But that calm, cool and collected goalie fans saw
in the playoffs – Holtby’s first child, son Benjamin, was even born
during the New York series – was a personality forged through years of
work because Holtby was often far from it in junior with the Saskatoon
Blades and in his first seasons as a pro. Combative on the ice and born
with a perfectionist streak, Holtby once injured a teammate, and one of
the Blades’ best offensive players, with a slash to the wrist after
getting scored on during practice. “Him and I talked a lot about it,”
says John Stevenson, Saskatoon’s goalie coach during Holtby’s final two
seasons there. “What got him to that top level in junior was the very
thing that wasn’t going to get him to be a pro.”
