Silvertips embrace life after Hart by turning to young Wolf

Everett Silvertips goaltender Dustin Wolf is aware of the elephant in the room entering this Western Hockey League season.

After all, the 17-year-old goaltender is following the footsteps of a WHL legend and arguably the top netminder the league has ever seen.

With Carter Hart, the three-time Western Hockey League goaltender of the year and last season’s WHL player of the year, moving on from junior hockey, Wolf knows he can’t constantly expose himself to the inevitable comparisons to his predecessor.

“You hear people talk about, ‘Without Carter Hart, is Wolfie going to be able to step in and do what Hart did last year?’” Wolf said. “I think at the end of the day it’s just about doing your own personal thing, and however things go that’s how it happens. I try not to think about it too much anymore. It’s in the past now, and I’m just trying to focus on the present.

“I’m just trying to create my own path and make a name for myself.”

Wolf is possibly the biggest unknown on a Silvertips team that returns a solid core from last year’s Western Conference title team. There is a peace of mind knowing Wolf is between the pipes for the Silvertips this season, however.

Wolf first emerged on the scene after Hart suffered a minor injury last October. The rookie goaltender stepped in during road games at Kamloops, British Columbia and Portland, and stopped 82-of-85 shots in two victories, earning WHL goaltender of the week honors.

A semblance of trust was born.

“You didn’t look at him at that time as a 16-year-old goalie out there,” Silvertips head coach Dennis Williams said. “From our standpoint, we have 110 percent confidence with him in net, and he showed us last year what he can do, and I’ve seen it through the preseason. One thing you’re going to find with him is he competes. He doesn’t get off the ice in practice. If he can be on the ice to stop a puck, he’ll be out there. He’s a very good goalie.”

Wolf was a fifth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft out of Tustin, Calif., and is thought to have fell in the draft due to a preponderance of NCAA Division-I suitors as well as the USA Hockey National Team Development Program. He came up from the Los Angeles Junior Kings program and dons No. 32 because of his favorite netminder, the Los Angeles Kings’ Jonathan Quick.

Wolf is draft eligible in 2019 and has a legitimate chance to be taken in the NHL Draft. Wolf was one of four goaltenders to compete at the USA Hockey All-American prospects game Wednesday in St. Paul, Minn., and was in net for Team USA at the U-18 Hlinka-Gretzky Cup this summer.

Last season Wolf diligently watched Hart, who was succumbed to many of the same types of prospect camps and showcases earlier in his career. That made Wolf a more prepared and thoughtful competitor.

“You can learn so much from watching a guy like that over the course of a season,” Wolf said. “You can talk about all these little things on the ice, but it’s about some of the stuff off the ice, what he does after practice, because he doesn’t just rip out of the rink and go home. He’s in the rink getting in extra work, whether it’s on the ice or off the ice, getting a stretch in, a bike ride, some vision training, whatever it is. He was putting in the extra work, and I think it showed.”

Wolf finished with a 13-6-0 record with a .928 save percentage during his rookie campaign.

The Tips have seen Wolf perform at a high level in a limited role. The question is: Will Wolf rise to the occasion as his role expands? Everett seems to think so.

“It’s a whole different mindset,” Williams said, “but I think he’s ready to make that jump, and he’s shown it through the preseason.”

Everett returns just over 51 percent of its goal-scoring from a team which set a franchise record for goals in a season with 245. Even if the Silvertips don’t score at such a torrid pace this season, there’s a solid defensive core ahead of Wolf, including Wyatte Wylie, Jake Christiansen and newly-acquired Sahvan Khaira.

Sixteen-year-old rookie Blake Lyda, a fourth-round pick in 2017, is set to be Wolf’s backup.

Expectations are mixed for the Silvertips in what projects to be anultra competitive U.S. Division. Spokane, which slotted in at No. 6 in the Central Hockey League’s preseason power rankings, is the favorite to break through in the division, but Everett’s 19-year-old core of right wing Byrce Kindopp, center Connor Dewar, ring wing Riley Sutter, Christiansen and Wyatte will make Everett a tough matchup.

In the best case scenario for the Silvertips, Hart’s absence won’t remain a dark cloud hovering over the impending season. It would be validation in their trust and confidence for his heir apparent.

“For Wolfie, there’s no expectations or pressure on my end,” Williams said, “but if he stays calm, cool and collected — because there are going to be highs and lows throughout the year — he’ll be just fine.”