Devan Dubnyk

Devan Dubnyk (born May 4, 1986) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL).

Between 2001 and 2006, he played in 192 games for the Blazers, compiling an 83–87–14 record, 2.70 goals against average (GAA), .911 save percentage and 15 shutouts.

At the conclusion of the 2003–04 season, the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) named Dubnyk the CHL Scholastic Player of the Year as the CHL player "best able to combine success on the ice and in school."

He was originally drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round, 14th overall, of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.

A native of Regina, Saskatchewan, Dubnyk also played with the Nashville Predators and Arizona Coyotes before landing with the Minnesota Wild, with whom he enjoyed the most successful seasons of his NHL career.

He also played for the San Jose Sharks and Colorado Avalanche.

Dubnyk spent his junior career with the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League (WHL).

During the 2004 off-season, Dubnyk was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round, 14th overall, at the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.

Dubnyk began his professional career in 2006 with the Stockton Thunder of the ECHL where he compiled a strong 24–11–7 record.

His 24 wins, 2.56 GAA and .921 save percentage set club records and he was selected to be an ECHL All-Star for the 2006–07 season.

In 2007–08, he began to play full-time for what was then Edmonton's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Springfield Falcons.

In three seasons with the Falcons, Dubnyk played 128 games, compiling a 40–75–4 record.

In 2008–09, Dubnyk set a club record for most appearances by a goaltender with 62.

Dubnyk was called up by Edmonton early in the 2009–10 season after Oilers starting goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin underwent season-ending back surgery.

For the remainder of the season, he served as the team's back-up to Jeff Deslauriers.

Dubnyk made his first NHL appearance on November 28, 2009, replacing Deslauriers in a 7–3 loss to the Vancouver Canucks, allowing three goals on 24 shots.

He recorded his first career NHL win on March 19, 2010, via a shootout with the Detroit Red Wings; Dubnyk made 31 saves in the win.

On March 21, Dubnyk recorded the first regulation win of his career, making 27 saves in a 5–1 victory over the San Jose Sharks.

On July 13, 2010, Edmonton re-signed Dubnyk to a two-year contract.

The 2010–11 season was Dubnyk's first full season in the NHL, beginning the year as Nikolai Khabibulin's backup.

Injuries to Khabibulin, however, combined with strong play from Dubnyk, resulted in the latter registering over 30 starts for the Oilers.

Dubnyk ultimately finished the season with a 12–13–8 record for a last-place Oilers squad, impressing the Oilers coaching staff.

Then-Edmonton Head Coach Tom Renney summed up Dubnyk's season: "As much as we had an idea of how much we wanted to play him, we've played him more, and he's made the best of it."

On February 7, 2011, Dubnyk earned his first career shutout after stopping 37 shots in a 4–0 win against the Nashville Predators.

He closed out his season by earning back-to-back wins against the Presidents' Trophy-winning Vancouver Canucks, stopping 46 of 47 shots against in the process.

On October 9, 2011, Dubnyk started his first career season opener, defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins 2–1 in the shootout while stopping 35 shots in the process.

Dubnyk, however, struggled at the beginning of the 2011–12 season, recording four wins in his first 13 games along with a 3.03 GAA and a 0.902 save percentage, allowing Nikolai Khabibulin to temporarily reclaim the starter's role.

As Khabibulin began to struggle, however, Dubnyk reclaimed a large portion of Edmonton's starting opportunities, finishing with a strong second half to the season.

Dubnyk earned his chance to be the starting goaltender in March 2012, posting a 6–2–1 record with a 1.95 GAA and a .934 save percentage and starting 12 of the Oilers' final 13 games.

At that point, he had not surrendered more than three goals in 20-straight games, and also won 16 of the Oilers' final 17 games.

During the subsequent off-season, on July 6, Dubnyk signed a two-year, $7 million contract extension with Edmonton.

In the 48-game, shortened 2012–13 season, Dubnyk, for the first time in his career, opened the year as the Oilers' starting goaltender.

The Oilers ultimately finished 12th in the Western Conference, missing the Stanley Cup playoffs for the seventh consecutive year.

Dubnyk, however, enjoyed relative success, ending the season with a 2.57 GAA and a .920 save percentage in 14 wins and 22 losses, his then-best career NHL statistics, sufficient enough to earn him a second year to be a starter.

Despite the previous season's personal success, Dubnyk struggled to begin the 2013–14 season, and faced a threat to his starting job by newly signed veteran Ilya Bryzgalov.

Bryzgalov, however, was injured in just his third game for the Oilers, temporarily solidifying Dubnyk as Edmonton's starter.

On January 15, 2014, Edmonton traded Dubnyk to the Nashville Predators in exchange for forward Matt Hendricks.

After starting in only two games as a Predator, Dubnyk was sent to the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals on March 3 to accommodate goaltender Pekka Rinne's return from long-term injured reserve.

Two days later, on March 5, Dubnyk was again traded, this time to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for future considerations from Nashville.

He was then immediately assigned to Montreal's AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs, failing to make an appearance for Montreal.