BURLINGTON, Ont.
– Goaltender Ivan Kastelan’s competitive nature is helping him thrive in the
Ontario Minor Hockey Association.
One year ago, the Burlington, Ont., native was drafted to the Ontario Hockey League’s Mississauga Steelheads after making waves with his hometown AAA U16 Eagles. That season, he had a 1.99 GAA and a shutout in 22 games played.
Up an age group now in U18, the 16-year-old finished the season with a 1.67 GAA—fifth best in the league—and a league-topping four shutouts in 18 games played.
“I like to compete in the crease, never give up on any shot,” he said, during a recent interview at the Appleby Ice Centre. “I’m always trying to get that third, fourth rebound.”
NHL stars Carey Price, Braden Holtby and Marc André-Fleury are goalies that inspired him growing up. Nowadays, he looks up to Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators.
“He is very mobile, moves well in the crease, always competes and very aggressive,” Kastelan said. “Just someone I always base my game off of.”
Kastelan’s success also comes from his calm, composed demeanour geared toward consistency in a sport he called “full of emotions.”
“From every loss I always like to learn, and from every win I always like to learn,” he said. “As a goalie, you just do it like you’ve done it before.”
Kastelan is not shy in admitting that, like many other goalies, he has a couple of superstitions.
His include eating the same meal before every game—chicken, rice and broccoli—filling up his water bottle at the same fountain at home games and doing specific ball work prep before every game in a certain order.
Mark Corbett has been Kastelan’s coach since last summer when he was recruited to the U18 team. He remembers the positive first impression and how he’s seen it continue through the year.
“Very polite kid, even when he came up last year. Sometimes new kids are nervous, but (he was) very respectful to the coaching staff,” he said. “At team events he’s always willing to help out and volunteer for things as well, so that speaks a lot to his character."
Between the pipes, his personality is far different.
“He’s got a huge compete level, very athletic, mobile, can play the puck well,” Corbett said. “I think for him, when his confidence is high, he’s playing really well.”
Kastelan now has his eyes set on earning a spot with the Steelheads next season. Last summer, he reported to camp with Mississauga where he said, “they told me I did a great job.”
If he keeps putting out strong performances this year and beyond, this young goaltender is sure to keep seeing his hard work pay dividends.
About the author: Dylan Nazareth is a student in the Sport Jounalism post-grad program at Centennial College.