Michael Bitzer

Last updated
Michael Bitzer
2024-11-03 Eisbaren Berlin gegen Schwenninger Wild Wings (Deutsche Eishockey-Liga 2024-25) by Sandro Halank-040.jpg
Bitzer with the Schwenninger Wild Wings in 2024
Born (1993-10-23) October 23, 1993 (age 31)
Moorhead, Minnesota, U.S.
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 192 lb (87 kg; 13 st 10 lb)
Position Goaltender
Catches Left
DEL team
Former teams		 Schwenninger Wild Wings
Idaho Steelheads
Rapid City Rush
Atlanta Gladiators
ETC Crimmitschau
Playing career 2014–present

Michael Bitzer is an German-American ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Schwenninger Wild Wings of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. He was an All-American for Bemidji State. [1]

Contents

Playing career

After graduating from Moorhead High School, Bitzer played two seasons of junior hockey for the Lincoln Stars. He put up respectable if unspectacular numbers but was able to earn a scholarship to Bemidji State University. As soon as he debuted for the Beavers, Bitzer began to rewrite their record book. He finished 4th in the nation for goals against average as a freshman and was named as the WCHA Rookie of the Year, the only Beaver so honored. [2] Both he and Bemidji State regressed slightly during his sophomore year but Bitzer rebounded in spectacular fashion as a junior. He posted some of the best goaltending numbers for the season and was named as a first team All-American. He led Bemidji State to a first-place finish in the WCHA and was named the league Player of the Year. Unfortunately, BSU lost in the conference semifinals and was left out of the NCAA Tournament. [3]

After wrapping up his college career with a solid senior season, Bitzer signed with the Idaho Steelheads for the remainder of the 2018 season. [4] That offseason, he signed with the Rapid City Rush but his tenure there proved to be short-lived. Bitzer did not perform well in his first full season as a pro and found himself relegated to being the team's third goaltender. On New Years Day, he was traded to the Atlanta Gladiators as a fulfilment of a previous trade. [5] He improved a bit with his new surroundings but he was limited to just 9 games over the final three months of the season.

After the disappointing year, Bitzer travelled to Germany and spent two years with ETC Crimmitschau in the second German league. In October 2021, Bitzer signed a contract with the Wichita Thunder and was expecting to return to the ECHL. [6] The arrangement ended up falling through, however, and Bitzer remained in Germany. He ended up signing with Selber Wölfe, who had just received a promotion to DEL2 from the Oberliga.

Career statistics

  
Season TeamLeagueGPWLT/OTLMINGA SO GAA SV%
2008–09 Moorhead High School MN-HS 8––––––2.32–
2009–10 Moorhead High School MN-HS 10––––––1.87.920
2010–11 Moorhead High School MN-HS 24––––––2.96.926
2011–12 Moorhead High School MN-HS 24––––––2.02.927
2011–12 Alexandria Blizzard NAHL 4301241812.00.915
2012–13 Lincoln Stars USHL 382211120239112.70.905
2013–14 Lincoln Stars USHL 5119196280114803.17.903
2014–15 Bemidji State WCHA 281411317305241.80.929
2015–16 Bemidji State WCHA 341316519467062.16.915
2016–17 Bemidji State WCHA 392214323556761.71.932
2017–18 Bemidji State WCHA 371613821968252.24.909
2017–18 Idaho Steelheads ECHL 3210183702.30.887
2018–19 Rapid City Rush ECHL 123615943603.64.882
2018–19 Atlanta Gladiators ECHL 93314402413.27.887
2019–20 ETC Crimmitschau DEL2 4319240258714703.41.889
2020–21 ETC Crimmitschau DEL2 291611016848813.14.897
USHL totals89413074,82423912.97.904
NCAA totals1386554198,227271211.98.921
ECHL totals2481021,2176713.30.884
DEL2 totals72353504,27123513.30.892

Awards and honors

AwardYear
WCHA All-Rookie Team 2014–15 [7]
All-WCHA First Team 2016–17 [8]
AHCA West First Team All-American 2016–17 [1]
All-WCHA Second Team 2017–18 [9]

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References

  1. 1 2 "Men's Ice Hockey Award Winners" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
  2. ↑ "WCHA Major Award Winners – 1951–2014". Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Frozen Four: Men's NCAA championship division I ice hockey bracket revealed". NCAA.com. March 19, 2017. Retrieved March 19, 2017.
  4. ↑ "MICHAEL BITZER SIGNED TO TEND GOAL". Rapid City Rush. August 22, 2018. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Gladiators acquire goalie Bitzer, defenseman Galipeau". Gwinnett Daily Post. January 1, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Gladiators acquire goalie Bitzer, defenseman Galipeau". YouTube. October 1, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Awards – NCAA (WCHA) Rookie All-Star Team". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 2018-11-15.
  8. ↑ "WCHA All-Star Teams announced". uppermichigansource.com. 2017-03-09. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  9. ↑ "Awards - NCAA (WCHA) Second All-Star Team". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 2018-11-15.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by WCHA Rookie of the Year
2014–15 		Succeeded by
Preceded by WCHA Goaltending Champion
2016–17 		Succeeded by
Award Discontinued
Preceded by WCHA Player of the Year
2016–17 		Succeeded by
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