(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
“It’s nice for me to take a quick drive to watch the Kings games and whenever [goaltending coach] Bill Ranford is in town, he gets a night where he can pop in, see me play and give me tips,” said Zatkoff. “It’s definitely a benefit being this close for me.”
Speaking of being close to “home,” the Kings brought Rowat to Southern California when they assigned him, along with defenseman prospect Colten Teubert, to the Reign on March 20.
Rowat and Teubert played for the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League this season, but the team failed to qualify for the WHL playoffs.
“It was an up-and-down season for our team,” said Rowat. “We got in a rut and never recovered. It was a big disappointment for everyone. We had a really talented roster but we just couldn’t seem to get a win. We made too many mistakes and ended our season early.”
The 6-2, 181-pound native of Cochrane, Alberta appeared in 48 games (2,735 minutes played) for the Pats this season, earning a 19-24-1 record, a 3.07 GAA, a .901 save percentage and two shutouts.
Even though the Pats’ season was over, the Kings were not about to allow Rowat and Teubert to hang up their skates yet. Rather, they decided to keep them playing with the Reign, where they will gain experience in post-season play.
But Rowat’s debut with the Reign on March 21 against the Phoenix Roadrunners at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario did not go as planned.
Indeed, the Reign played well early, but sagged in the second and third periods. The Roadrunners won the game, 4-2.
Rowat allowed four goals on 27 shots, although he had no chance on the Roadrunners’ final goal, which was scored off a shorthanded, two-on-one break.
“I thought [Rowat] played really well early on,” Reign head coach Karl Taylor said about his 20-year-old netminder. “I thought the second and third ones he’d like to have back, but he’s a young kid trying to learn.”
“Coming in, I thought he did a really good job, giving us a chance in the second when they pushed hard,” added Taylor. “It’s disappointing those squeaked by him because I thought he played better than to deserve that fate at the end.”
Rowat was unfazed by a less-than-stellar professional debut.
“I thought it was a pretty good game,” he said. “Unfortunately, they came back in the third and capitalized on some scoring chances. But the guys played really well in the first period, only giving them five shots.”
“They controlled most of the play in the second period,” he added. “The Roadrunners turned it up and put some heat on us. We took some unnecessary penalties but overall, I thought it was a pretty good game.”
Moving up from junior hockey, Rowat immediately noticed the difference at the ECHL level.
“The biggest thing is the speed of the shots and the speed of the passes,” he explained. “They make a lot quicker plays, they’ve got quicker releases. You just have to get your timing down. I was on the ice this week and a little bit this morning trying to get a feel for the puck.”
A big part of Rowat's development will be for him to learn to be more consistent and not go down to his knees too soon.
“[The Kings are looking for] more consistency and with that, I have to be more patient on my feet, more reactive to pucks,” he explained. “That’s what I’m working on really hard here—standing on my feet more and then making the save from there instead of going down early and making the save from my knees.”
Looking ahead to next season, Rowat knows that he is near the bottom of the depth chart, but is looking forward to playing a full season in professional hockey.
“I’m probably one of the last of the goalies [the Kings have] got,” said Rowat. “Zatkoff has had a great year here. They’ve got Bernier and two guys in the NHL. I just have to come in here, play well in the games they give me and if I can earn a roster spot and play here next year, I’ll be really happy with that.”
For more from Gann Matsuda, check out Frozen Royalty.
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