On October 12, 2014, Joseph Raaymakers made his first start in the Ontario Hockey League.
He was facing the London Knights.
They had Max Domi, Mitch Marner, Chris Dvorak and Victor Mete in the lineup that day and they fired 31 shots at Raaymakers in the Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds’ net.
Raaymakers stopped every single one of them for his first OHL victory and his first OHL shutout and was named the game’s first star. With how far Domi, Marner, Dvorak and Mete have gone in the hockey world, that debut just keeps getting more impressive.
The red-haired goalie from Chatham went on to even more success against London, posting a lifetime 6-1 record against the Knights.
And now, Raaymakers will get a chance to impress the team that has had so much trouble beating him.
On Tuesday afternoon, Raayamakers was acquired by the Knights from the Greyhounds for two second-round picks and a conditional fourth-round pick that will kick in should Raaymakers make an appearance as an overage player for London.
Right now, that could be a distinct possibility. Despite consistent numbers for three seasons in the NHL and multiple invites to the Hockey Canada Program of Excellence Goaltending Camp, Raaymakers remains undrafted by an NHL team. He attended training camp with the New York Rangers in 2016 and then with the Tampa Bay Lightning just a few weeks ago.
Raaymakers wound up in a battle for the number one job in Sault Ste. Marie last season with Matthew Villalta. Both seemed to wrestle control of it throughout the year, with Raaymakers securing it in the playoffs through ten games in which he posted a 1.95 goals against average and a .942 save percentage. With Villalta being 18 and now a draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings, it appeared that they would be sharing the crease again heading into 2017-18.
Since Raaymakers is seeking a professional contract, he asked the Greyhounds to look into other options.
His agent, Andrew Maloney told the Sault Star, “I can acknowledge that we have asked for a trade… He wants to play a lot of games. He loves it in the Sault, but the situation speaks for itself.”
The Knights have been alternating starts between Johnson and 17-year-old Jordan Kooy, following the graduation of Tyler Parsons. Now, London will be able to allow Kooy to develop and learn from a goalie who has 94 regular season appearances in the OHL.
Raaymakers is usually one of the fittest players on his team, having scored very high in fitness testing during the NHL Scouting Combine during his draft year.
It is very possible that he will make his London debut in Kitchener on Friday, October 20 against the Rangers. The Knights do not play at home until October 27 against Flint.
The Rangers and Firebirds made a trade on Tuesday that involved a former London Knight.
Flint sent Columbus Blue Jackets’ draft pick, Kole Sherwood to Kitchener in exchange for two second-round picks, a third-round pick and a fifth-round pick. Sherwood is the first Columbus native to sign with the Blue Jackets.
He was part of the Knights’ 2016 Memorial Cup Championship team.
Comments