Dustin Wolf was such an energetic youngster whereas rising up in Gilroy that his mother, Michelle, determined that he wanted to take skating classes to assist burn off some extra power.
It was the proper resolution.
Wolf was enrolled in a learn-to-skate program at Sharks Ice in San Jose, then went on to play goalie for the Santa Clara Blackhawks youth hockey crew. He would later star for the Jr. Kings in Los Angeles, the Everett Silvertips of the WHL, and each the Stockton Warmth and Calgary Wranglers of the AHL after he grew to become a full-time professional in 2021.
Wednesday night time, Wolf made his NHL debut for the Calgary Flames on the Scotiabank Saddledome, taking part in in opposition to the crew he grew up cheering for, the San Jose Sharks.
Wolf proceeded to make 23 saves for his first NHL win, because the Flames beat the Sharks 3-1.
“It’s rewarding,” Wolf stated. “You already know, you set the work in every day and also you dream about that as a child, to get that first sport and first win.”
The Sharks, who play the Edmonton Oilers tonight, had been additionally impressed by Wolf.
“He performed properly,” stated Sharks goalie Kaapo Kahkonen, who made a career-high 46 saves. “Strong. He looks as if a very good skater. Strikes round properly. As a smaller man, clearly, you sort of must (transfer properly).
“That simply reveals it’s not a matter of how large or tall you might be. Guys that may skate and transfer, they will nonetheless play the sport.”
Wolf is simply the 51st California-born participant — and the third from Santa Clara County — to play a sport within the NHL. Hunter McKown, now with Columbus, and John Emmons, who performed with Ottawa, Toronto, and Boston from 2000 to 2002, are each from San Jose.
Maybe there was some kismet concerned as what led Wolf to debut Wednesday in opposition to his childhood crew.
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The Flames had been eradicated from playoff rivalry Monday with their 3-2 shootout loss to the Nashville Predators. Had Calgary’s postseason hopes nonetheless been alive Wednesday, coach Darryl Sutter doubtless would have began No. 1 goalie Jacob Markstrom in opposition to San Jose.
As a substitute, with their playoff hopes dashed, the Flames recalled Wolf from the AHL on Tuesday to present him a chance to begin the crew’s regular-season finale. It simply so occurred, too, that the Sharks are ending their season on a swing by Alberta.
“It’s fairly particular to play in opposition to the crew you grew up idolizing,” stated Wolf, who liked Evgeni Nabokov as a child.
Mike and Michelle Wolf was Sharks’ season ticket holders, and after they attended video games whereas Michelle was pregnant with Dustin, she would normally really feel him kicking contained in the womb.
“Throughout my being pregnant, the one time he would kick me was after we had been on the Sharks video games,” Michelle instructed the Calgary Solar earlier than Wednesday’s sport. “As quickly as they stepped on the ice, he can be kicking, after which he’d cease as quickly as the sport was over. So, that is sort of meant to be.
“Trying again now, you understand that that is the place he was meant to play.”
Belongings you like to see: @NHLFlames goalie prospect Dustin Wolf (@dwolf2332) grew up in Northern California and was a giant @SanJoseSharks man.
Tonight, he makes his much-anticipated NHL debut in opposition to—you guessed it—the Sharks. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/fJ8omgThoY
— NHL (@NHL) April 13, 2023
Dustin was born on April 16, 2001, when the Sharks, coached by Sutter, had been in a first-round playoff collection with the St. Louis Blues.
“And I feel 10 minutes after he was born, we had the Sharks sport on the TV within the hospital,” Michelle stated.
Wolf performed for the Jr. Kings from 2014 to 2017 earlier than he made the leap to the WHL with Everett. Regardless of his measurement – he’s generously listed at 6 ft tall – he largely dominated the league, going 106-33-4 over 4 seasons. He was named the WHL’s high goalie twice, and a 12 months after the Flames drafted him within the seventh spherical, he was named the CHL’s high goalie in 2019-2020.
San Jose, like 29 different NHL groups in 2019, handed him over within the draft a number of instances.
After Wolf turned professional, he continued to play at an elite stage, going 74-18-6 over two seasons within the AHL, and was named that league’s high goalie in 2021 after a season through which he went 33-9-5 with a .924 save proportion.
In his final season in Stockton, his goalie coach was Thomas Speer, now with the Sharks.
“He’s just about household to me now,” Wolf stated of Speer. “He took me beneath his wing throughout COVID. I lived with him and his household and actually received fairly near them and clearly shut with him final 12 months in Stockton. Clearly, we had been tremendous excited for him to get a job with the Sharks, however upset on the similar time. For us to cross paths once more is fairly cool.”
In Wolf’s thoughts, there was by no means a doubt that he would attain this stage.
“He undoubtedly, from the start, stated, ‘I’m going to play within the NHL. Interval,’ ” Michelle Wolf stated. “He began skating in pre-school. This has form of been his plan since a minimum of mites, and he’s by no means strayed away from it. It’s simply, that is what it was going to be. What number of youngsters at that age choose what they’re going to do?”
Wolf wasn’t tremendous busy for the primary two durations Wednesday because the Sharks managed simply 13 pictures on internet. He was excellent within the third interval, although, making 13 saves, and stopping a handful of pictures from shut vary.
“He made some large saves. You'll be able to see why he’s the goalie all people’s talked about, why he has the numbers he has,” Sharks coach David Quinn stated of Wolf. “Clearly, Tom Speer feels actually good about him and speaks very extremely of him.
“He’s an elite goalie and he’s received an awesome future right here within the Nationwide Hockey League, however we may have made his life much more troublesome and we simply didn’t try this tonight.”
Now Wolf figures to compete in opposition to the Sharks for years to come back.
“It feels actually superior,” Wolf stated of Wednesday’s win, “and clearly leaves me wanting extra.”