Dustin Wolf
Dustin Wolf is an American professional ice hockey player who is a goaltender for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League. He was selected in the seventh round of the 2019 NHL entry draft, 214th overall, by the Flames.
Wolf is noted for his small stature. Weighing 175 pounds and standing six feet tall, he is considered significantly undersized for a goaltender. Despite this, Wolf has been highly successful thus far, being named goaltender of the year in his respective leagues for four consecutive seasons from 2020 through 2023. When he became a full-time member of the Flames, he was the runner-up for the Calder Memorial Trophy in 2025 as rookie of the year.
In his major junior career, Wolf played for the Everett Silvertips in the Western Hockey League, initially as the backup to Carter Hart before claiming the starting position the following season. Wolf would play for four seasons with the Silvertips, posting statistics at or near the top of the league in almost every category, and being named the league's goaltender of the year for two consecutive seasons.
As a professional player, Wolf has spent time with the Calgary Flames AHL affiliate, the Stockton Heat, and remained with the team through their relocation to become the Calgary Wranglers. As of the 2024–25 NHL season, he is playing full-time for the Flames as their starting goaltender. Wolf was named the AHL goaltender of the year in both of his full-time seasons in the league, posted league-leading statistics, and was considered one of the top NHL goaltending prospects during his time in the minors, with The Hockey Writers ranking him as the number one prospect in 2023.
Early life
Wolf was born in Gilroy, California, as the only child to parents Mike and Michelle Wolf. His father Mike worked as a software engineer and his mother Michelle worked as a veterinarian in nearby Morgan Hill, California. Wolf's parents were season-ticket holders for the San Jose Sharks, and he attended their games as an infant. He first began to skate when he was a toddler and began focusing on goaltending around age 5.In 2011, Wolf's family moved to Hermosa Beach in Southern California after being persuaded by his agent, and he began to play for the Los Angeles Junior Kings. In 2014 Wolf relocated again to nearby Tustin, California.
Wolf spent seven years with the Junior Kings, including competing in the 2014 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament, where he played against future top CHL prospects Samuel Poulin and Xavier Parent. During his WHL bantam draft year, Wolf posted a 2.99 goals against average and.905 save percentage through seven games with the Junior Kings' bantam AAA team. The following season saw significant improvement, with Wolf posting a 1.63 GAA and.941 SV% while playing for the Junior Kings U16 team.
Former coaches and Los Angeles Kings personnel spoke highly of Wolf's time with the Junior Kings, calling him one of the best goalies in his class, and speaking on his ability to elevate his team respectively.
Playing career
Junior
2017–2018: Silvertips backup
Selected 104th overall, in the fifth round of the 2016 WHL bantam draft, Wolf began his junior career with the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League during the 2017–18 season, serving as the backup goaltender behind the Philadelphia Flyers' then-prospect Carter Hart. Wolf's WHL debut came on October 27, 2017, making 38 stops and recording an assist in a 3–1 win over the Kamloops Blazers. Wolf had a successful initial season, winning 13 of his 20 games with a.928 save percentage, the highest among any rookie with at least 10 games played.On April 13, 2018, during game five against the Portland Winterhawks in the Conference Semi-finals of the 2018 WHL playoffs, Hart left the game for an undisclosed reason midway through the second period. Coming in for relief, Wolf made his postseason debut, stopping all 4 shots he faced during 9:22 of ice time before Hart's return at the start of the third period in the 4–0, series-clinching win.
2018–2019: Graduation to starter
With Hart graduating from the WHL into the Flyers' professional ranks before the 2018–19 WHL season, Wolf became the Silvertips' starter, tripling his number of games from the previous season. Wolf's numbers improved under his increased workload, posting the highest save percentage and goals against average of any goaltender in the Canadian Hockey League with at least 15 games played, with a.936 SV% and 1.69 GAA respectively, amassing a 41–15–2 record in the process. Wolf would make his first postseason start on March 22, 2019, during the 2019 WHL playoffs in the Silvertips first round matchup against the Tri-City Americans, stopping 21 of 22 shots and recording his first playoff win. On March 28, 2019, Wolf would record his first WHL playoff shutout, saving all 24 shots faced in game 4 of their first round matchup. Wolf would start every game for the Silvertips in the 2019 playoffs, earning a 5–4–1 record, a 2.02 GAA, and a.914 SV%, with the Silvertips losing their second round matchup against the Spokane Chiefs.After being named the WHL Western Conference Goaltender of the Year, Wolf would narrowly lose both the Del Wilson Trophy for the top goaltender in the WHL, and the CHL Goaltender of the Year award to Ian Scott of the Prince Albert Raiders. Wolf lead Scott in every category except one: shutouts, with Wolf's seven falling one short of Scott.
After the season, Wolf was awarded the Daryl K. Seaman Trophy as the WHL's scholastic player of the year, as well as being named the CHL Scholastic Player of the Year, for his on-ice performance in combination with maintaining a 100% average in his grade 12 classes. Wolf would also be named to the first All-Star team for the WHL's Western Conference.
2019–2021: NHL draft and pandemic seasons
Ranked 12th by the league's Central Scouting Bureau among North American goaltenders eligible for the 2019 NHL entry draft, Wolf became the 22nd and final goaltender taken when the Calgary Flames selected him in the seventh round, 214th overall. Before the draft, most analysts expected Wolf to be drafted in the middle of the draft, potentially even as high as the second round. Wolf's slide to the final round of the draft was seen as due to his significantly smaller than average stature for modern NHL goaltenders.Following the draft, Wolf returned to the Everett Silvertips for the 2019–20 season. Wolf posted stellar numbers for Everett in the pandemic-shortened season, winning 34 out of his 46 games and leading the league in every significant goaltending statistic. After recording nine wins and only a single loss during February, Wolf would be named the WHL's goaltender of the month. Wolf's nine shutouts during the season led by a wide margin, with second place only recording five. At the conclusion of the season, which was shortened and had its playoffs cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wolf was awarded both the Del Wilson Trophy as the WHL's top goaltender, and CHL Goaltender of the Year award, becoming the second Silvertips goaltender in three years to earn the award. Additionally, Wolf was once again named to the First All-Star Team for the WHL's Western Conference, and on June 3, 2020, he was named as the recipient of the Dave Peterson Award as the top junior level goaltender in the United States.
The Flames signed Wolf to a three-year entry-level contract on May 1, 2020. On August 31, 2020, 5% of Flames fans surveyed by the Calgary Herald believed Wolf should be the team's starting goaltender for the upcoming season, and on October 15, 2020, The Athletic named Wolf the fifth-best goaltending prospect affiliated with an NHL team.
After a brief stint with the Calgary Flames top affiliate, the Stockton Heat of the American Hockey League during a pause in junior hockey due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wolf returned to the Silvertips to open their 2020–21 season when the WHL's U.S. Division resumed play in March. Wolf once again had a remarkable season for Everett, winning a league-high 18 games and posting a WHL career high.940 SV% during the significantly shortened season. Wolf registered another four shutouts during the season, including three in a row, bringing his WHL career total to 24, the second-highest total of all time behind Carter Hart and Tyson Sexsmith, who are tied at 26. Both Hart and Sexsmith played in significantly more games than Wolf over their WHL careers, with 41 and 30 more games respectively. During Wolf's three-game shutout streak, he set a Silvertips team record, not allowing a goal for 216:27.
After the season, Wolf was awarded the Del Wilson trophy for a second consecutive year. Due to the pandemic-modified schedule, First and Second All-Star Teams were not named for each conference, instead, each division named their own All-Star Team. On May 31, 2021, Wolf, along with three other members of the Silvertips were named to the All-Star Team for the U.S. Division, marking the third year in a row that Wolf was named to one of the league's All-Star Teams.
Professional
2021–2022: Stockton Heat
Wolf began the 2020–21 season with the Stockton Heat, making his professional debut on February 21, 2021, allowing 5 goals on 11 shots before being replaced by Garret Sparks in the eventual 7–1 loss to the Toronto Marlies. Three days later on February 24, 2021, Wolf earned his first professional win, making 36 saves in a 4–2 victory against Toronto. Wolf's time in the AHL that season was cut short when his junior team, the Everett Silvertips resumed play in March.For the 2021–22 season, Wolf would transition to playing professionally full-time, claiming the starting goaltender spot on the Stockton Heat. Wolf would receive attention for his strong start to the season, not recording a regulation loss until his 18th game of the season. During December, Wolf recorded 7 wins and zero losses, leading to him being named the AHL's goaltender of the month. Wolf had a standout rookie season with the team, leading the league with 33 wins, posting an eighth-best GAA of 2.35, and the fourth-best save percentage with.924.
After the Heat earned a first-round bye based on their regular season performance, Wolf made his professional playoff debut on May 10, 2022, during the Heat's second-round matchup against the Bakersfield Condors in the 2022 Calder Cup playoffs, making 27 saves in the 3–1 win. During their third-round matchup against the Colorado Eagles, Wolf became the third goaltender in AHL history to record three shutouts in a single playoff series. Through his first seven postseason starts, Wolf recorded a brilliant 1.82 GAA and.941 save percentage, and only a single loss. Wolf and the Heat were eliminated in six games during the semi-finals against the Chicago Wolves, the only team with a better regular season record than the Heat.
Following Wolf's dominant freshman season, he was named to both the AHL's All-Rookie team, and the AHL's First All-Star team. On May 5, 2022, Wolf was named as the winner of the Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award as the league's most outstanding goaltender.