The world knew who Jack Ivankovic was before the No. 3 Michigan hockey team’s bout with No. 2 Western Michigan.
It would’ve been hard not to take notice of the freshman goaltender and the laundry list of accolades he collected at the U17 and U18 levels for Team Canada — or his selection by the Nashville Predators in the second round of the 2025 NHL Draft.
However, Thursday night’s clash with the Broncos, the first true test of his collegiate career, was a different story. Western Michigan are the reigning national champions, and with Yost Ice Arena nearly spilling over with excitement over a top-3 clash, the lights were brighter than ever.
But Ivankovic didn’t let the bright lights blind him — he just blinked, and stayed cool under pressure as he made a career-high 32 saves to shut out the Broncos and secure a statement win for the Wolverines.
“Kovy’s great,” senior forward TJ Hughes said. “He had an unbelievable game. Backbone to our team. Gives us confidence to play in front of him.”
It wasn’t that Ivankovic hadn’t been impressive to start the season. Quite the opposite, in fact — the Wolverines were off to their best defensive start to a season since the 1926-27 season, allowing just seven goals through their first six games. Ivankovic, with his .942 save percentage, was a big part of that. It was more so that he just hadn’t been asked to do much, only saving 20 or more shots twice through those first six contests.
But on Thursday night, for the first time all season, Michigan was outshot by an opponent, as Western Michigan racked up 32 attempts on goal to the Wolverines’ 30. And thanks to Ivankovic, all 32 of those attempts met with the same answer: a resounding “no”.
Ivankovic’s save percentage was a perfect 1.000. Every save he was asked to make, he made. He used his body and pads to block pucks, caught them with one hand and kicked them out of the way when he needed to. It was everything Michigan could’ve asked out of a goalie — and the fact that it came in just his seventh ever career start, against the defending national champions, made it all the more sweet.
“I think it’s just seeing the puck and stopping it,” Ivankovic said. “I don’t really think too much. Just try to get in front.”
Ivankovic’s steady hand opened the Wolverines’ entire gameplan up. By slamming the door on every shot that came his way, he allowed Michigan to do something that it hadn’t done much of all season: sit back and absorb the pressure. The Wolverines have generally employed an up-tempo plan of action, utilizing a heavy press in the offensive zone.
But with Ivankovic putting in his best work of the season, Michigan knew it wasn’t going to be conceding many goals. All the offense had to do was wait for an opening and take what the Broncos’ defense gave them, no matter how many times Western Michigan crowded the zone and took shots.
“He’s just so calm and confident,” Wolverines coach Brandon Naurato said. “… He’s controlled, and didn’t give up any rebounds.”
And as the clock ran out and Michigan swarmed the ice to celebrate its statement victory, the first thing the Wolverines did was line up to hug Ivankovic, one by one — a fitting reward for his role in a night to remember.
