While Plymouth Whalers goaltender Matt Mahalak is a patient, intelligent individual, he can’t wait for the Ontario Hockey League season to start in late August.
“It’s very exciting, seeing all of the new acquisitions and checking out the roster,” he said. “You don’t want to jinx it, but there’s definitely an air of confidence around our team right now. Everyone’s excited to get on the ice and get everyone together.”
The Whalers come into the 2012-13 season having made the OHL playoffs for 21 straight seasons and look to be in the thick of the competitive Western Conference race again. Plymouth general manager Mike Vellucci continues to re-tools his roster, brining in new players Ryan Hartman, Connor Carrick, Ludvig Bystrom, Zach Bratina, Alex Peters and goaltenders Alex Nedeljkovic and Riley Corbin.
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After working with Scott Wedgewood over the last two seasons, Mahalak is one of the leading veteran goaltenders returning to the Ontario Hockey League this season. In 51 games with Plymouth, Mahalak has posted a 2.82 goals against average, .917 save percentage and a 27-16-1-3 won-loss record with three shutouts.
Goaltenders who play in Plymouth tend to get selected in the National Hockey League Entry Draft. Since the middle of the 2005-06 season, Justin Peters (selected by Carolina while playing for Toronto St. Michaels), Michal Neuvirth (Washington), Jeremy Smith (Nashville), Matt Hackett (Minnesota), Scott Wedgewood (New Jersey) and Mahalak (Carolina) are all examples.
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Mahalak was asked what makes Plymouth a learning laboratory for developing goaltenders.
“I think it’s pretty simple,” he said. “You have a great goaltending coach in Stan Matwijiw. And (Head Coach) Mike Vellucci knows how to treat his guys. He knows what it takes to move on to the next level and he knows how to push them and when to push them.
“It’s not always the right time, especially with goaltenders, to yell at them, or sit them, or pull them. But Mike knows when to pull them, when to say something or to let a goalie work things out on his own. He worked a lot with Scott (Wedgewood) a lot and helped him get to the (Team Canada) World Junior team and have a lot of success there. Now, he’s doing the same for me.
“After experiencing all of this, it’s really no surprise that they’ve had so much success with goaltenders.”
Mahalak has shown the ability to mix hockey with academics, utilizing time management to his advantage.
“I just made the Dean’s List over at Michigan-Dearborn, so things are going well,” Mahalak said. “I just started my second course for this summer. It’s some work, but it keeps me around and passes the time with no hockey going on in the summer. It definitely keeps you busy – you can only work out so much during the summer. Then you’ve got all day to kill some time. So rather than playing video games, it’s the same to take a class and get some work done.”
Mahalak talks about combining school with hockey.
“It’s something I’ve done my entire life – balancing homework and practice, while trying to have a social life,” Mahalak said. “It would be weird for me not to be balancing a busy school schedule, with a hockey schedule and workout schedule. So I think this is normal – it’s part of my life and part of my daily routine.”
As his gets older with more experience, Mahalak seems bigger and stronger. The Whalers utilize – located in Plymouth – for off-ice training for players. Mahalak has embraced Barwis Methods with enthusiasm and his work has paid off.
“It’s been absolutely phenomenal, from weight training, to speed and agility, to just getting bigger, stronger and faster,” Mahalak said. “It’s been a phenomenal summer – I’ve made some giant leaps in my physical conditioning. Now it’s time to transfer all that on the ice and carry into next season.”
Mahalak will attend Carolina’s main camp in September with the goal of making a positive impression.
“I definitely want to show them that I’m the top prospect that they have,” Mahalak said. “They had a few guys leave, so they have a bit of a hole there, so I want to show them that I’m the top prospect and I’m the guy they’re going to want in the net in the upcoming years. So I’m putting in the work right now to make sure that I’m prepared to be that guy.”
AUDIO: Listen to the complete Mahalak interview.
LET'S READ: Mahalak will be reading to children at the on Wednesday, July 18 and Wednesday, August 1 from 3-3:30 pm as part of the library's annual Connect Your Summer program.
NHL SELECTIONS: Besides Peters, Neuvirth, Smith, Hackett, Wedgewood and Mahalak, here are the other Plymouth goaltenders who have been selected in the National Hockey League Entry Draft – Derek Wilkinson (1992, Tampa Bay), Aaron Ellis (1992, Quebec, while playing for Culver Military Academy), Jason Saal (1993, Los Angeles), Mike Minard (1995, while playing for Chilliwack), Robert Esche (1996, Phoenix), Rob Zepp (drafted twice – 1999 by Atlanta and 2001 by Carolina), Aaron Molnar (2000 by Colorado; split time between Plymouth and London), Jason Bacashihua (2001 by Dallas, while playing for Chicago of the USHL) and Jeff Weber (2003, Buffalo).
MORE MAHALAK: Mahalak is featured by Bandits Golaie School, run by Plymouth goaltending coach Stan Matwijiw.
