Jakob Oettinger (/ˈɒtɪnər/ OT-in-jer;[1] born December 18, 1998), nicknamed Otter or Phenomenotter, is an American professional ice hockey goaltender for the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for Boston University during his collegiate career. After being part of the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, he was widely considered as a top prospect for the 2017 NHL entry draft.[2] The Dallas Stars selected Oettinger in the first round, 26th overall, of the 2017 NHL entry draft.[3]

Jake Oettinger
Oettinger with the Dallas Stars in March 2022
Born (1998-12-18) December 18, 1998 (age 26)
Lakeville, Minnesota, U.S.
Height 6 ft 5 in (196 cm)
Weight 220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb)
Position Goaltender
Catches Left
NHL team Dallas Stars
National team  United States
NHL draft 26th overall, 2017
Dallas Stars
Playing career 2019–present

Playing career

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After spending his freshman year at Lakeville North High School, Oettinger committed to the USA Hockey National Team Development Program (USNTDP) Juniors for the 2014–15 season.[4] Oettinger played two seasons with the USNTDP Juniors while committing to Boston University. He was drafted in the first round, 26th overall, of the 2017 NHL entry draft by the Dallas Stars.[5]

Collegiate

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During his freshman season at Boston University, Oettinger posted a 2.11 goals-against average and .927 save-percentage.[6] During that season, Oettinger was named Hockey East Goaltender of the Month for the month of October, was a two-time Hockey East Rookie of the Week, a two-time Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week and was named Hockey East Top Performer four times.[7] Thus, he was named to the Hockey East All-Rookie Team and Hockey East Second Team All-Star at the end of the year.[7][6] During his second season at Boston University, Oettinger was named to the Hockey East All-Tournament Team of the 2018 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament and earned the William Flynn Tournament Most Valuable Player award after he helped Boston win their ninth Hockey East Tournament title.[8] Prior to the 2018–19 season, Oettinger was named an alternate captain for the Terriers, along with Chad Krys.[9]

Professional

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On March 25, 2019, Oettinger signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Dallas Stars and was assigned to their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars, on an amateur tryout contract.[10] Upon joining the Texas Stars, Oettinger recorded a .897 save percentage and a 3.34 goals-against average in his first eight games.[11] On March 3, 2020, he earned his first NHL call up as Ben Bishop dealt with a lower-body injury.[12] On September 8, 2020, he made his NHL debut in relief of Anton Khudobin in the third period of the second game of the 2020 Western Conference Final against the Vegas Golden Knights.[13] With Bishop remaining unavailable during the following 2020–21 season, Oettinger became the Stars' backup goaltender to Khudobin, making his regular season debut in a January 28, 2021 victory over the Detroit Red Wings. Over the course of the season he made 24 starts and appeared in relief a further 5 times, gradually edging ahead of Khudobin as the team's starting goaltender. He finished with a .911 save percentage.[14]

Oettinger began the 2021–22 season playing in the AHL, appearing in 10 games with a 4–5–2 record. However, he was soon called up to play in the NHL again, with injury plaguing the team's other goaltenders. He became the starter on arrival, and earned a 30–15–1 record with a .914 save percentage in the regular season, credited as a key factor in the Stars qualifying for the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs.[15] The Stars earned the final wildcard berth and drew the Calgary Flames in the first round, a matchup where they were considered underdogs.[16] However, the series proved far more competitive than expected, a fact that was widely attributed to Oettinger, who was dubbed "bar none, the first star of the first round" by The Hockey News.[17] Oettinger led all goaltenders in the first round with a .954 save percentage, also the second-highest in the history of the Stars, behind only Ed Belfour in the 1998 second round.[18] The climax came in Game 7, where the Stars took the game to overtime despite the Flames making twice as many shots and attempts as the Stars, with Oettinger recording 64 saves, the second-highest in playoff history behind only Kelly Hrudey's 73 during the 1987 Easter Epic.[19][18] The Stars were eliminated when Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau finally scored in overtime to end the game 3–2, with Oettinger commenting afterward that he felt he was "just scratching the surface of where I'm going to be one day."[19]

 
Oettinger pushes Yanni Gourde of the Seattle Kraken in Round 2 Game 6 of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs.

On September 1, 2022, Oettinger signed a three-year, $12 million contract with the Stars.[20] He began the 2022–23 season impressively, with a 5–1–0 record and a .960 save percentage over those games, before exiting an October 29 game against the New York Rangers with an unspecified lower-body injury.[21] He returned to the Stars' active roster two weeks later.[22]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Bold indicates led league

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L T/OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2013–14 Lakeville North High USHS 9 7 2 1 465 17 2 1.86 .931 2 0.50 .973
2014–15 U.S. National Development Team USHL 20 5 10 0 1,058 57 1 3.23 .907
2015–16 U.S. National Development Team USHL 15 11 3 0 858 32 1 2.24 .919
2016–17 Boston University HE 35 21 11 3 2,131 75 4 2.11 .927
2017–18 Boston University HE 38 21 13 4 2,325 95 5 2.45 .915
2018–19 Boston University HE 36 16 16 4 2,110 86 4 2.45 .926
2018–19 Texas Stars AHL 6 3 2 1 364 15 0 2.47 .895
2019–20 Texas Stars AHL 38 15 16 4 2,104 90 3 2.57 .917
2019–20 Dallas Stars NHL 2 0 0 37 0 0 0.00 1.000
2020–21 Dallas Stars NHL 29 11 8 7 1,605 63 1 2.36 .911
2021–22 Dallas Stars NHL 48 30 15 1 2,708 114 1 2.53 .914 7 3 4 430 13 1 1.81 .954
2022–23 Dallas Stars NHL 62 37 11 11 3,645 144 5 2.37 .919 19 10 9 1,078 55 1 3.06 .895
2023–24 Dallas Stars NHL 54 35 14 4 3,085 140 3 2.72 .905 19 10 9 1,207 45 0 2.24 .913
NHL totals 193 113 48 23 11,041 461 10 2.51 .913 47 23 22 2,752 113 2 2.46 .915
Medal record
Representing   United States
Ice hockey
World Championships
  2021 Latvia
World Junior Championships
  2017 Canada
  2018 United States

International

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Year Team Event Result GP W L OT MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2014 United States U17   3 2 1 0 178 4 0 1.34 .934
2015 United States U18  
2016 United States U18   4 4 0 0 240 6 1 1.50 .934
2017 United States WJC  
2018 United States WJC   3 2 0 0 130 6 0 2.77 .889
2021 United States WC   3 3 0 0 175 4 0 1.37 .934
Junior totals 10 8 1 0 448 16 1 2.14 .927
Senior totals 3 3 0 0 175 4 0 1.37 .934

Awards and honors

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Award Year Ref
NHL
NHL All-Star 2024
College
All-Hockey East Rookie Team 2017 [7]
All-Hockey East Second Team All-Star 2017
Hockey East All-Tournament Team 2018 [8]
William Flynn Tournament Most Valuable Player 2018

References

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  1. ^ 2016-17 NCAA Division I Men's Hockey Pronunciation Guide (scroll to Boston University). Archived May 8, 2021, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved September 8, 2020
  2. ^ "2017 Draft: Jake Oettinger opening eyes". National Hockey League. June 21, 2017. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  3. ^ "Stars trade up to No.26 to select Jake Oettinger in first round". sportsday.com. June 24, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2017.
  4. ^ "NTDP Announces 11 Commits for 2014-15 Season". usahockeyntdp.com. April 15, 2014. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  5. ^ "Four Commits Taken on Day Two of NHL Draft". goterriers.com. June 24, 2017. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Baker, Kris (June 5, 2017). "Baker's Top 31: #27 Jake Oettinger". NHL.com. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  7. ^ a b c "JAKE OETTINGER". goterriers.com. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  8. ^ a b "BOSTON UNIVERSITY CLAIMS HOCKEY EAST CROWN WITH 2-0 WIN OVER PROVIDENCE". hockeyeastonline.com. March 17, 2018. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2018.
  9. ^ Martin, Matthew (October 11, 2018). "Men's hockey utilizes leadership throughout team, leads by example". The Daily Free Press. Retrieved October 30, 2018.
  10. ^ "Stars sign goaltender Jake Oettinger to three-year, entry-level contract". NHL.com. March 25, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  11. ^ DeFranks, Matthew (November 14, 2019). "Amid a rough start for AHL Texas, Stars prospect Jake Oettinger is adapting to life in the pros". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  12. ^ @DallasStars (March 3, 2020). "Updates per Rick Bowness: Bishop out with a lower-body injury, day-to-day (skated this morning), Stephen Johns returns to the lineup, Polak out, Dobby gets the start, Oettinger backing up on emergency basis" (Tweet) – via Twitter..
  13. ^ @DallasStars (September 9, 2020). "Jake Oettinger is in net for us to open the 3rd period, making his NHL debut" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  14. ^ Nestler, Sam (August 17, 2021). "Dallas Stars' 2020-21 Season Report Cards: Jake Oettinger". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  15. ^ Nestler, Sam (May 1, 2022). "3 Reasons the Dallas Stars Made the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  16. ^ Luszczyszyn, Dom; Goldman, Shayna (May 1, 2022). "2022 NHL playoff preview: Flames vs. Stars". The Athletic. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
  17. ^ Ellis, Steven (May 16, 2022). "Jake Oettinger's story is just beginning". The Hockey News. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  18. ^ a b DeFranks, Matthew (May 16, 2022). "Where does Jake Oettinger's epic Game 7 rank across Stars, NHL playoff history?". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  19. ^ a b Morassutti, David (May 16, 2022). "Oettinger following Game 7 loss: 'I feel like I'm just scratching the surface'". Sportsnet. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  20. ^ "Stars sign Jake Oettinger to three-year, $12M contract". Sportsnet. September 1, 2022. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  21. ^ "Stars goalie Jake Oettinger exits vs. Rangers with lower-body injury". The Athletic. October 29, 2022. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  22. ^ DeFranks, Matthew (November 10, 2022). "Stars' Jake Oettinger rejoins practice, could make possible return vs. Sharks". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
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Awards and achievements
Preceded by Dallas Stars first round draft pick
2017
Succeeded by
Preceded by Hockey East Tournament MVP
2018
Succeeded by