Darcy Kuemper became a goaltender in a not unusual fashion.



The local youth hockey program in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, had a routine of allowing players in the youngest age groups to take a turn in goal if they wanted. The goaltending equipment was owned by the hockey association and there would be one set of gear for each team to rotate amongst the youngsters on a weekly basis.



Kuemper, like lots of his young pals at the time, wanted a shot at putting on those clunky brown pads and wearing those cool gloves – not because he foresaw his own future; he just didn’t want to come off the ice during the game.



“That’s kind of what drew me to the position,” Kuemper said. “You just always felt like you were involved in the play.



“From that point on I just kind of stuck with it.”



A few years later, when he was around 12 years old, Kuemper was gifted his first set of goalie pads by his...