Wolf showing poise, 'calm presence' helping Flames contend for playoffs

CALGARY -- Dustin Wolf doesn't mind the pressure of trying to help the Calgary Flames make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2022.

The 23-year-old rookie goalie is used to it.

"I mean, that's what I've done my whole life," Wolf told NHL.com. "I've become accustomed to playing a lot of games in a season, so getting the opportunity to play so many thus far, hopefully many more ... it's the expectations I put on myself that's more critiquing than anything else.

"I'll be the first one to tell you if I liked my game or didn't like my game, or if there were parts of it that were good and parts that weren't. If you can limit the pressure you put on yourself and just play, you're setting yourself up to have some success. At the end of the day, I'm trying to come to the rink and stop as many pucks as I can and try to help us get into the playoffs."

Wolf is stopping pucks with frequency. He's 22-12-4 in 38 games (all starts) and leads first-year goalies (minimum 15 games) in goals-against average (2.52) and save percentage (.915). His .844 high danger save percentage ranked in the 91st percentile, well above the NHL average of .807, according to NHL EDGE.

"It's his poise," Flames center Nazem Kadri said. "He's just a calm presence back there and he seems to not let much bother him. He's got that type of personality that he just kind of lets the water fall off his back, which can be a blessing and a curse, I guess. For him, he's got that quiet confidence, that quiet swagger about himself. And more importantly, he holds himself to a super high expectation.

"A lot of times, even though he plays well, he wants to be better. And all great players have those qualities."

Wolf (6-foot, 166 pounds) is playing his first full season in the League after making 15 starts last season. He won consecutive Del Wilson Trophies, awarded to the best goalie in the Western Hockey League with Everett (2020 and 2021) and two straight Baz Bastien Memorial Awards given to the American Hockey League goalie of the year (2022 and 2023). He was selected in the seventh round (No. 214) of the 2019 NHL Draft.

"I think I knew before he played in the NHL that he was an NHLer," said Flames forward Connor Zary, Wolf's teammate with Stockton and Calgary in the AHL. "It was pretty obvious. I think it's something you've always known, or at least I've always known personally, that he was going to be a good NHL goalie. You can just tell the way he approaches the game and the thing he does and the way he plays from practice on. I think those things just make him elite.

"Whether he's 5-foot-5 or 6-foot-4, it makes him a good goalie. It's pretty special what he's been doing."

The Flames (30-23-10) hold the second wild card into the playoffs from the Western Conference heading into a pivotal game against the Vancouver Canucks at Scotiabank Saddledome on Wednesday (9 p.m. ET; SN). Vancouver and the St. Louis Blues each trail Calgary by one point, with St. Louis having played two more games. The Utah Hockey Club is three points back.

They're in the hunt despite a significant roster retool the past 14 months that included trading Jacob Markstrom to the New Jersey Devils on June 19. Wolf has emerged as Calgary's No. 1 and a contender for the Calder Trophy given to the NHL rookie of the year.

"Everyone dogged us and didn't expect us to be here," Wolf said. "We're battling to keep our foot in the door and try to create some separation, especially this week... it's a big opportunity for us. Every game is huge right now."