Northern Michigan goaltender on the verge of breaking NCAA record for consecutive shutouts

Atte Tolvanen is two periods away from an incredible record.

by Mary Clarke@marycclarke  Feb 14, 2017, 10:54am EST

 

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Northern Michigan’s hockey team is on a six-game win streak, one that has catapulted them into a sixth-place tie in the WCHA. The last five of those wins have all been shutouts at the hands — and pads — of sophomore Atte Tolvanen, who is sitting at a scoreless streak of 335 minutes and 39 seconds.

Tolvanen will need only 39 minutes and 23 seconds of scoreless play to break a college hockey record set by Blaine Lacher of Lake Superior State in 1994. It’s a record as old as Tolvanen himself, who is currently a sophomore at Northern Michigan University.

It hasn’t been an easy road these last five and a half games either. Tolvanen has had to stop 215 consecutive shots, with a career-high 48 of those coming against Alaska Fairbanks in one game last Saturday. Tolvanen stopped 39 saves in the Wildcats’ shutout victory just the day before.

Tolvanen, however, doesn’t seem to be fazed by the potential record looming over his head, according Ryan Stieg of The Mining Journal.

“I feel pretty good,” he admitted with a chuckle. “It popped in my head, but I tried to push that out.

“The guys have been great in front of me, though. They’ve collected all of the rebounds that I’ve given up, so this was a whole team effort. They’ve been helping me so much.”

The Northern Michigan Wildcats have a tough weekend ahead of them, as they’ll be facing a Minnesota State team on the road in their quest to get Tolvanen his record.