Rogers Legends of Hockey: Common ground for Battle of Alberta goalies
When the puck drops on the 2025-26 campaign, Wolf will be trying to improve on a rookie stat-line that included a 29-16-8 record, 2.64 GAA and .910 save percentage. The 24-year-old is determined to lead the Flames to a post-season berth and also wants to make his case to represent Team USA at the upcoming Winter Olympics.
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'What's happened in the past is in the past. You can't get complacent,' Wolf stressed prior to Saturday's tee-off at Canyon Meadows. 'We were actually just talking about this, me and a coach, this week — how do you avoid the so-called slump? You've played in every building, or you've been to every building now. You have a feel of, 'OK, I've played well in this building, haven't played well in this one.' You don't want to get complacent in buildings that you are so-called comfortable in. You have to go into each and every one thinking that it's a new day and in the mindset of you've never played here before and you're trying to prove to everyone in the building that, 'I'm going to come in and beat you.'
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'I think that's probably the mindset right now — you can't get complacent on where you're at,' he continued. 'As a group, we're a team that has to play to our structure each and every game to have a chance. Hopefully, the goals start to come a little more frequently than they did last year. But if we're keeping goals out of our net, I think we're going to have a good opportunity to win most nights.'
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When it comes to keeping goals out of the net, Skinner thinks the Flames are in good hands.
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The 26-year-old has plenty of respect for his provincial puck-stopping rival and fellow Rogers Legends of Hockey participant.
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'Watching him play, it's something else,' Skinner said of Wolf. 'I'd say he's one of the better skaters in the league (among goalies). He has fantastic vision. I mean, to be at the level that he is and also being able to do it in a Canadian market as well, the way he's done it, is impressive to say the least.
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'He's been doing it for years, too. He was goalie-of-the-year in the American League. He's done a lot of damage throughout his career. And that just shows you again, it doesn't really matter what happens, he's always ready the next year. So a lot of admiration there.'
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