By Dave Leaderhouse
HUMBOLDT BRONCOS, G
There is a saying that goaltending wins hockey games and if that is the case the Humboldt Broncos can’t be taken too lightly down the stretch drive and entering the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League post-season.
The Broncos are fortunate to have a pair of 18-year-olds between the pipes and while Jacob Wasserman has captured the bulk of the headlines with his invitation to the Team West camp for the World Junior “A” Challenge in December and his participation in the Canadian Junior Hockey League Top Prospects game in January, Parker Tobin has cut his own swath in the Humboldt goal since coming to the Broncos following a mid-season deal with the Spruce Grove Saints of the Alberta Junior Hockey League.
The 6-foot-0, 185-Stoney Plain, Alta., product is 8-4-0-1 in 14 appearances with Humboldt compiling a 2.34 goals-against average and an impressive .920 save percentage. Tobin had also appeared in 14 games with Spruce Grove prior to the trade posting a 2.56 GAA and .897 save percentage.
While Wasserman is in his first season of Junior “A” hockey, Tobin spent his final year of midget eligibility last season playing in 33 games for the Drayton Valley Thunder of the AJHL. Tobin had a 4.48 GAA and .880 in the regular season with the Thunder, but in the playoffs he stepped up his play dramatically lowering his GAA to 3.57 and upping his save percentage to .926.
Prior to cracking the Drayton Valley roster, Tobin spent one year with the Leduc Oil Kings of the Alberta Midget AAA Hockey League where he had a 2.65 GAA and .911 save percentage in 17 appearances. Tobin also got his first taste of Junior “A” hockey that year when he was called up for one game by the AJHL’s Olds Grizzlies.
Tobin has taken a circuitous route to get to Humboldt, but his addition has given the Broncos a solid tandem in net and that has resulted in Humboldt being a solid middle-of-the-pack club that is getting stronger as the season progresses. With wins in seven of their last 10 outings, including three straight by Tobin, the Broncos can’t be overlooked and what makes the situation even more appealing is they could have both Tobin and Wasserman for another two seasons.
Tag(s): Young Guns