OHL Goaltender Of The Year Finalists Announced

Now that the OHL regular season is in the books and the playoffs are in full swing, it’s time for OHL award season. Yesterday the OHL sent out their finalists for goaltender of the year.  The winner will be announced as the playoffs play out. The Finalists are as follows.

Daniel Altshuller (Oshawa Generals)

Altshuller had a solid year between the pipes for the Generals and broke his own franchise record with a 2.56 Goals Against Average, good enough for 4th in the OHL. His Save Percentage .917 ranked him 5th and his 31 wins this season put him third.

Altshuller’s strong play is a big reason why the Generals were able to finish first and capture their first divisional title in 23 years.

Oscar Dansk (Erie Otters)

Dansk had a big year with the Otters and followed a strong World Junior performance with Sweden to lead the league in GAA with 2.39. While his Save Percentage of .909 is a little low, he came up big when the Otters needed him. Dansk and his fellow netminder Devin Williams were named the top goaltending tandem in the OHL for their efforts this season allowing just 170 goals against.

Matthew Murray (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds)

Murray finished third in Save Percentage and second in wins with a respectable .921 and 32 wins on the year. Murray was also one of the netminders who competed in the Subway Series against Russia. To round out the first round of the OHL playoffs, Matthew Murray was named OHL player of the week for the second time this season.

Alex Nedeljkovic (Plymouth Whalers) 

Photo Courtesy of Getty Images. Credit to Claus Andersen

Nedeljkovic had such a good season with the Plymouth Whalers that he is one of just two players named to Team USA’s U18 team, that didn’t play for the NTPD. He finished with the second-highest Save Percentage of all OHL netminders with a .925 and a respectable GAA of 2.88. Nedeljkovic is NHL draft eligible this season and an impressive showing at the U18 worlds could push him over the top.

Franky Palazzese (Sudbury Wolves)

Palazzese had a solid year with the Sudbury Wolves lacing up for a whopping 60 games. He managed to win 27 of those games while maintaining a respectable GAA of 2.97 and Save Percentage of .916. Palazzese will be the first to tell you that his team under-performed with their first round playoff exit and are disappointed with the end of their season.

Jake Smith (North Bay Battalion)

Jake Smith had a decent year between the pipes for the new North Bay Battalion. He finished with the second best GAA with a 2.52, however posted a less than impressive .904 Save Percentage. He’s led the Battalion to a second round playoff match against the London Knights.