Ty Young Gained Experience and Grew His Confidence in His First Pro Season

Ty Young had steady growth in his first season as a professional, taking every opportunity to develop on and off the ice.

Looking back on his first year with the ECHL’s Kalamazoo Wings and AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks, he stayed focused on his development, leaned on belief from his coaches, and gained some confidence with every game.

“It was a pretty special season. I didn't really know what to expect coming into it,” Young said. “Being able to play in the Coast [ECHL] for the first game set the tone for the start of the year. It took a lot of pressure off me because I played pretty well that game and was able to get my first pro win in my first outing. That settled me in for the year, and I proved to myself that I can do it.”

He finished his rookie campaign with a .926 save percentage over 22 ECHL games – ranking in the top 10 among goaltenders who played at least 10 games.

“I think that belief that the coaches had in me, that I was able to do that, really helped. I'm just super grateful for all the opportunities I got this year,” he said.

The biggest adjustment in the jump from junior to pro hockey was the speed of play. As the season progressed and he adjusted to the tempo of the game, he learned a lot about systems at the next level and focused on his positioning and on-ice reads.

“I think lots of it is being cleaner with everything you're doing and lots of it is simple stuff too – cleaner T-pushes and cleaner stops, and having your feet set for shots coming in, and being ahead of the play instead of chasing it. Another big thing is settling in for that – all the reads and everything else that comes your way,” Young said.

The 20-year-old netminder felt like he made big gains through the winter with Abbotsford Canucks Development and Goaltending Coach Justin Pogge, which helped set Young up for a strong finish to the season. Practices were high-paced and competitive, which gave Young a clear picture of what it takes to succeed at the next level.

“In the skates with Pogge, he's finding the little things that will make the game simpler and easier for you to stay ahead of it,” Young said. “I think that helps a lot because when you get called up your thinking ‘I’ve got to be so much faster’, but he really helped me settle that down and it's almost like less is more. You find your position, find your angle, and you just have patience in that and trust your reads and trust your positioning and the puck will come to you. That was a really big help there and then carrying that into the rest of the year.”

Young was with Abbotsford through most of their playoff run as an extra goaltender and was able to soak up the experience. The 20-year-old netminder is getting a firsthand look at what it takes to win through the playoffs, and Young says seeing how well Artūrs Šilovs is doing between the pipes is inspiring and drives him to work harder on his game.

“It was awesome to see that playoff atmosphere and see the whole City of Abbotsford grow around the guys. To be able to go to the building, experience that – and obviously you wish you were on the ice – but just to be a part of that group on that special run that they're having right now, it was really cool to see. To be around that winning culture was pretty special,” Young said.

Young has got to know his Abby teammates better as they’ve gone deep in the playoffs and has become closer to Jiří Patera, the two of them love to talk about the game and share ideas.

“Jiří and I talked a lot. We were on the ice together all the time and were shooting ideas back and forth and I was learning a lot from him. We learned a lot about each other during that time and got to be a good friends,” Young said.

“It's a great group to be around. It doesn't matter if you're not playing, if you're in the lineup, everybody's talking to each other and wants the best for everybody.”

As Young prepares for his fourth Canucks’ development camp, he still approaches it like it’s his first. He wants to be a sponge, spend time with the coaches, and learn as much as he can to help set him up for next season.

“Goalies go early, so we get one-on-one time with the coaches,” Young said. “We’ve got Marko [Torenius] there, so I want to take advantage of it – talking to him and getting all his feedback is great.”

The prospects have an open line of communication to the coaching and development staff year-round, and Young will reach out with questions, and development camp is a great touchpoint for them to connect.

He always learns a lot and says the players enjoy their time together, with activities to break the ice and get to know one another. Young has had some great examples from dev camp of bringing some of the newer players into the fold and making them feel welcome, something he tries to do for others.

“My first dev camp, I had some of the guys like [Tristen] Nielsen, and Chad Nychuk and a couple of guys that were been there for a couple of years, they were talking about the WHL and they invited me to supper and I think that goes a long way.”

Young's goal is to continue building on the foundation he laid in year one -- physically, mentally, and technically – and looking forward to the work ahead.