playing in a total of 31 playoff games with a career save percentage of 0.907 over the past two seasons, it might be the experience Hauser has in those high-pressure moments that can help carry the Wild farther than anticipated.
Honorable Mention: Brendan Gee (10-4-1-0, 4.07 GAA, 0.878 SV%)
Spokane Chiefs: Dawson Cowan
29 GP, 11-15-2-0, 3.45 GAA, 0.905 SV%
While it hasn’t been the most consistent of seasons for the Spokane Chiefs, one thing they haven’t lacked is consistency from their 18-year-old starting goalie.
Draft eligible this coming summer, Dawson Cowan has been a stable force for the Chiefs. Despite sporting a losing record this season, Spokane is also privy to seeing 35-plus shots per game, with Cowan having to do much of the heavy lifting.
When I observed Spokane in December, one of the main draws from the amount Cowan played was how much confidence he had in his game. Even with his hefty workload, Cowan has shown the poise and alertness that goaltenders are expected to have at the next level.
Cowan represented the Chiefs at the Kubota CHL Top Prospects Game in Moncton, New Brunswick. He is ranked fifth by NHL Central Scouting for North American Goaltenders.
Tri-City Americans: Lukas Matecha
27 GP, 10-13-1-1, 3.16 GAA, 0.909 SV%
Much like Cowan, Lukas Matecha’s team allows plenty of shots through to him, which can be overwhelming for a young goalie. Also NHL Draft eligible this summer, Matecha has kept the Tri-City Americans afloat during the middle portion of the season and nearing the playoffs.
The 18-year-old from Chrudim, Czech Republic has a large frame at 6-foot-3, 187 pounds, but still makes the proper reads with his responses being adequately quick.
Matecha represented the Americans at the CHL Top Prospects game as well. He is ranked No. 9 by NHL Central Scouting for North American Goaltenders.
Seattle: Scott Ratzlaff (BUF)
32 GP, 13-16-1-0, 3.38 GAA. 0.904 SV%
We might be saving the best for last here. When talking about Scott Ratzlaff and the potential he has to succeed at the NHL level, it’s best not to look at the stat sheet, at least from this season. And even then, he has numbers that are still respectable, even with how low Seattle has sunk in the standings this season. Stats from 2022-23 are way more of a reflection of the type of player and leader Ratzlaff is.
But looking beyond the stats, he’s about the sharpest he’s been all season right now. The way Ratzlaff has been trending with some of the athletic stops he’s made over the past month, including an incredible sprawling save in a game recently against Prince George, it wouldn’t surprise me if he starts to get similar levels of hype and attention that fellow Sabres goaltender Devon Levi has received.
Ratzlaff’s best outing of the season thus far came this past week in Everett, against a Silvertips team with one of the best home records in the league. This was a game he basically won single-handedly for Seattle, as he stopped a whopping 62 of 63 shots faced in the 3-1 victory.
Header photo taken by Brian Liesse. Photo courtesy of Seattle Thunderbirds.
Ratzlaff actually stopped 63 shots against the Silvertips – the one goal given was on a bad call, play should have been blown dead. Oh what a night!