All the hype that preceded Connor Hellebuyck’s NHL career appears to have been well-founded.
The 22-year-old Jets goalie improved his record to 9-4-0 with last night’s 43-save win in Nashville. Winnipeg won the game, 4-1, despite being outshot, 44-18.
The shots were 17-4 for Nashville in the first period, yet Winnipeg went into the second with a 1-0 lead.
“It looked like he saw everything and he moves so efficiently in the net,” Jets coach Paul Maurice told reporters. “You had that feeling early on that it was going to have to be something unusual to beat him.”
Hellebuyck’s save percentage on the season jumped all the way to .935 -- not bad for a rookie.
The Jets’ two other goalies are Ondrej Pavelec, currently on injured reserve, and Michael Hutchinson.
Since Pavelec went down.
— Brock Seguin (@Brock_Seguin) January 6, 2016
Hutchinson: 0-6-0 / 3.29 GAA / .890 SV%
Hellebuyck: 9-4-0 / 1.93 GAA / .935 SV% / 1 SO
Pavelec’s much-maligned, five-year, $19.5 million contract expires after next season. He had a 5-6-1 record with a .906 save percentage before he went on IR.
Hellebuyck is also signed through next season, but for the low, low cap hit of $667,500, after which he can become a restricted free agent.
Hutchinson is a pending RFA.