Tristan Jarry THW Close-Up
Date of Birth: April 29, 1995
Place of Birth: Vancouver, BC
Ht: 6’2” Wt: 180 lbs
Catches: Left
Position: Goaltender
NHL Draft Eligibility: 2013
In the game of hockey, goaltending is perhaps the most important yet oddly the position scouts and hockey people have the hardest time projecting. To be blunt, very weird things can happen to derail seemingly “can’t-miss” netminders, and to the same extent, sometimes top-flight goalies emerge from seemingly nowhere.
In a world where goaltenders are, at best, a shaky and unclear investment, here lies Tristan Jarry – ranked third among North American goaltenders by NHL Central Scouting.
A product of the Edmonton Oil Kings, where he has been the understudy to Calgary Flames prospect Laurent Brossoit for the past two seasons, Jarry has emerged as arguably the best draft-eligible goaltender of this class. Last season the Oil Kings didn’t throw Jarry to the wolves, leaning on Brossoit heavily and giving Jarry scattered starts. He rarely played more than twice in a month and rarely played the WHL’s big guns. He also received the benefit of soaking in a WHL championship playoff run and a trip to the Memorial Cup without having to deal with the pressure of playing everyday.
This season? A combination of Brossoit struggling early in the season and Jarry impressing in early starts meant that Jarry was relied upon more often to help his team win games. Last season, Jarry posted an 8-2-1 record, with a respectable 2.93 goals against average and an .894 save percentage. This season, without the strategic advantages of getting spot starts, Jarry has excelled. At time of this writing, he is 15-5-0, with a sparkling 1.56 goals against average and a .938 save percentage. While it’s unlikely that Jarry will be given a lot of starts, if any, in the playoffs, it’s abundantly clear that the Oil Kings have every confidence that he could handle the number-one job if it fell upon him.
With Brossoit turning 20 next year – and likely turning pro in the Flames organization – means that Jarry is likely going to take the reins next season. The Oil Kings have a great deal of players that will likely also depart next season, so we will soon get a preview of how much Tristan Jarry can carry a team. But for now, he’s “merely” a strong goaltender with a lot of potential.
Scout’s Honour:
“Jarry played in 14 games last season as he served as backup to Laurent Brossoit. Will likely to continue to do so this season. A hybrid athletic/positional type goaltender that scouts are looking for. Still very raw but emerging as a solid backstop.” – Dan Lizee, The Scouting Report
Statistics:
Bio/Interview(s)/Link(s):
International Tournaments:
Jarry represented Canada at the 2013 Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament, winning a gold medal but only playing in one game. He also played for Team Pacific at the 2012 World Under-17 Challenge, where he back-stopped his team to a fifth-place finish.
ETA:
3-4 years
Risk-Reward Analysis:
Risk = 3/5 Reward = 4/5
NHL Potential:
Starting NHL goaltender
Strengths:
*See “THW Close-Up” section above.
- Good recovery
- Mentally strong, doesn’t let bad goals snowball
- Excellent lateral movement
Flaws/Aspects He Needs To Work On:
- It’s unclear if he can withstand the grind of being an everyday starter over the long-term
- Needs to continue to work on his endurance and flexibility
Fantasy Hockey Potential:
Goaltender = 8.0/10
NHL Player(s) Comparison:
Potentially a consistent, but not world-class, goaltender along the lines of Mike Smith or Dan Ellis. His ceiling is potentially Carey Price.
When He’ll Go In June:
Most likely, Jarry will be chosen sometime in the second or third round.
Ryan Pike has covered the Calgary Flames and the NHL Draft extensively since 2010 as a Senior Writer for The Hockey Writers and Senior Contributing Editor of FlamesNation.ca. A member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association, he lives in Calgary.
