Dylan Garand

Dylan Garand
Born	(2002-06-07) June 7, 2002 (age 22) Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	181 lb (82 kg; 12 st 13 lb)
Position	Goaltender
Catches	Left
NHL team (P) Cur. team	New York Rangers Hartford Wolf Pack  (AHL)
NHL draft	103rd overall, 2020 New York Rangers
Playing career	2021–present

Dylan Garand (born June 7, 2002) is a Canadian ice hockey goaltender for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted by the Rangers in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL entry draft.

Playing career

Junior

Entering the Western Hockey League, the 2018–19 season was Garand's first full season with the Kamloops Blazers. Although only 16 years old, he became the team's starting goaltender when Dylan Ferguson was injured and led the team to the WHL playoffs. ^[1]

In the 2018–19 season, Garand played in 42 games and had a 2.21 goals against average and a .921 save percentage. ^[2] He won the Daryl K. Seaman Trophy as WHL's Scholastic Player of the Year. ^{[2] [1]} After the season he was drafted by the New York Rangers in the 4th round of the 2020 NHL entry draft with the 103rd overall selection. ^{[3] [4]}

For the 2020–21 season, Garand played in only 18 games, posting a 2.15 goals against average and a .921 save percentage. Garand also played two games for the Rangers' American Hockey League affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. In two games for Hartford he had a 3.68 goals against average and an .839 save percentage. ^[2]

In the 2021–22 season, Garand posted a 2.16 goals against average and a .935 save percentage for Kamloops. As a result, he won the Del Wilson Trophy as the top WHL goaltender and was named a First Team All-Star in the WHL B.C. Division. ^{[5] [3] [6]} His goals against average and saves percentage were each second in the WHL. His 34 wins was tied for first in the league among goaltenders, and he also tied for fourth in the league in shutouts, with 4. ^[7] Garand was considered by some writers to be the best goalie in the entire Canadian Hockey League, and he won the 2021–22 CHL Goaltender of the Year award. ^{[8] [9] [10]} Midway through the season Garand signed his first professional contract with the Rangers. ^[11]

Professional

He started the 2022–23 pre-season with the Rangers but was assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack before the season began. ^[12] He played in 32 games with a .894 save percentage and 3.01 goals against average in the regular season. ^[13] He was better in the playoffs, with a .935 save percentage, 1.76 goals against average and 2 shutouts in 8 games. ^[13] Rangers' Director of Player Personnel and Amateur Scouting John Lilley said of his 2022–23 season “He had a good season. He grew as a 20-year-old goaltender. It’s very, very tough to establish yourself and he had a good year. He got better as it went along. He’s on the right path. We’re excited about his upcoming year." ^[13]

Prior to the 2023–24 season, USA Today writer Vincent Z. Mercogliano rated Garand as the Rangers 6th best prospect. ^[14] Garand started the 2023–24 season at Hartford but was recalled to the Rangers to serve as their backup goalie for a game on November 9 against the Minnesota Wild. ^{[15] [16]} He was returned to Hartford after the game. ^[17] He was recalled to the Rangers playoff roster in May, during Hartford's 2024 Calder Cup playoffs run, after playing 7 playoff games for Hartford and leading them to the third round. ^[18]

Prior to the 2024–25 season, Mercogliano rated Garand as the Rangers' 7th best prospect and The Hockey News rated him as the Rangers' 8th best prospect. ^{[19] [20]} McKeen's Hockey rated him the Rangers' 6th best prospect, expressing concern that he showed little improvement in 2023-24 from his rookie season in the AHL, and that he may not be athletic enough to become an effective NHL goalie given his size, but noted his improvement during the 2024 playoffs. ^[21] He began the season back with Hartford. ^[22] He was recalled to the Rangers on December 8 to serve as their backup goalie for a game against the Seattle Kraken and was returned to Hartford the following day. ^{[23] [24]} He was named the AHL goaltender of the month for December 2024. ^{[25] [26]}

International play

Medal record
Representing   Canada
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
	2022 Canada
	2021 Canada
Hlinka Gretzky Cup
	2019 Slovakia/Czech Republic

Garand was named to Team Canada for the 2021 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. ^{[4] [27]} He served as the backup goaltender to Devon Levi, playing one game during the tournament as Canada won a silver medal. ^{[27] [2]} He rejoined the team for the 2022 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, initially scheduled to be played in December 2021 and January 2022. The tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic after Garand had played only one game. ^{[28] [11]} However, the tournament resumed in August, with Garand returning as starting goaltender. ^[29] He played in six of Team Canada's seven games, winning all of them with a 1.98 goals against average as Canada won the gold medal. ^{[2] [30]}

Playing style

Garand is considered relatively small for a goaltender at 6 feet, 1 inch. ^{[1] [31]} However, according to Kamloops' goaltender coach Dan De Palma "he moves really well (and) he's an elite tracker of the puck. His head trajectory on the puck is outstanding ... and then from there, when the stress and the chaos ensues, his movement is exceptional, as well." ^[1] Team Canada goaltender coach Jason LaBarbera similarly said that he's able to make saves with his hands really well, and some guys don't have that ability. Sometimes, even if you’re a 6-foot-5 guy and you don’t have good hands, you can be exposed." ^[1] LaBarbera also said that Garand has "got a lot of different aspects to his game. He's very talented in that sense. He’s very good at tracking the puck. He stays down on the puck; he doesn't chase it. He gives himself opportunities to make saves with his positioning and his skating ability." ^[1] Garand has said of his height "at end of the day, you've got to stop the puck. If you can do that, then doesn't matter what your height is." ^[1] Fellow Ranger prospect and Team Canada teammate Will Cuylle said of Garand "I’ve never seen someone so like focused and dialed in before." ^[32]

Asked before the 2022–23 season what it would take to become a great goaltender for the Rangers, Garand said "I feel like just sticking to my game — I know what works for me, so kind of continue to build that foundation and that stuff at the next level." ^[33]

In 2023, Hartford coach Steve Smith said of Garand that:

He’s a really cerebral kid. He’s a hard-working kid. I’m not sure there’s another guy in the locker room that preps for games as much as he does, even at a young age. He’s fully prepped and ready to go, each and every night. He loves to stay extra, he loves to be on the ice, and we clearly believe in him...His future is very bright. ^[19]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season										Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	W	L	OTL	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%		GP	W	L	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%
2017–18	Kamloops Blazers	WHL		3	1	2	0	153	8	0	3.14	.905		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2018–19	Kamloops Blazers	WHL		27	11	7	3	1,408	69	1	2.94	.902		3	0	2	123	7	0	3.42	.879
2019–20	Kamloops Blazers	WHL		42	28	10	3	2,443	90	4	2.21	.921		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Kamloops Blazers	WHL		18	15	3	0	1,086	39	3	2.15	.921		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Hartford Wolf Pack	AHL		2	0	1	0	81	5	0	3.68	.839		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2021–22	Kamloops Blazers	WHL		45	34	9	1	2,689	97	4	2.16	.925		17	11	5	1,029	33	3	1.92	.933
2022–23	Hartford Wolf Pack	AHL		32	13	14	3	1,717	86	3	3.01	.894		8	5	3	477	14	2	1.76	.935
2023–24	Hartford Wolf Pack	AHL		39	16	17	5	2,278	115	2	3.03	.898		9	5	4	555	24	0	2.59	.922
AHL totals				73	29	32	8	4,076	206	5	3.03	.895		17	10	7	1,032	38	2	2.21	.927

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	W	L	OTL	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%
2018	Canada Red	U17	4th		4	2	1	1	258	10	0	2.33	.930
2019	Canada	HG18			2	1	1	0	120	3	1	1.51	.857
2021	Canada	WJC			1	0	0	0	20	1	0	3.00	.800
2022	Canada	WJC			6	6	0	0	364	12	0	1.98	.925
Junior totals					13	9	3	1	762	26	1	2.04	.919

References

1. Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (November 20, 2020). "An inside look at why the NY Rangers took a chance on fourth-round goalie Dylan Garand". Lohud. Retrieved 2022-06-25.
2. "Dylan Garand". Elite Prospects. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
3. Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (June 23, 2022). "NY Rangers prospect report: Brennan Othmann, Will Cuylle knocking on the door". Lohud. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
4. Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (December 25, 2020). "Four prospects to watch in World Junior tourney". The Journal News. p. 8B. Retrieved June 25, 2022– via newspapers.com.
5. "WHL names B.C. Division All-Star Teams". WHL. April 21, 2022. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
6. Schulze, Aaron (June 2, 2022). "Stankoven named Player of the Year, Garand Goaltender of the Year in WHL Awards". CFJC Today. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
7. Walker, Mollie (July 17, 2022). "Rangers build depth at goalie with new Igor Shesterkin backups". New York Post. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
8. Staple, Arthur (February 7, 2022). "Rangers prospect pipeline check-in: Dylan Garand continues his rise – arguably the best goalie in the CHL". The Athletic.
9. "CHL announces 2021-22 Award winners". Canadian Hockey League. June 28, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
10. "Blazers' Stankoven wins Player of the Year as CHL announces award winners". TSN. June 28, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
11. Masters, Mark (December 26, 2021). "'Freshly-inked' Garand caps dream week with first World Junior start". TSN. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
12. "Rangers Assign 19 Players to Hartford". nhl.com. September 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
13. Walker, Mollie (September 15, 2023). "Rangers believe Wolf Pack goalie Dylan Garand is on 'right path' for larger workload". New York Post. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
14. Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (September 1, 2023). "Dylan Garand: NY Rangers prospect No. 6 in system rankings". Lohud. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
15. Brooks, Larry (November 8, 2023). "Rangers call up AHL goalies after Jonathan Quick joins Igor Shesterkin on 'day-to-day list'". New York Post. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
16. Walker, Mollie (November 10, 2023). "Louis Domingue has big night in Rangers' win: 'It felt amazing'". New York Post. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
17. Walker, Mollie (November 11, 2023). "There are plenty of reasons for Rangers' run of success". New York Post. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
18. Sheridan, Mathieu (May 17, 2024). "New York Rangers Recall Dylan Garand from Hartford". The Hockey News. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
19. Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (September 11, 2024). "NY Rangers 2024 prospect rankings: Part 1, Nos. 6-10". Lohud. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
20. Fischler, Stan (October 14, 2024). "The Rangers Best NCAA Prospect You Never Heard About". The Hockey News. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
21. Otten, Brock; Hall, Dave (September 16, 2024). "McKeen's 2024-25 NHL Yearbook – New York Rangers – Top 15 Prospect Profiles – Organizational Rank #23". McKeen's Hockey. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
22. "Rangers assign five players to Wolf Pack". Hartford Wolf Pack. October 2, 2024. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
23. "Rangers Recall Dylan Garand and Connor Mackey from Wolf Pack". Hartford Wolf Pack. December 8, 2024. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
24. McGoey, Steven (December 9, 2024). "New York Rangers Assign Dylan Garand To Hartford Wolf Pack". The Hockey News. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
25. Walker, Mollie (January 3, 2025). "'Fiery' rookie Berard's 1st winner makes for mini streak". New York Post. p. 44.
26. Kaisar, Victor (3 January 2025). "Former Blazer Dylan Garand named AHL goaltender of the month for December". CFJC Today. Retrieved 2025-01-04.
27. Ellis, Steven (December 17, 2021). "Dylan Garand hopes strong season translates to World Junior success with Canada". The Hockey News. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
28. Van Diest, Derek (December 16, 2021). "Juniors try to ease pressure for goalies". The Province. p. 41. Retrieved June 25, 2022– via newspapers.com.
29. Masters, Mark (August 11, 2022). "Garand brings 'extreme focus' to Team Canada's net". TSN. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
30. Sandor, Steven (August 20, 2022). "Canada defeats Finland in OT thriller for gold at world juniors in Edmonton". CBC Sports . Retrieved August 22, 2022.
31. Reimer, Dayton (July 12, 2020). "Dylan Garand – 2020 Draft Prospect Profile". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
32. Walker, Mollie (September 16, 2022). "Rangers rookies plan on showing off summer 'grind' in regular season". New York Post. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
33. Stephenson, Colin (September 20, 2022). "Rangers goalie Dylan Garand looking to make big step up". Newsday. Retrieved September 29, 2022.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database
• Dylan Garand profile and statistics at TheAHL.com
• Dylan Garand at the Hartford Wolf Pack