September 5, 2006

DAN TORMEY
Minnesota State
So. | G | Syracuse, N.Y.
Tormey and the Mavericks nearly upset North Dakota in the first round of the WCHA playoffs last season.

 

Key Statistics: Tormey was named to the WCHA’s All-Rookie team after recording the most wins by a freshman goalie (14) since the Mavericks joined the Division I ranks a decade ago. In conference games, his goals-against number (2.83) and save percentage (.903) were tops among WCHA rookies last season.

What He Does: According to Mavericks coach Troy Jutting, you rarely see Tormey make highlight reel saves, which is just fine. “Most of the time when you see a goalie make a spectacular save, it means they were out of position,” Jutting says. Instead, Tormey picks the best advice he hears from his three different goalie coaches (one in Mankato, one in Detroit and one in Ottawa) to learn to read shooters, anticipate shots and use his size as a weapon.

The Bigger Picture: In 2003, when Tormey and some friends from Upstate New York drove to Providence to see the NCAA East Regional, he admits he knew nothing about a team from southern Minnesota that wore purple. That day Tormey saw the Mavericks fight hard but fall short to Cornell in the school’s first NCAA D-I playoff game. Barely two years later, Tormey was the one wearing purple, with a helmet featuring the Chinese symbol for “warrior” in honor of his late mother, who passed away two years ago. After a rough start personally and as a team (the Mavs were 0-6 in October), Tormey and company seemed to get educated fast, finishing just a game under .500 and taking North Dakota to a third game in their WCHA playoff series. Where games used to be football-style shootouts in goaltending-poor Mankato, Tormey reintroduced something that hadn’t been seen in more than four years – the Mavericks winning a WCHA game via shutout. In fact, he did it twice.

Minnesota State head coach Troy Jutting on Tormey: "Dan thrives on simple goaltending. He doesn’t make things look difficult and he doesn’t make the game or the position harder than it is. He’s very consistent, which is what every coach wants in a goalie. You see players who play the game a little more relaxed when they know they’ve got consistency back there.”

— Jess Myers