The American Hockey League has announced that Dustin Wolf of the Stockton Heat is the winner of the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award as the AHL’s most outstanding goaltender for the 2021-22 season.

The award was voted on by coaches, players and members of the media in each of the league’s 31 cities.

Named to the AHL All-Rookie team and the AHL First All-Star team last week, Wolf finished his first pro season with a record of 33-9-4 and ranked among the league’s leaders in wins (first), minutes played (2,809, second), saves (1,341, second), save percentage (.924, fourth) and goals-against average (2.35, eighth).

The Los Angeles Jr. Kings graduate did not suffer a regulation loss until Jan. 4 (going 15-0-2 in his first 17 decisions) and allowed two goals or fewer in 32 of his 47 appearances overall. He helped the Heat to their first Pacific Division title and the second-best record in the entire AHL. Stockton also finished third in the league allowing 2.72 goals per game (despite being 14th in shots allowed at 30.1 per game) and had the highest penalty-killing efficiency in the AHL at 86.6 percent.

A 21-year-old native of nearby Gilroy, Wolf was a seventh-round choice (214th overall) by the Calgary Flames in the 2019 NHL Draft. He played junior hockey with Everett in the Western Hockey League and was the WHL’s Goaltender of the Year in both 2019-20 and 2020-21.

The Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award, which was first presented in 1984, honors former Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Baz Bastien, who played four seasons in goal with the AHL’s Pittsburgh Hornets (1945-49) before suffering a career-ending eye injury. Bastien would go on to serve as head coach and general manager of the Hornets, leading them to the 1967 Calder Cup championship.

Photo/Phillip Brents

(May 6, 2022)