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| (Credit: Texas Stars) |
With Remi Poirier up in Dallas for his first NHL callup, it was up to the rookie Tiefensee to maintain the net for a tough short rest back-to-back on home ice. Traditionally, teams would use this opportunity to work both goaltenders, as the Milwaukee Admirals did this weekend.
Texas chose to go against conventional wisdom.
Instead, the Stars gave Tiefensee the keys to the net both nights. The gamble paid off for first-time head coach Toby Petersen as Texas swept the Admirals for the second consecutive home stand this season.
“It’s great to see him react the way he did,” Petersen said on Tiefensee's performance. “[It’s] not easy to play back-to-back night like this… a lot of rubber thrown his way, and he did a great job responding. That’ all we can ask out of him.”
The German netminder was able to rise to the occasion despite the daunting circumstances on the other end of the ice. The Admirals boasted the league’s best power unit, hovering around 30% heading into the weekend.
Milwaukee had eight power play opportunities this weekend, cashing in only on two. Tiefensee and the Stars' penalty kill, one of the worst units this season, matched up well with the challenge.
“It's good for me to get the reps — to get the games,” Tiefensee added. “You just gotta think about the next shot, you can't think about what happened too much, because if you do that, the next shots [is] going in for sure.”
Tiefensee ended the weekend with a .946 save percentage, allowing four goals and stopping 2-of-3 in the decisive shootout round in Saturday's thriller. Combining his record during his stint with Idaho earlier this season, he’s gotten off to a hot start in his North American debut, compiling a record of 11-3-2.
Despite his young age, the 23-year-old goaltender is not a traditional “rookie” in the North American hockey sense and does not lack high-level hockey experience. Since the age of 20, Tiefensee has been playing in the top German hockey league, the DEL, before making the jump to North America this season.
“It's a lot tighter here because of the smaller ice. So everything comes a bit faster,” Tiefensee said about the differences between North American and German hockey. “Everybody has more [of a] shooting mentality, instead of a play-making mentality. So that's a big difference, but otherwise it's still hockey.”
The decision to put Tiefensee in net for both games was also very telling for the future of Kraws in the organization, Texas ' backup at the beginning of the season.
Kraws struggled in his four starts this season with Texas, his last appearance with the team coming in November during the franchise tying recond 10-1 loss to the AHL’s best, the Grand Rapids Griffins.
But if anything, Tiefensee has earned the right to get consistent starts at this level and establish himself in a role as a capable starter on a nightly basis.
Certainly, there is no cause for concern regarding the goaltending situation within the Dallas Stars organization. Someway, somehow, Stars General Manager Jim Nill continues to find rare international gems.
Note: Die Ziegelwand is "the brick wall" in Arno's native German.
Texas chose to go against conventional wisdom.
Instead, the Stars gave Tiefensee the keys to the net both nights. The gamble paid off for first-time head coach Toby Petersen as Texas swept the Admirals for the second consecutive home stand this season.
“It’s great to see him react the way he did,” Petersen said on Tiefensee's performance. “[It’s] not easy to play back-to-back night like this… a lot of rubber thrown his way, and he did a great job responding. That’ all we can ask out of him.”
The German netminder was able to rise to the occasion despite the daunting circumstances on the other end of the ice. The Admirals boasted the league’s best power unit, hovering around 30% heading into the weekend.
Milwaukee had eight power play opportunities this weekend, cashing in only on two. Tiefensee and the Stars' penalty kill, one of the worst units this season, matched up well with the challenge.
“It's good for me to get the reps — to get the games,” Tiefensee added. “You just gotta think about the next shot, you can't think about what happened too much, because if you do that, the next shots [is] going in for sure.”
Tiefensee ended the weekend with a .946 save percentage, allowing four goals and stopping 2-of-3 in the decisive shootout round in Saturday's thriller. Combining his record during his stint with Idaho earlier this season, he’s gotten off to a hot start in his North American debut, compiling a record of 11-3-2.
Despite his young age, the 23-year-old goaltender is not a traditional “rookie” in the North American hockey sense and does not lack high-level hockey experience. Since the age of 20, Tiefensee has been playing in the top German hockey league, the DEL, before making the jump to North America this season.
“It's a lot tighter here because of the smaller ice. So everything comes a bit faster,” Tiefensee said about the differences between North American and German hockey. “Everybody has more [of a] shooting mentality, instead of a play-making mentality. So that's a big difference, but otherwise it's still hockey.”
The decision to put Tiefensee in net for both games was also very telling for the future of Kraws in the organization, Texas ' backup at the beginning of the season.
Kraws struggled in his four starts this season with Texas, his last appearance with the team coming in November during the franchise tying recond 10-1 loss to the AHL’s best, the Grand Rapids Griffins.
But if anything, Tiefensee has earned the right to get consistent starts at this level and establish himself in a role as a capable starter on a nightly basis.
Certainly, there is no cause for concern regarding the goaltending situation within the Dallas Stars organization. Someway, somehow, Stars General Manager Jim Nill continues to find rare international gems.
Note: Die Ziegelwand is "the brick wall" in Arno's native German.
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