Lindsey Post waited five months to get into a game. She was the first third goalie to appear in a game this season, and it's a moment she won't soon forget.
Lindsey Post waited five months to get into a game. She was the first third goalie to appear in a game this season, and it's a moment she won't soon forget.
Lindsey Post waited patiently. After an abnormally long offseason, Post started for PWHL New York in a preseason game back in early December making 37 saves in an overtime win. Following that game, Post trained, and practiced for five months, waiting for her moment to be called upon again.
She watched 22 games and two periods, and finally, that moment came this week as Post was inserted into the third period of PWHL New York's game against PWHL Toronto. It was the first time Post had dressed for a game, and she thought there was little chance she'd find herself between the pipes. But in hockey, anything can happen.
"It was really exciting for me, it wasn't really what I was expecting dressing for the first time, I did not expect to see the ice," said Post. "It was an exciting for me. When I told my parents and my new fiancee that I was dressing, I knew everyone would be watching, so it was an exciting moment for me to get in there."
Post stepped in after five months away from game action, and stopped all five shots she faced. Her first came from the league's leading goal scorer Natalie Spooner. Post wasn't phased. She'd faced Spooner and other stars years prior in the CWHL playing for the Calgary Inferno. Despite being in a new situation, Post relied on those past experience
"I was just relying on my past experiences, I'm not a young goalie anymore, I have a lot of experience so I was relying on the work I put in before," said Post about stepping after five months without a game. "This season I've been working hard with our goalie coach and I feel I've improved a lot this year, compared to any other year with the help he's been able to give me, so I felt pretty comfortable with my experience, and drawing from those in that moment."
The six-foot University of Alberta alumni spent two seasons in the CWHL with the Calgary Inferno before heading to Europe where she's played for SDE the last four seasons, including posting a 1.83 GAA and .938 save percentage in 2022-2023. She was the SDHL Goaltender of the Year in 2019-2020, and backstopped Alberta to a U Sports national championships being named the playoff MVP in 2016-2017. It's an impressive resume for a third netminder in the league.
But with the depth of goaltenders across the PWHL, and women's hockey in general, Post bided her time, stayed positive with her team, and eventually, the opportunity she'd been waiting for came.
"I came into the league knowing there would be very talented goalies in this league. I just love playing hockey, so I just wanted to be playing at the best level I could, and I knew coming from Sweden this was the next step in my career, getting into this league was the goal in the first place. I was just trying to get my foot in the door, so I'm just thrilled to be part of this team this season."
Stepping on the ice was a culmination of the work Post put in. It was also a notable moment as she became the first 'third' goalie to appear in a game this season in the PWHL. Post wanted to play in the best league in the world when she came to the league from Sweden, and the wait was worth it.
"I just wanted to experience this league, I knew it would be something that women's hockey has not experienced before," she said. "Playing in the CWHL and then going to Sweden, there's been nothing even remotely close to what the PWHL has done this year. I signed on and knew my role would be the third goalie, but I put in a ton of hours and a ton of work, and was just lucky enough to get in there."