Bruins’ goalie prospect Kyle Keyser ready for next rung up the ladder

When Daniel Vladar was traded to the Calgary Flames for a third-round pick on July 28 — part of a dizzying league-wide goalie carousel that affected the Bruins as much as any team — there were plenty of people expressing sadness.

Teammates and reporters alike had come to enjoy the infectious enthusiasm and generally likable personality of the Czech netminder, who was made expendable by the acquisition of free agent Linus Ullmark, the emergence of prospect Jeremy Swayman and the fact that Vladar could have been lost for nothing on waivers if the club tried to send him to Providence.

But while people were sad to see Vladar go, there was at least one beneficiary of the goalie space created within the organization – Kyle Keyser.

The Coral Springs, Fla., native had opened eyes as a free agent invitee who participated in the Bruins’ rookie camp tournament in Buffalo in fall 2017 as an Oshawa General, earning himself a pro contract.

After a strong junior career in Oshawa, Keyser turned pro two years ago, but a concussion limited him to just seven games between Providence and the B’s former ECHL affiliate Atlanta.

Last year Keyser again showed himself to be an interesting prospect, posting a .917 save percentage and 2.46 GAA in 22 games in Jacksonville (ECHL) and a .913 save percentage and 2.56 GAA in Providence.

Now, with Vladar in Calgary and Swayman expected to be in Boston at least until the midway point of the season when/if Tuukka Rask returns to the fold, Keyser should be a regular in Providence.

He can’t wait.

“I definitely feel like I’m ready for the next step,” said Keyser this week at Bruins’ Development Camp. “It’s been a good two years for my development. I feel like my game is right where it needs to be heading into next season for that opportunity to be in Providence to show that I’m ready for a full-time season there. I think last year I made good steps in coming up to Providence and playing well. We had a good team as well and that helped me out, too. But I feel like I’m ready for that next jump and to keep on pushing my development to the next level.”

Despite his somewhat lost year in 2019-20, the 22-year-old feels the past two years have helped him become a professional goalie, learning to rely less on his athleticism and more on his positioning and technique as the level of skaters have improved since the junior level.

“In hockey, as a young kid or even as an older veteran, you’re always looking for ways to get better. Personally for me, it was just learning to play at a pro level. Everything happens a lot faster and guys are so much better than in juniors and you have to tailor your game to fit that kind of speed,” said Keyser. “For me, it was to just keep things more controlled on east-west plays, reading the play better, not getting out of position. Because if you do get out of position, things just happen way too fast at this level and they’ll burn you. So I think it was just an adjustment period over the last two years to learn what worked and what didn’t, and I think last year was when I really found what was working for me at that level and that’s why I started to have more success at the higher level, just because I was starting to figure it out myself. It’s just an everyday process of learning and trying to get better, like we all talk about. And it’s always tinkering with different things in your game. That was one of the things I tried to focus on the last two years with (goalie coaches Bob Essensa and Mike Dunham), keeping everything under control and really just playing within my game and not getting too far out there.”

With Swayman and Vladar taking up starts in Providence until injury and illness hit in Boston last season, Keyser enjoyed the happy coincidence of being able to play much of last season in his home state, where his father could drive up from his home in Naples to watch him play.

But the season was all about development and playing opportunity, and that’s what Jacksonville provided for him in a season that saw many league’s seasons truncated because of Covid.

“Last year was a good opportunity to get down to Jacksonville and play some games,” said Keyser. “Last year we had a shortened schedule in Providence and I think it was crucial for me to get back down there, get some games in and get my confidence to where it needs to be. When I did get called up to Providence, I felt ready for that opportunity to come in and play the way I know I can play… I felt more confident with each day I went out for practice with (Dunham) and kept making those strides upward. That’s what I want to do. I just wanted to keep getting better every day, whether I was in Florida or I was in Providence. My mindset doesn’t change, and that’s to stop the puck.”

And this year, he should get the chance to stop the puck closer to where he wants to be eventually.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/37lAf6k