Boston Bruins Daniel 'Darth' Vladar Signed to Fortify Goalie Depth

‘Darth' may be joining the empire in Boston next season as the Bruins signed draft pick Daniel Vladar to an entry level deal to bulk up their goalie depth after he completed an excellent year in the USHL.

The Bruins announced April 26 that they had signed Vladar to a three-year entry level contract starting next season. The move provides some security for a team still in search of a legitimate backup to starting goaltender Tuukka Rask, as well as prospect depth in Providence with Malcolm Subban recovering from a serious throat injury and Zane McIntyre coming off a year in which he struggled in his first pro season.

Boston’s backup to Rask this past season, Jonas Gustavsson, 31, finished with a respectable 11-9-1 record, 2.72 goals against average, .908 save percentage and a shutout over 24 games, but the Bruins would feel a little more comfortable if all of those numbers were just a little better. Journeyman Jeremy Smith, 27, filled in admirably in Providence for Subban coming over from a stint in Iowa to post an outstanding 2.02 GAA and .934 SV% over 20 games with the Baby B’s, but he’s never played in an NHL game. Smith and Gustavsson are unrestricted free agents and unlikely to be resigned with Vladar, McIntyre and Subban ready to compete next fall for Boston’s backup role and spots in Providence. The B’s still may try to sign a veteran goalie in free agency while their young goalies continue to develop.

Backup goalie, in addition to defense and a heavier right wing, was identified as one of three key offseason needs by Bruins President Cam Neely last week. “We have to take a look at the backup goaltending situation with Subban’s injury this year. It kind of threw a wrinkle in maybe that development there,” he said on the Bruins website.

The towering 6’6” Vladar, 18, 185 lbs, is an interesting prospect who was Boston’s 3^rd round 75^th pick in the 2015 draft. He finished 5^th in the USHL for the Chicago Steel in both goals against average (2.31) and save percentage (.920) in 30 games, while adding three shutouts and being awarded Goalie of the Week twice. He also was a member of the Czech Republic National Team at the World Junior Championships in Finland in December and January.

"[Vladar] has a strong and powerful leg drive, quickness and athleticism. He's got that presence of being a future quality NHL goaltender." - NHL Central Scouting's Al Jensen

In 2014-15, Vladar was dominant for both the Czech Under-20 HC Kladno team with a 2.78 GAA, 9.26 SV% and a shutout in 29 games and HC Kladno’s men’s team in the Czech Extraliga second league where he recorded a shutout, 1.97 GAA and a stingy .933 save percentage in eight games. He was then selected by the Steel as the 7^th overall pick in the 2015 USHL draft.

Before the Bruins picked him last June, NHL.com rated Vladar as the second best goalie going into the draft and he was also ranked second among European goalies by NHL Central Scouting.

He takes up a lot of net and uses his instincts as an advantage, NHL.com reported. “He has a strong and powerful leg drive, quickness and athleticism,” Al Jensen, NHL Central Scouting's top goalie evaluator told NHL.com last June. “He's just got that presence of being a future quality NHL goaltender.”

Vladar, for his part, brings a goalie’s sense of humor to the position. “My father wanted me to be a forward when I was 5-years old but a year later my coach said I was the worst forward on the team so I tried for goalie,” he told NHL.com. “It's more expensive to play goalie, but we had no choice. I'm glad it worked out.”

Hockey’s Future gives Vladar a B in probability of NHL success. “Vladar is a long-term project,” they report. “He does however have a lot going for himself. For his size, he’s very quick and very good at covering the bottom of the net. He does need to work on his positioning but that will hopefully come with maturity. Vladar’s size and raw ability suggest he can be an NHL goaltender one day.”

Vladar has already been through one Bruins camp and will have three fellow Czechs in David Pastrnak, David Krejci and Jakub Zboril to help him feel further at home in Boston.

Meanwhile Subban, 22, 6’2”, 201 lbs, the Bruins 1st round 2012 pick, was having a decent season for Providence with a 2.46 GAA and .911 SV% in 27 games (albeit down from .921 the previous year) before he suffered a fractured larynx getting hit with a puck Feb. 6. He underwent successful surgery a couple days later. According to NESN, the Bruins reported there was no definitive timetable for his return and he was expected to be out at least eight weeks. But he started practicing on the ice again during the Baby B's late April playoff run, and they were bounced from the postseason before he had a chance to return to action.

McIntyre, 23, 6’2”, 205 lbs, a former star at the University of Dakota and NCAA goalie of the year, was drafted by Boston in the 6^th round of 2010. He struggled in Providence this year over 31 games with a 2.68 GAA and .898 save percentage, but showed glimpses of success and should improve given that it was just his first pro year.

The exciting element is that the Bruins now have three young, upcoming goalies in their system that will all have a chance to show their stuff next year.

“If [last year] has proven anything when it comes to goalies it's that having the ability to stick with it and work hard can lead to good things,” Jansen added. “There were so many goalies out there [in the NHL] who didn't make it at first. But when given an opportunity proved they could thrive. Goalie is also a position where when you get on a roll, your confidence rolls and the puck begins to look like a beach ball. There isn't a whole lot of difference between stopping pucks in the American Hockey League and the National Hockey League.”