Road trip preview Minnesota Wild prospect Jesper Wallstedt — who is heralded by many as the NHL's top goalie prospect — was named the American Hockey League's player of the week for Oct. 30 to Nov. 5. The highly-touted youngster made 57 saves on 60 shots this past week for a .950 save percentage. Wallstedt, 20, made 30 saves in the Iowa Wild's 3-1 win over the Milwaukee Admirals Thursday and then 27 saves in their 4-2 win over the Texas Stars Sunday. Wallstedt didn't allow an even-strength goal in either game. The Admirals scored shorthanded, and the Stars scored twice on the power play. The 6-foot-3 Swede has a 4-2 record with a .919 save percentage, 2.35 goals against average and one shutout across six starts so far this season. Here is a look at some of his biggest stops so far: Iowa is 4-5-1 through the first 10 games this season and sits third in the Central Division with nine points. Wallstedt finished with a .908 save percentage and 2.68 goals against average across 38 games last year during his rookie season. He finished with a 18-15-5 record and one shutout. And not only did he reach the highlight reels after scoring a goalie goal in November last season, but he also represented Iowa on the Central Division roster at the AHL All-Star Classic. Most notably, he made the 2022-23 AHL Top Prospects Team. “I feel like I’m getting more used to everything, getting into it better and trusting the process, it takes some time to get used to everything,” Wallstedt told me in March in an exclusive interview [https://zonecoverage.com/2023/wild/jesper-wallstedts-improved-conditioning-helping-him-grow-his-game/]. The Wild drafted Wallstedt in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft at 20th overall. He signed his three-year entry-level contract on May 16, 2022, and there is a strong possibility that he will play in Minnesota next season. REQUIRED READING
