The Arizona Coyotes selected two goaltenders in the 2018 NHL Draft, and both a now developing well in major juniors in Canada.
For two consecutive seasons, the Arizona Coyotes opted not to take a goaltender in the draft, but in 2018 they doubled-down with the selections of Ivan Prosvetov and David Tendeck.
The goaltender position is arguably the hardest to draft for NHL teams, with some players selected high failing to live up to expectations (see: Rick DiPietro) while others selected much later have gone on to have solid NHL careers (see: Pekka Rinne).
For the Coyotes, they opted to wait a little while before selecting a goaltender in last year’s draft – choosing Prosvetov in the fourth round, 114th overall.
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Just 44 picks later and the Coyotes were announcing Tendeck as their sixth-round selection, adding two young goalies to their system.
Both players have played the 2018/19 campaign in the Canadian major juniors, with Tendeck playing his third full season with the WHL’s Vancouver Giants and Provestov playing out his rookie year with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit.
Both goalies have had steady seasons playing in Canada, with Provestov sporting a 3.01 goal against average and a .907 save percentage, while Tendeck has 2.50 and .902 respectively.
Tendeck’s development in the WHL has been hugely noticeable, with the North Vancouver native seeing his numbers progressively improve since a 5.80 GAA, .822 Sv% showing in a two-game spell back in the 2015/16 season.
Prosvetov, meanwhile, has had to make the jump up from the USHL to the OHL, which is not an insignificant change.
Both players have performed well given their respective seasons, but both are likely to remain in juniors next season to continue their development.
Goalies typically take far longer to develop than skaters, with many not making their NHL debuts until their early-mid twenties.
Prosvetov and Tendeck both look like they have some potential, but will require some seasoning before the team looks at bringing either of them over to the Tucson Roadrunners in the AHL.
A spell in the ECHL could be the next step in their development, with the likes of Adin Hill and Hunter Miska both already solid in the AHL with Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper the expected tandem heading into next season.
Having a couple of goalies deep in the system is a sensible move by the Arizona Coyotes, who are now heavily focused on developing from within.
While the futures of either player are currently unknown, they have both at least shown some sparks that could help them progress into the professional leagues.
What do you think Coyotes fans? Are you pleased the team has a couple of goalies developing in juniors? Are you pleased with how the team is approaching development? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!