RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesAug. 27—GRAND FORKS — A top goaltending prospect has committed to UND.
Jakub Husár, a 6-foot-2, 17-year-old from Kosice, Slovakia, verbally committed to UND on Wednesday afternoon during a Zoom call with the coaching staff.
Husár made waves last season when he became the youngest goaltender to ever play in Slovakia's Extraliga, the country's top hockey league. He broke a record previously held by Samuel Hlavaj, who is now under contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Husár is eligible for the 2027 NHL Draft.
Although it's early — there's still a full season to be played ahead of the draft — he's expected to be one of the most prominent goaltending prospects in the draft.
It's not out of the question he could challenge to be one of UND's highest goaltending draft picks ever. Only three UND goaltenders have been drafted in the top 100 — Dave Murphy (No. 60 overall to Pittsburgh in 1971), Matej Tomek (No. 90 overall to Philadelphia in 2015) and Darren Jensen (No. 92 overall to Hartford in 1980).
Husár opened his draft year with an impressive performance at Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Edmonton earlier this month. He started four games and posted a .923 save percentage, while facing more shots than any goalie in the tournament.
Husár played most of last season in Slovakia's Junior Extraliga (U20), where he was the youngest goaltender to start more than one game. He posted a .927 save percentage, ranking third in the league.
He stopped 10 of 11 shots during his one appearance in the Extraliga.
Husár was on Slovakia's silver medal-winning team at the IIHF World Under-18 Championship, but did not play.
The United States Hockey League's Waterloo Black Hawks selected Husár in the Phase II Draft in May. Husár is expected to play most of the 2026-27 season in Slovakia, but is planning to come to Waterloo in February to finish the season.
Husár is currently slated to come to UND in 2028-29.
UND goalie Caleb Heil, a seventh-round pick of the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning, is expected to be a junior that season. UND's other goaltender, Jan Špunar, could be a senior, though after winning the National Collegiate Hockey Conference's Goaltender of the Year honor as a freshman, it is more likely he'll be on to professional hockey by then.
UND has a long history of successful undrafted, undersized goaltenders, but has pivoted toward the trend of bigger players in net under second-year head coach Dane Jackson.
Husár, Heil, Špunar and third-string freshman Alex Scheiwiller are all at least 6-foot-2.
If Husár is selected in the 2027 NHL Draft and becomes teammates with Heil in a couple of years as planned, it would mark the first time UND has had two NHL Draft picks in net on the same team since Jeff Lembke and Toby Kvalevog from 1993-95. The only other time it happened was when Greg Strome and Scott Brower were teammates from 1984-87.
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