CANADA HOPES FOR HART OF GOLD
After the heartbreak, returning goalie is on a mission to finish on top at world juniors
The mercy pull came midway through the second period.
By then, Scott Wedgewood was down and dazed in the crease, his bare head buried in his hands after being run over by a Russian forward following a breakaway goal. In some ways, it was a fitting image for what it’s like to be a Team Canada goalie at the world junior hockey championship.
“I allowed a four spot, but I wasn’t playing awful,” Wedgewood, who is now playing with the Arizona Coyotes, said of the 2012 world juniors in which Canada lost 6-4 to Russia in the semifinal and ended up winning bronze.
“They had a couple of breakaways and a couple of shots bounced in off (defenceman) Ryan Murray. But at the end of the day, if your goalie misses a shot then it’s on him. It doesn’t matter if it’s a 6-on-nothing or what, your job is to stop the puck. We lost one game, but to take you out of a gold medal it’s something that haunts you a little bit.”
Wedgewood’s world junior experience is not unique.
From Mark Visentin’s five-goal implosion in the third period of the 2011 tournament — to the six goals that Mackenzie Blackwood allowed in a 6-5 quarter-final loss against Finland in 2016 — a lack of big-game goaltending when it matters the most is a reason why Canada has won just one gold medal in the last eight tournaments.
The last time Canada had a goalie named to the tournament all-star team was Steve Mason in 2008 and Carey Price the year before. In the decade since, only two Canadian goalies have even finished in the top-3 in save percentage. Even when the Canadians have won gold lately, like in 2015 when Zach Fucale nearly blew a 5-1 lead by allowing three straight goals in the final to Russia, it’s been almost in spite of its goaltending.
Carter Hart hopes to change that.
A year ago, the second-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers came within one save of winning gold in an overtime shootout loss to Team USA. But as one of seven returning players for Team Canada, he heads into this year’s tournament in Buffalo looking to take care of some unfinished business.
“Obviously, that was a pretty heartbreaking loss,” said Hart. “I definitely learned a lot from that experience I think having gone through that experience will definitely help me for this year.”
On a no-name team that is devoid of top picks and blue-chip prospects, Hart not only has to be steady — he needs to steal games if Canada hopes to win gold. It’s a lot to ask of a 19-year-old. But as a two-time WHL goalie of the year who has league-best .961 save percentage with the Everett Silvertips this season, Hart has the pedigree — and mindset — to get it done.
“I’ll do whatever it takes to win,” he said. “I don’t know if there’s a change in pressure at all when Canada has the expectations of winning gold all the time. If you don’t set yourself up for that goal, then you’re selling yourself short.
“It’s pretty much gold or nothing for us.”
A year ago, Hart and Tampa
Bay Lightning prospect Connor Ingram split the first four games of the round-robin, before Ingram was named the starting goalie for the playoff round. But once Ingram was pulled after allowing three goals on four shots against Sweden in the semifinal, Hart came in and took over the No. 1 job.
In the final against the U.S., Hart stopped 31 of 36 shots. But he also twice gave up a two-goal lead and while American goalie Tyler Parsons was perfect in the shootout, Hart went 3-for-4, allowing the game-winner on a deke from Troy Terry.
“My goodness, he was one save or one goal by Canada away from winning a gold medal last year,” said Silvertips GM Garry Davidson. “There is a tremendous amount of pressure on the team and it always falls on the goaltender. I’m pretty sure he’s going in there with the mindset that he wants to get the job done that he didn’t.”
When the tournament ended, Hart returned home to Edmonton for a week to hit the reset button after an emotional high. It was during that time that he received a phone call from Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby. The two had never met, but share the same mental coach in Dr. John Stevenson, whom Hart has known since he was 10 years old.
“Tough bounce there,” Holtby told Hart, adding that he looked forward to seeing him in the
NHL one day — with a caveat. “You’re a Philadelphia Flyer, so I’m still going to kick your ass.”
It was the kind of pick-me-up that Hart needed at the time. In the last 10 to 15 years, the world juniors has gone from being one of many junior-aged tournaments on the calendar to becoming the be-all, end-all event for teenage prospects. But at the end of the day, it’s still just a hockey tournament that often doesn’t have any bearing on a player’s NHL career.
Of course, it can be difficult to remember that.
Perhaps that is why if you look closely, you’ll see Hart repeating variations of the same phrase while standing in net: “Does the puck know it’s a big game? Does the ice know it’s a big game?”
It’s a bit silly, but it’s his way of deflating the external pressure and remembering that this is still just hockey. As a goalie, he can’t control everything that happens on or off the ice. All he can do is try to stop the puck like he’s always done — and have some fun in the process.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’ve watched the world juniors and had many guys play in the world juniors,” said Stevens, who has coached former world juniors stars such as Canada’s Jeff Glass and Russia’s Andrey Makarov. “But it’s a game. In the whole grand scheme of things, it’s one of those things where it’s another stepping stone in his career. His ultimate goal is he wants to be a Philadelphia Flyer.”
The fact that Hart has already competed in the world juniors should give him a leg up on the competition. He knows what to expect. There’s undoubtedly going to be highs and lows throughout the tournament.
Like last year, there is a chance he could temporarily lose the starting job to Dallas Stars prospect Colton Point. But if he does, don’t expect it to affect him much.
While Hart might be Canada’s highest profile goalie since Price, his strength is his composure. “The one thing with Carter is he’s a very calm presence in net for us,” said Silvertips head coach Dennis Williams.
“You never know if he’s got a shutout or he’s allowed five goals in.”
It didn’t happen overnight. The mental side of the game is something that Hart has refined and worked on since he started playing the position. After a practice, most players will hit the gym or go home for a nap. Hart, meanwhile, heads to what he refers to as his “mental gym,” where he spends upwards of an hour on breathing exercises, concentration grids or ball juggling.
“What stands out with Carter and guys like Braden Holtby is they don’t overlook the mental side,” said Stevens.
“It’s another part of his training. When people talk about his composure, it didn’t happen overnight. He’s been working on it for a long, long time.”
An eighth-round pick in the WHL draft, Hart was 5-foot-6 when he joined the Silvertips as a 15-year-old. No one expected much. Well, no one except for Hart.
“I remember him sitting in my office and him making the comment: ‘I think I’m every bit as good as everybody else here and I’m going to prove that to people,’” said Davidson. “And don’t take this wrong. It didn’t come across as cockiness. He just believed it. He’s got a selfconfidence, but it doesn’t go over the top.”
Since then, Hart has made good on his words. As a rookie, he went 18-5-5 with a 2.29 goalsagainst average. The following season, he was named the Canadian Hockey League’s goalie of the year and was drafted 48th overall by the Flyers.
“He’s definitely the type of goalie where if he’s behind you, then you feel pretty confident,” said Team Canada forward Sam Steel, who has played on the same teams as Hart since they were 10 years old.
Last year, Hart was even better. He once again was named the WHL’s goalie of the year and though the Silvertips didn’t advance past the second round of the playoffs, he did make headlines with a CHL-record five OTperiod win against the Victoria Royals to clinch a first-round win.
“It started at noon and finished at eight at night,” said Davidson, laughing. “Carter outduelled the boy in Victoria (Griffen Outhouse), who I think is the second-best goalie in the West right now.”
“Obviously, his performance speaks for itself,” said Williams. “He goes about each and every game as a pro. He’s been absolutely fantastic in net.”
Hart missed six weeks at the start of the season when he developed mononucleosis during Flyers training camp. Since coming back, he’s been on a tear, leading the Silvertips to the best record in the Western Conference.
Heading into the world juniors, he’s arguably the hottest goalie in the world. The question is can he remain that way when it matters the most.
“Carter’s had stretches for us in the past where he’s been in the zone for a period of time and typical of a young player his game would slide a little bit,” said Davidson. “But since he’s come back, he has just been in a zone and he hasn’t budged from it.
And again, I do believe he is on a bit of a mission.”
I’ll do whatever it takes to win. I don’t know if there’s a change in pressure at all when Canada has the expectations of winning gold all the time.