A pair of goaltenders with ties to the Detroit Red Wings have helped the Toledo Walleye reach the ECHL Final.
Carter Gylander and Jan Bednar have split duties during a playoff run that’s led the Walleye to the Kelly Cup championship series against Trois Rivieres, which starts Saturday at Toledo.
Gylander, in his first season of his two-year entry-level contract with the Red Wings, is 6-1 with a 2.59 goals-against average and .902 save percentage in the playoffs. Bednar, who signed a one-year deal with the Grand Rapids Griffins last summer, is 6-2 with a 2.52 GAA and .908 save percentage in the postseason.
Gylander (6-5, 195) was the Red Wings’ final pick in the 2019 draft (191st in the seventh round). After four years at Colgate, he went 20-9-5 (2.61, .907) during his first pro season in Toledo and also appeared in three games with the Griffins.
The Red Wings selected Bednar in the fourth round in 2020 (107th overall). This was his third year with the Walleye (23-8-6, 2.34, .914).
Toledo, under Pat Mikesch’s second season as coach, has reached the Kelly Cup Final for the first time since 2022, when it lost to the Florida Everblades, who also won the title in 2023 and 2024.