Medicine Hat Tigers goaltender Garin Bjorklund steps onto the ice at the Canalta Centre prior to his team's Western Hockey League home opener against the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019. Bjorklund enters the NHL Entry Draft ranked fifth among North American goalies and first among WHL netminders. -- NEWS PHOTO RYAN MCCRACKEN
rmccracken@medicinehatnews.com@MHNMcCracken
The long wait is finally at an end for Medicine Hat Tigers goaltender Garin Bjorklund.
After posting a 20-5-1-0 record as a rookie in the Tabby crease this year, Bjorklund entered the early off-season as the top ranked Western Hockey League goalie available at the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. But like everything in 2020, the draft had to wait.
“It’s been a long wait once the season ended. Now I’m just excited for Wednesday,” said Bjorklund, ranked fifth among North American goaltenders entering today’s draft. “Hopefully good things happen and it’s a good day for me and my family.”
The 18-year-old Grande Prairie product says he’ll be huddled around the television with his family when rounds 2-7 open on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. If all goes according to plan, he’ll have quite the celebration in store when his extended family gets together for Thanksgiving weekend.
“If my name is called on Wednesday then we’ll all celebrate with my big family – my cousins and grandparents and stuff – during Thanksgiving,” he said.
Bjorklund’s rookie campaign was cut short due to COVID-19, but he still managed nearly half of Medicine Hat’s 41 wins in a tandem with Ottawa Senators draft pick Mads Søgaard.
Having been there before, Bjorklund says Søgaard provided him with answers to all his draft-related questions over the course of the season, as well as a role model for his transition to the WHL.
“With all the questions I asked him and stuff throughout the year – because he’s been through it – he’s been nothing but a helping hand to me,” said Bjorklund. “Just learning from him and having someone to compete with all year definitely helped me get to where I am today.”
Bjorklund’s transition into the Dub was as seamless as anyone could have hoped. After going 2-0-0-0 as an affiliate in 2018-19, the 6-foot-2, 173-pound netminder immediately put himself onto NHL radars by collecting wins in each of his first nine starts in 2019-20.
“Having that little win streak to start the year definitely helped me last season,” said Bjorklund, who finished the campaign with an .897 save percentage and a 2.91 goals against average.
“Getting a few wins under your belt, it definitely helps with your confidence. You can go out there and just play your game and not have to worry too much. That’s how I like to play. I like to just focus on myself and play the game I like to play, not get too ahead of myself.”
In the seven months since the WHL was forced to cancel the 2019-20 season in its entirety, Bjorklund says he’s been trying to get on the ice as often as possible while training alongside his brother Paycen, a 19-year-old Tri-City Americans forward.
Bjorklund says he’s been using the time to improve his mental approach to the game, as well as his abilities with the puck on his stick.
“It’s a little bit of everything. Being a goalie, I think there’s always bits and pieces to work on in all sorts of areas. But for me, as an athletic goalie I wanted to focus on playing with a little bit more poise and being more calm and collected in the net, then use my athleticism when I need to,” he said. “That as well as just playing the puck. That’s something I’ve always liked doing and liked working on. Those are the two biggest things I’ve been focusing on this summer as well as gaining a little weight and muscle mass.”
Bjorklund has been splitting time between Grande Prairie, with his family, and Calgary, where he trains with Crash Conditioning. He still gets out on the ice a few times a week up north, but with the potential of the upcoming season opening in early December, Bjorklund says he’ll be heading to Calgary on Monday for a month of preparation – and with any luck he’ll get in his first NHL development camp shortly thereafter.
“Right now, it’s just trying to work out and be on the ice as much as possible, because that’s what we would be doing right now,” he said. “When the day comes and we’re back in the Hat I’ll be sharp and ready to go.”
