It’s a new month in the 2024-25 NHL season, and as always, the league stays busy and ever-changing. Something is always happening around the hockey world, whether it is trades, waiver claims, or reassignments. Regarding the Carolina Hurricanes, they signed some goaltender depth with Frederik Andersen still out due to surgery. However, there was some good news as Pyotr Kochetkov was announced earlier in the day to be active on the roster. Nonetheless, depth was needed for the net and the Hurricanes did that in the way of veteran netminder Dustin “Tick” Tokarski.
A Journey Begins in Saskatchewan
Well, all have to come from somewhere and Tokarski calls Watson, Saskatchewan home. A Proud “Sasky boy” as the people from the province call their hockey players, he got his start in junior hockey with the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League (WHL) or “The Dub”. However, we have to go a little bit further back to how he managed to join the Chiefs in 2006-07 before the “All He Does is Win” began.
Originally, Tokarksi was cut from his AAA team in Sasaktcwhen when he was a kid. That did not stop his hockey journey as his mom called any number she could find to get him onto a team. After some time she found a team for him to play on, and enter the Prince Albert Mintos. In his first season with the Mintos, he posted a .909 save percentage (SV%) and a 3.20 goals-against average (GAA). His record that season was 7-13-0. That was back in 2004-05. The following season, he ended up leading them to a championship in his second season. Not just any championship, the Telus Cup, Canada’s midget hockey championship. That season he posted a 19-7-3 record in the regular season with a 1.98 GAA, .935 SV%, and three shutouts. In the playoffs, he went on to add a 9-1-0 record with a 1.55 GAA, and another two shutouts.
Not bad for your first two years in midget hockey going from a sub-.500 record to a five-shutout season and a championship. Fast forward to 2006-07 and Tokarski had to once again prove why he should be in the net, this time for the WHL’s Chiefs.
Welcome to the Dub
Tokarski began his junior hockey career on the protected list by the Chiefs in December 2006. He walked into training camp as the third or fourth goaltender and eventually won the starting job where he saw 30 starts in the 2006-07 season. He went on to post a 13-11-2 record with a .903 SV% and a 2.80 GAA. In the playoffs that season he was 2-4-0, with a .901 SV%, and a 2.80 GAA in six games. It is also worth noting that he beat out the incumbent starter for the job and made the team ahead of current NHL goalie Darcy Kuemper. Overall, not a bad first season as a walk-on goaltender who worked his way to being the main guy in the WHL. Remember how in his second season with the Mintos he won a title? Well, he once again did that, this time with the Chiefs.
Related: Dustin Tokarski: All He Does is Win
In 45 games with the Chiefs in his second season in the WHL, Tokarski went on to have a 30-10-3 record with a 2.05 GAA and a .922 SV%. Oh, he also had six shutouts for added measure. Just like his midget days, he managed to come back in his second season with a team and go lights out in the net for them. That is not all. If the regular season numbers were something to behold, how about the playoffs? He went on to post a staggering .944 SV% on the way to a 16-5-0 playoff record with a GAA of 1.38 in 21 games. Tokarski led the Chiefs to their 2008 Memorial Cup victory with unreal numbers with a SV% that goalies would sell their gear for.
He finished his final season in the WHL with a 34-18-2 record in 54 games. He accumulated a 1.97 GAA, .937 SV%, and seven shutouts. Tokarski was selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning 122nd overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.
The Rigors of Professional Hockey
Over the next few seasons starting in 2009-10, he won two Calder Trophies in the American Hockey League (AHL). The first one came in 2011-12 with the Norfolk Admirals, when they were still in the AHL before moving to the ECHL. He had a 32-11-0 record with a 2.33 GAA and a .913 SV% in 45 games. The second title came during the 2018-19 season with the Charlotte Checkers, then the Hurricanes affiliate (small world, huh?), where he only played seven games for the team and posted a 7-0-0 record with a 1.14 GAA and a .956 SV%. He let in a total of eight goals and had one shutout in those seven games. All he truly does is win.
He would go on to bounce around from the Lightning, Montreal Canadiens, Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, and the Pittsburgh Penguins. His latest start in the NHL came late in 2022-23 where he played four games with the Penguins. Over a nine-year career in the NHL, he has a 23-34-12 record with a .902 SV% and a 3.15 GAA. All of that spanning over 67 games played. For a guy who is 6-foot tall with his resume, you think he would have more chances. However, life in hockey can be unpredictable but in the end finds a way to give you something back for your hard work.
Related: Dustin Tokarski Reveals “The Tick” Inspired Mask
The Hurricanes so far in the 2024-25 season are once again dealing with goaltending issues with Andersen out for weeks and at the time did not have Kochetkov due to a concussion. Tokarski was brought onto the Chicago Wolves as goaltending relief with both Spencer Martin and Yaniv Perets with the big club in Raleigh. Given another chance to prove himself, Tokarski took the opportunity and made it count for the guy they call “Tick”.
The Eye of the Storm
Once in the net with the Wolves, Tokarski went on a run of all runs within the first five games of joining the team. He went on to post back-to-back shutouts on his way to a 4-1-0 record with a 1.61 GAA and a .933 SV%. If that does not mark a guy who has everything to fight for, not sure what else will. The start he had with the Wolves gave the Hurricanes enough to see to sign the Saskatchewan native to a one-year, two-way deal that expires at the end of the 2024-25 season. The deal comes out to where Tokarski would get $775,000 at the NHL level or $100,000 in the AHL. He also got a guarantee of at least $150,000 for the season.
Hurricanes general manager Eric Tulsky stated, “Dustin has played very well for the Wolves this season. Given the injury to Frederik Andersen, we felt it was important to add to our depth at the goaltending position and this gives us another option with significant NHL experience.”
While it might be nothing more than a depth signing, there could be a chance of Tokarski playing with the Hurricanes if they feel like they want to add some more NHL experience like his to back up Kochetkov in the net. This gives the Hurricanes flexibility to have someone in the net either in Chicago or Carolina who can help lead the way in whatever facet they need him to be. However it works out, to be able to sign a guy like him for the rest of the season with the chance of seeing some time with the Hurricanes, it’ll go a long way in the end. The hope for people who’ve seen him play is that he gets a chance behind a defense like Carolina’s who is usually top-five every season. He has won everywhere he has been from midget to junior and the AHL, maybe some magic from the wheat from Saskatchewan can be sprinkled on the team from Tobacco Road.
The Journey Continues On
The journey to where Tokarski is now is a fascinating one and hopefully, one that does not end anytime soon. If he manages to only play with the Wolves, he is the best person to lead a team full of younger players as someone who’s won two titles in his career. Although, if he gets a chance to play with the Hurricanes, he has shown a track record of being someone they can rely on in crunch-time situations. He has significant NHL experience and the way to win wherever he goes. Either way, Tokarski is a great addition to the organization and is someone to keep an eye on as the rest of the season goes on in Chicago and Carolina.
