Michael DiPietro has established himself as the best goaltender in the AHL, and if the Boston Bruins won’t give him an NHL shot, someone should.
“He’s the number one goalie for a reason,” Hartford Wolf Pack head coach Grant Potulny noted after a Jan. 2 game where he saved 31 of 32 shots for a Providence Bruins win. Michael DiPietro won the award for the best goaltender in the American Hockey League last season, and he’s on track to do it again.
DiPietro has a .932 save percentage (SV%) and a 1.89 goals-against average (GAA) while going 28-7 as the starter. “Some of the saves he made, I had to watch them again because I can’t believe he saved them,” Potulny added after a 39-save performance on March 4 where DiPietro stood out with his athletic play to fuel a 3-2 comeback win.
He’s developed into an elite AHL goaltender, and the question is, why is he not in the NHL? DiPietro has done it all at this level to deserve a call-up, and at some point, the 26-year-old Bruins prospect will get that shot.
Where DiPietro Must Improve
Following that Jan. 2 game, Bruins head coach Ryan Mougenel was asked what more he needs to do to make it to the NHL and stay there. “He needs to get an opportunity but the most important thing is when his number gets called, he’s ready” Mougenel mentioned in a conversation with The Hockey News.
With DiPietro, it’s not about his performances. It’s about the mindset that when he gets that chance, he takes advantage of it. “And from the moment I met Michael, his game has always been in the right place,” Mougenel added. DiPietro took time to develop, as many goaltenders do. However, he’s rounded out his game since joining the Bruins in 2023.
It’s why he’s an option for an NHL team and should get a shot soon enough. The Boston Bruins have an elite goaltender to lean on in Jeremy Swayman but their backup, Joonas Korpisalo, has struggled. DiPietro, at worst, can be a backup and an upgrade over Korpisalo.
Why NHL Teams Are Skeptical of Him
If teams wanted DiPietro, they would have claimed him off waivers in the offseason. It’s something multiple scouts have noted, even during another elite season, suggesting he’s a goaltender built for the AHL but not the NHL. The Buffalo Sabres claimed Colten Ellis from the St. Louis Blues, so teams had the chance to acquire DiPietro and didn’t.
The AHL is a chaotic league where offense is generated from bounces and dirty-area scoring chances. In the NHL, the offense comes from structure, where one-timers and set plays allow sharpshooters to make the most of open looks. At 6 feet tall, DiPietro is a small goaltender and makes up for that with more athleticism. It’s why teams that score on him do so by going high with top-shelf shots.
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms scored five goals on March 18, with most of their goals coming on rush chances or with shots aimed to beat DiPietro high. The same thing happened on March 8 against the Hershey Bears and Feb. 22 against the Wolf Pack, two teams with below-average offenses that scored four and five goals against him by aiming high.
Those issues will only be amplified in the NHL. There’s a lot of unknown in a call-up and how their skills will translate. “You don’t know until you’re in that position,” Wilkes-Barre Scranton goaltending coach Kain Tisi noted when asked about the adjustment and knowing if a goalie is ready. For DiPietro, his size and how he plays are red flags and stand out despite his lights-out play.
Ultimately, DiPietro Should Get a Chance, Whether It’s with the Bruins or Not
The Bruins are in a spot where they won’t call him up, at least not this season. The NHL team is in a fight for a playoff spot, and the AHL team is preparing for a Calder Cup run that, presumably, DiPietro will play a big role in. However, the Bruins must look at him as a backup for next season. Otherwise, his best years are going to waste in the AHL, and he’ll remain a what-if for the rest of the hockey world.
There’s a shortage of goaltending in the NHL, and teams are always looking for reliable backups. A handful of teams will make the playoffs this season without a clear-cut option to lean on. Even if DiPietro isn’t elite at the next level and teams expose his weaknesses, he can be good enough as a backup. Take the Florida Panthers, for example, a team that can use a goaltender to help out Sergei Bobrovsky. DiPietro can give them a strong start from time to time.
In the meantime, DiPietro will keep playing at a high level in Providence. He was the best goaltender in the AHL last season and looks like the best again this season. For a team to have a goaltender like him, it allows everyone else to play better and develop in the process, which is what the AHL is about.