Gardner named finalist for WHL Rookie of the Year
Saskatoon, SK – Saskatoon Blades goalie Evan Gardner has been named a finalist for the 2023-24 WHL Rookie of the Year. The WHL announced the finalists Wednesday morning.
Evan Gardner of the @BladesHockey has been named the East Division nominee for the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy, presented each season to the WHL Rookie of the Year. #WHLAwards | #NHLDraft
— The WHL (@TheWHL) April 3, 2024
The nomination completes a stellar first year for the NHL draft-eligible netminder. Gardner received WHL Rookie of the Week twice throughout the season, WHL Goalie of the Week once, and was named WHL Goalie of the Month for March. In five starts last month, Gardner went 5-0 with a .938 save percentage, 1.59 goals-against average, and 27-save shutout in the final regular season game of the season vs the Prince Albert Raiders.
Gardner stopped 31-of-32 shots in his WHL playoff debut in Game 2 vs the Raiders, and is 2-0 this postseason.
The Fort St. John, BC product was a huge reason for one of the most successful seasons in franchise history. Gardner went 21-5-0-2, becoming one of only two rookies to surpass the 20-win mark. Gardner’s topped the league with a .927 save percentage, 1.91 goals-against average, and was tied for second in the WHL with four shutouts. Saskatoon finished with a 50-13-2-3 record and clinched their fifth Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy in franchise history.
Gardner’s ranked 16th amongst North American goaltenders by NHL Central Scouting ahead of June’s NHL Entry Draft.
Round 1 presented by Save-on-Foods between the Blades and Raiders continues tonight with Game 4 at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert. Puck drop is 7:00pm.
