Quote:
Originally Posted by Textcritic
This has been a big change in his game from last season, especially early on. It's awesome to watch him figuring out the NHL game.
Also, I can't help but draw comparisons between Wolf and Spencer Knight—the first goalie taken in the 2019 Draft, and the starting goalie for the 2020 U-20 team, ahead of Wolf. When he was drafted, there was lots of talk about him being a sure-fire NHL starter, and he may yet get there. But, so far, Knight's career has looked pretty pedestrian. He has split time between the AHL and the Panthers with last year being his only full season spent in the minors: 45GP 2.41 GAA 0.905 SP.
Not bad. Not great.
So far this season he has had five starts in Florida, a 2.85 GAA and a 0.897 SP. For context, those are comparable numbers to Dan Vladar's—2.65 GAA, 0.906 SP—while playing behind the reigning Stanley Cup Champions. Heading into this season, Knight had started in 49 games over three seasons.
Meanwhile, Wolf continues to carve out a Calder and Vezina calibre season after only 18 games.
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Something worth noting on Spencer Knight is that he left the game for a stretch and entered the players assistance progam due to what sounds like life-altering OCD, and I would imagine it has coloured the majority of his time in the NHL. Hoping he can bounce back this season.