Hunter Shepard

July 2024 – Shepard again lead the Hershey Bears to the Calder Cup, but this time he was not the main story of the playoffs. That is not to say he played poorly but more than he was not the main reason the Bears won night in and night out like the 2023 playoffs. However, he was also much better in the AHL regular season. At 28 his NHL chances may be incredibly slim but a team could come calling on the Capitals, if they do want to give him a chance at a backup role. The issue becomes that he really did not seem confident in the NHL in his first and last game, but sandwiched in between were two really good starts that had moments of luck as well (you have to be good to be lucky as they say). He will be one of three Capitals goalies that will be UFA at the end of this season so he may have a legit chance after that, but with his age that chance will be very slim. Pat Quinn

January 2024 – Shepard has looked really up and down in his short NHL tenure. Through four games he has both looked extremely confident but has also looked like he stands at 5-1 in net. While he is great in the AHL he may be a little too nervous in the NHL. If he hopes to stick in the NHL, he really is going to need to fix this issue as there were times where he even looked scared that a shot was coming at him. Pat Quinn

August 2023 – Shepard should be the first call up for Washington when either Kuemper or Lindgren get injured in 2023-24. He really should have tested the market with a team that had a much bigger weakness in net, and less contracts in the way. Watch for Shepard to be a sneaky add in daily hockey pools, especially if he can get a small run in Washington. Pat Quinn

May 2023 – Shepard lead the Bears to the Calder Cup and was outstanding in the playoffs posting a 0.914 save percentage in 20 games. He also won the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the Calder Cup Playoffs MVP. On July 1, he signed a two-year, two-way contract and will look to lead the Bears back to another Calder Cup. Pat Quinn

January 2023 – Shepard is playing the 1B role in Hershey to Zach Fucale’s 1A. In 15 games he has one regulation loss, 11 wins and a 0.919 save percentage. At 27, and the Capitals goalie roster set until the 2025 off-season, it would be smart for Shepard to look elsewhere for a chance to be an NHL starter. The last time Shepard has a regulation save percentage under 0.900 for a season was in 2014-15. If given a chance he could get a back up, or perhaps it is crazy enough to think he could have a Tim Thomas type career as an older goalie finally given a shot. Pat Quinn

September 2022 – Shepard was the Stingrays’ starter for the 2021-22 season posting a 0.917 save percentage over 23 games. He was required to play in the AHL for eight games (technically nine but I am not going to count 17 minutes in relief with zero shots against) spread out between November to March. With those eight games he had a sv% lower than 0.900 three times and a sv% over 0.950 five times, with one shut out. He will fight for starts in the AHL with Fucale for 2022-23 but do not expect him to be the first call up unless he is lighting up the AHL. Pat Quinn

January 2022 – Shepard is biding his time bouncing between the Bears in the AHL and the Stingrays in the ECHL. He has performed quite well in both leagues with a 0.903 sv% in nine ECHL games and a 0.923 sv% in four AHL games. The problem for Shepard is that the Capitals have a lot of goalies and Shepard is fifth on the list thanks to contracts. Shepard will be a full time AHL goalie next season and hopefully he can get a call up soon after as he is 26 and time is running out for him to show what he can do at the highest level. Pat Quinn

May 2021 – Shepard was only able to play in three AHL games due to the backlog of netminders for the Capitals, but at least he was the starter in the ECHL for the South Carolina Stingrays. In his three AHL games he posted a 0.969 save percentage, and in 14 ECHL games he posted a 0.915 sv%. There is something there as the 6-1 goalie is quite athletic and reads the play well. He may be in line to battle in the AHL for the starters crease in Hershey. Pat Quinn

June 2020 – Shepard signed a one-year AHL contract with the Hershey Bears for the 2020-2021 season. He comes to the bears as the leader for the University of Minnesota-Duluth (UMD) in wins (76), goals against average (1.94), save percentage (.922) and shutouts (17). He also lead UMD to back-to-back NCAA titles and has started 115 straight NCAA games. Additionally, Shepard was a two time NCHC goalie of the year, a three time All-NCHC player, and was a two-time All-American. The contract is interesting as it may be a guaranteed AHL role out of college with a promise that the Capitals will sign him when they are able to. That could be after the season resumes or when the off season begins. Pat Quinn