It was perhaps only fitting over the weekend that Cariboo Cougars goaltender Griffen Outhouse recorded a 4-0 shutout with 32 saves against the South Island Royals in a B.C. Major Midget Hockey League game at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.
As the Victoria Royals’ potential goaltender of the future, Outhouse could be spending a lot of time in those two crease areas on Blanshard during his upcoming Western Hockey League career.
“I was pretty excited to be there and get the shutout in the barn where I could possibly be playing,” said the 16-year-old Outhouse, who is signed to the Royals’ 50-player protected list.
The Royals brass should like what they’re seeing of the six-foot goaltender from the tiny community of Likely in northern B.C. Outhouse won raves for his performance in backstopping Cariboo to its first-ever Mac’s Triple-A Midget Hockey Tournament title this month at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, making 40 saves in the 2-1 double overtime victory over the Regina Pat Canadians to be named top goaltender of the annual tournament.
“I’m not a big goalie but I try to make myself big in the net by challenging the shooter,” said Outhouse, who became a crease man when he was given a motorcycle helmet and baseball glove and tossed into the net during family ball hockey games in the basement.
The Royals’ two current goalkeepers — Coleman Vollrath and Justin Paulic — are WHL veterans at 19 years old. That means the Royals need to start planning long term and begin grooming someone in the crease.
“I can’t worry about that. I’ve just got to come to camp next fall and show what I’ve got,” said Outhouse.
Cariboo (league leader at 25-4-1) has the two best goaltenders in the B.C. Major Midget League, with 15-year-old Dorrin Luding shutting out South Island (13-14-2) by a 3-0 count on Sunday.
It’s Outhouse. who is 12-3 with a 1.74 goals-against average this season, who is the senior statesman of the pair.
“Griffen simply just stops the puck,” said Cariboo co-head coach Bryan Maclean.
“You want goaltenders who are competitive on every shot and Griffen competes on every single shot. The Royals certainly have a gem.”
