Andrew Albano has first collegiate start against NTDP

Facing his first shot in between the pipes in a Michigan sweater, graduate goaltender Andrew Albano looked collected, as if he’s faced shots like these a thousand times before. Although he may have played in net in practice, he hadn’t yet in a game. 

After five minutes of the 10th-ranked Wolverines maintaining possession in the offensive zone, it was Albano’s turn in the spotlight. And as the U.S. National Team Development Program sent a wrister from the point, Albano centered between the pipes and made his first pad save of the night. 

In the Michigan hockey team’s exhibition overtime victory over the NTDP, Albano earned his first Division I collegiate start. After being on the Wolverines’ roster for the past year, typically benched as the third-string goalie, Albano has waited his turn to play in the crease. 

But when he got his chance, not only was it a surreal experience for him, but for coaches and teammates alike, who have been waiting for the day Albano could strap on the pads and play in a real game. 

“He’s just an unbelievable teammate,” Michigan coach Brandon Naurato said. “He does everything the right way, on and off the ice, he works his butt off every day, he’s a Michigan man in everything he’s about. … I’m just glad that he’s so well respected in our team on and off the ice for what he’s about as a person.”

In the first period, the NTDP couldn’t put many shots on Albano, as the Wolverines defensemen were playing up in the neutral zone, not allowing the NTDP to have any dangerous chances on goal. Although he faced his first shot about five minutes in to the first period, he did so with ease, setting the tone for the remainder of the first period. 

In the final minutes of the first, Albano was hit with NTDP’s first major opportunity in the game, pelted by pucks and saving every one. NTDP took a shot from the slot that Albano saved with his pads, but the puck flew up out of his control, with two forwards at the net front hoping to net the puck. But with Albano dialed in on each of them, he denied both of their chances, providing Michigan the momentum to score a goal of its own off the rush. 

“Staying focused can always be tough,” Albano said. “But one technique I use is even when the puck is in the other end and I’m just watching the game, I just try to read the plays we’re making and they’re making, that helps me stay ready when it’s back in our zone.” 

Holding NTDP scoreless in the first period, Albano skated into the second confident he could do the same. Faced with over double the shots he had in the first, NTDP was waiting for Albano to crack under the pressure. Halfway through the second period on an NTDP power play, forward Will Moore sent a long-range shot top-shelf, past every Wolverine and over Albano’s head, in the net before he could even realize. 

What he didn’t realize, though, was that the floodgates were about to open for NTDP. 

The third period welcomed three goals for NTDP — one that ricocheted off the puck into the net, one on a one-on-one with NTDP forward Richard Gallant and the last off of a lethal slapshot from the right faceoff dot from defenseman Drew Schock IV. 

While these goals could have deterred Albano and gotten into his head, affecting both his confidence and gameplay between the pipes, they didn’t. He was just so happy to be playing at Yost Ice Arenawith a team that has backed him up for the past year, yearning for him to get the chance to play. 

“That was an experience I’ll never forget,” Albano said. “There’s so much love on this team for each other and so much support. This is something that two years ago, I probably never would have imagined happening, and they recognized it and celebrated it. And I think that’s just what family does, celebrates each other’s accomplishments.”

Facing 29 shots across the game, Albano was introduced to hockey at Michigan in a high-intensity matchup with NTDP. While it was an exhibition and NTDP isn’t a collegiate team, the environment of Yost, with the fans cheering loudly for him as his name was announced in the starting lineup, was all Albano needed to be satisfied. 

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