SHARKSPAGE

Goaltender Tyson Sexsmith at Stockton Thunder training camp looking to re-establish #1 role

GOALTENDER #31 TYSON SEXSMITH - FILE PHOTO

Heading into the Worcester Sharks season last year, highly touted 2007 third round draft pick Tyson Sexsmith was at the top of a very young goalie depth chart on the youngest team in the AHL. After leading the Vancouver Giants to a Memorial Cup in 2007, he followed with a 43-11-8 record and a WHL-best 1.89GAA in 2008, and a 39-9-4 record in 2009 with 10 fewer starts. Expectations were high for Sexsmith, but an injury and a record setting season by fellow rookie Alex Stalock limited him to only 13 games played in Worcester (4-6-1, 3.94GAA).

On Monday the San Jose Sharks assigned Tyson Sexsmith to their ECHL co-affiliate in Stockton. “They just told me they want me to play a lot of games. Get in the net and do what you have done before to be successful,” Sexsmith said after the second day of training camp. “They have a guy in Worcester they like, and who has done well for them. He has got to earn that job, and I have got to come in and earn a job here.”

An assignment from the AHL to the ECHL could be seen as a setback for a goaltender who was at one time considered a possible first round pick for the NHL entry draft. “It’s part of the business. San Jose has eight goalies signed, and they have to have places to place them,” Sexsmith told reporters. “From my standpoint, I’d rather play games than sit on the bench all year.” When the Thunder announced co-affiliation agreements with San Jose and Edmonton in August, head coach Matt Thomas noted that each NHL organization might assign one prospect goaltender to Stockton. Vancouver native Jason Lindner and former San Jose State goaltender Matt Pamidi are free agent goalies currently on the training camp roster.

At only 21 years of age, Sexsmith can realistically expect to see the bulk of starts with Stockton this season, something that would not be the case in Worcester. He will benefit from the proximity to the San Jose Sharks coaching staff over the course of a full season. The Alberta native will also be playing in front of a fan base that won 4 straight ECHL attendance titles, a good percentage of which are already Sharks fans.

In his first pre-season start on the road against the Alaska Aces, Sexsmith stopped 31 of 32 shots against en route to a 3-1 win on Tuesday. Jason Lindner stepped in and stopped 35 of 36 shots to help the Thunder to a 2-1 win on Wednesday night. Stockton opens the regular season at home October 15th against the third year southern California franchise the Ontario Reign.