The best part of ECHL hockey is the goaltending.

It’s a notoriously difficult proving ground for netminders because the defenses in front of them can be unreliable, the scheduling is grueling and many of the goalies are young and unaccustomed to facing professional-level shooters.

But the overall talent in net is clear, and that makes sense. 

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NHL teams need a deep stable of goalies and want them playing, and there are only so many roster spots in the NHL and American Hockey League for them to do so.

Here’s a look at eight goalies who could have a future in the NHL if they prove their skills in the ECHL this season:

Ethan Haider, Atlanta Gladiators

Contract: AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals

A fifth-round pick of the NHL’s Nashville Predators in 2019, Haider is off to 1-1-0 start with a 3.00 goals-against average and a .902 save percentage in his first pro action. 

He had a 31-save shutout in his first game, a 3-0 victory over the Indy Fuel, but took a step back in a 6-0 loss to the Florida Everblades, despite having 23 saves. 

Haider has 6-foot-4 size and put together a strong college career that included three years at Clarkson, where he was a finalist for ECAC Goalie of the Year as a freshman, and a year at Connecticut, where he was 7-11-2 with a 2.91 GAA, .906 SP and two shutouts. 

The Gladiators are a work in progress – they were the ECHL’s worst team last season – but they’ll be able to be patient with Haider, since they have Drew DeRidder on the roster, too.

a QUICK glove by Haider early in the contest pic.twitter.com/gmxAIUmQET

— Atlanta Gladiators (@atlgladiators) October 26, 2024

Brett Brochu, Fort Wayne Komets

Contract: AHL’s Bakersfield Condors

He won the Ontario Hockey League’s Goaltender of the Year award in 2022 and was selected to the roster for Canada’s gold medal-winning team at the World Junior Championships, so it’s befuddling that no NHL or AHL team signed him coming out of juniors in 2023. 

Fort Wayne loved his work ethic and kept him as the third goalie last season, and he impressed behind a young roster with a 2.66 GAA, 920 SP, one shutout and even a fight, parlaying it into an AHL contract, despite a 7-11-1 record. 

Brochu, 22, and only 6 feet tall, looked solid in NHL preseason action this year, stopping 9 of 11 shots in the second half of a 6-3 loss to the Calgary Flames. 

So far this season with Fort Wayne, he’s stopped 30 of 31 shots in a 2-1 overtime victory over the Iowa Heartlanders, 40 of 44 shots in a 5-4 victory over the Cincinnati Cyclones and 13 of 16 shots in relief during a brutal 9-2 loss to the Kalamazoo Wings that brought his save percentage down to .912.

Ben Kraws, Idaho Steelheads

Contract: NHL’s Dallas Stars

Kraws was off to a terrific start for the Steelheads with a 2-1-0 record, 2.68 GAA and .920 SP – including a 41-save gem in a 5-2 victory over the high-powered Toledo Walleye – so it’s not surprising he was called up to the AHL’s Texas Stars on Sunday. 

Last season at St. Lawrence, he was a Hobey Baker Award finalist and was 14-17-6 with a 2.49 GAA, .919 SP and two shutouts, going 4-1 in the ECAC Championships. 

He also spent time in college hockey with Arizona State for two seasons and Miami (Ohio) for two seasons. He’s got 6-foot-5 size and already has proven he can handle AHL hockey; he played four games last season in Texas and had a .901 SP as he went 2-2-0.  

Ty Young, Kalamazoo Wings

Contract: NHL’s Vancouver Canucks

In his first pro game out of the Western Hockey League, he was superb and stopped 38 shots in a 3-1 victory over the Cincinnati Cyclones. 

He’s 6-foot-3 and only 20 years old, coming off a good season for the Prince George Cougars. 

He was 23-11-2 with a 2.79 GAA, .903 SP and one shutout, helping the Cougars to a franchise-record 49 victories, a division title and a berth in the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2007. 

There was some speculation Young would be sent back to juniors, but his play late against the Cyclones – stopping all 14 third-period shots he faced – showed he may be ready to get work in at the ECHL level.

Today's WOW 1 Day Painting ⭐️ of the game: Ty Young!#Our50th pic.twitter.com/WdizCFn8b5

— Kalamazoo Wings (@KalamazooWings) October 27, 2024

Victor Östman, Kansas City Mavericks

Contract: NHL’s Seattle Kraken

His save percentage last season at Maine won’t blow you away – it was .892 – but he can get hot, as evidenced by a five-game winning streak of Connecticut, Union, Bentley, Rochester Institute of Technology and Dartmouth. He finished with a 13-6-1 record and 2.80 GAA. 

Undrafted, he signed with the Kraken in April, and being in Kansas City will be a good place for the 24-year-old, since the Mavericks normally are reliable defensively. He’ll get plenty of rest with Jack LaFontaine on hand, too. 

Östman, 6-foot-4, is off to a 2-0-0 start with a 1.51 GAA, .923 SP and a 16-save shutout in a 4-0 victory over the Allen Americans.

Ryan Fanti, Orlando Solar Bears

Contract: AHL’s Syracuse Crunch

There’s rarely been a dull moment since Fanti broke into the league in 2022, then as a prospect of the Edmonton Oilers. 

He’s fought, he’s scored a goal, he’s been acrobatic and been apt to leave the crease and play the puck. 

More than a year removed from hip surgery, he signed in July with the Crunch and is off to a solid start for Orlando, going 2-1-1 with a 3.21 GAA and .907 SP. 

In his last two games, he’s stopped 73 of 78 shots. 

In his ECHL career, he’s 26-23-2 with a 3.25 GAA, .901 SP and two shutouts, but those are deceptive numbers for the 25-year-old, who’s 6-foot-3, since he’s been behind spotty defenses with Fort Wayne and Orlando.

Carter Gylander, Toledo Walleye

Contract: NHL’s Detroit Red Wings

The Red Wings’ goaltending depth chart is difficult to decipher from the NHL all the way down to the ECHL, but it seems probable Gylander will return to Toledo, despite being called to the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins on Saturday and stopping 33 shots in a 4-3 victory over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. 

Gylander, a 23-year-old rookie out of Colgate, was terrific in his first two pro games with the Walleye, stopping 38 shots in a 4-2 victory over the Bloomington Bison and, more impressively, 33 in a 4-3 overtime loss to the offensively charged Idaho Steelheads. 

Gylander, 6-foot-5, was solid in his final season at Colgate, going 14-14-4 with a 2.93 GAA and .901 SP. He was a seventh-round Red Wings draft pick in 2019.

Carter. Gylander. 🥱🤫 pic.twitter.com/Ek6rCBUp8I

— Toledo Walleye (@ToledoWalleye) October 26, 2024

Jake Barczewski, Utah Grizzlies

Contract: AHL’s Colorado Eagles

He helped Michigan to the Frozen Four last season and was 20-14-3 with a 2.84 GAA, .907 save percentage and two shutouts, on the heels of four seasons at Canisius, where he was the AHA Goaltender of the Year in 2021 and backstopped the Golden Griffins to 2023 Atlantic Hockey Championship. 

He hasn’t yet played in the regular season with Adam Scheel on hand for the first three games, but when Barczewski, 25, gets in, he’s going to have to be good because the Grizzlies face a bevy of offensively charged teams, including 19 games combined against the Idaho Steelheads and Kansas City Mavericks. 

Barczewski, 6-foot-1, played in the Grizzlies’ lone preseason game, stopping 37 of 43 shots in a 6-2 loss to Idaho.

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