Hellebuyck, Oettinger, Swayman have 'complete camaraderie' in battle for Olympics

Welcome to Goalie Week. NHL Social is celebrating goaltending with NHL Goalie Week from Sept. 2-7, reveling in the uniqueness and artistry of puck-stoppers through the decades. Today, NHL.com takes a look at the relationship of the three top United States goalies vying for the No. 1 job for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026:

PLYMOUTH, Mich. -- Connor Hellebuyck, Jake Oettinger and Jeremy Swayman all have the same dream: to be in goal for the United States when it begins play at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 on Feb. 12.

There is only one issue.

“That’s always the hardest problem with being a goalie," Hellebuyck said. "There are multiple guys but only one net.”

All three were at the United States Men’s Olympic Hockey Orientation Camp last week, all striving to not only make the first U.S. Olympic team featuring NHL players since 2014 but also wanting to be the No. 1 for the opener against Latvia.

And though the competition for that honor will no doubt be fierce, the three goalies who represented the U.S. at the 4 Nations Face-Off last season not only have great respect for each other, they have a camaraderie as goalies chasing gold for their country.

“I don't know if you can get a better trio,” Swayman, the No. 1 goalie for the Boston Bruins, said last week. “It doesn't matter if we see each other yesterday or haven't seen each other for months. It seems like we haven't really skipped a beat.

“It's just a complete camaraderie. Obviously, playing against those guys, it’s always fun. I'm always asking them what they've been doing, how they've been critiquing their game, getting better. And we've really been able to bump ideas and obviously raise our level and play with each other, and that's something we're really excited about and understand.”

Swayman, Oettinger of the Dallas Stars and Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets got together in Michigan, along with 41 other Olympic hopefuls at the Saint John’s Hotel and Resort, including Seattle Kraken goalie Joey Daccord. In separate interviews with NHL.com, the three spoke of their tight bond as goalies, competitors and countrymen.

“When you are a high-level athlete, you want to be around the best and surround yourself with the best,” Oettinger said. “Every time I am with them, I’m learning stuff from them, stealing stuff from them and asking them questions and trying to use it to make myself better. You want to be the little fish in a big pond and not the big fish in a little pond.”

Hellebucyk was the No. 1 goalie for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off, going 2-1-0 with a 1.59 goals-against average and .932 save percentage. He allowed five goals in the four games, but the fifth goal he allowed came in overtime of the championship game to Canada’s Connor McDavid.

Oettinger played the other game, making 21 saves in a 2-1 loss to Sweden in the final preliminary game.

Hellebuyck would figure to be the favorite to be the No. 1 goalie for the United States again coming off a season for the ages in Winnipeg. He not only won the Vezina Trophy, voted as the best goalie in the NHL, but also the Hart Trophy, voted as the League's most valuable player.

The 32-year-old went 47-12-3 with a 2.00 GAA, .925 save percentage and eight shutouts.

He became the fourth goalie in the expansion era (since 1967-68) to win the Hart Trophy, joining Dominik Hasek (1996-97 and 1997-98 with the Buffalo Sabres), Jose Theodore (2001-02 with the Montreal Canadiens) and Carey Price (2014-15 with the Canadiens).

Though Swayman didn’t play in the tournament and could be the No. 3 goalie again in Milan, he said all three of the goalies need to strive to be the starter and push the others to do the same.

“I have to compete all out in order to get the best out of them,” Swayman said. “And that's the best part, because we are on the same team. We know that one goalie plays at the end of the day, but they'd be (angry) at me if I was taking shifts off, or if I was taking a practice off, and I'd be the same with them.

“And that's the best part, is that we have an understanding that we have to compete with ourselves and also against each other in order to get the best results out of one another. And 100 percent we all want to play, we all want to be in that net come gametime in Milan, and that's exactly what we're going to do. And that mindset is going to really elevate us.

U.S. general manager Bill Guerin, who has until late December/early January to submit the U.S. roster, said nothing has been decided as far as who the goalies will be and who will be the starter.

“When we pick the team and we pick the goalies, you know, who's going to get the nod and all that stuff, that will come when we get there (Milan),” Guerin said. “We'll see who's playing at their best. We'll see who's hot. That's another tough decision. You don’t need to ‘We got to keep him happy.’ No, we’re trying to win and everybody has to buy into that.”

Hellebuyck, Oettinger and Swayman certainly have, pushing the others to be great while sharing tips and information along the way.

“We need to be able to bounce ideas off each other," Hellebuyck said. "And no one really understands goaltending, unless you're a goaltender or in that world, so having a good relationship with each other is kind of crucial to the success of the team.

“And I mean, they're great guys, and I get along with them great. And any time I can bounce things off their head, or vice versa, we do. And you know, that's it just makes the goalie union so fun to be part of.”

Said Swayman: “I'm always asking them what they've been doing, how they've been critiquing their game, getting better. And we've really been able to bump ideas and obviously raise our level and play, you know, with each other, and that's something that we're really excited about and understand.”

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Though all three appear to be on the road to Milan as the top three goalies for the U.S., they took different trajectories to get to this point.

Hellebuyck could be one of the biggest underdog stories in NHL history. The Commerce Township, Michigan, native was not on NHL Central Scouting's list of the top 36 North American goalies eligible for the 2012 NHL Draft. After 129 other players -- including 12 other goalies -- heard their names called, Hellebuyck was selected by the Jets in the fifth round.

He played for two seasons at UMass-Lowell in Hockey East and then made 26 starts as a rookie for the Jets in 2015-16. It’s been his net ever since, going 322-185-44 with a 2.56 GAA, .918 save percentage and 45 shutouts. He has won the Vezina Trophy three times and already is ranked fifth in all-time wins for U.S.-born goalies, 82 behind leader Jonathan Quick, now of the New York Rangers. He played two games for the U.S. at the 2017 World Championships.

Oettinger was much more heralded coming into the NHL. He was selected by Dallas with the No. 26 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, following his freshman season at Boston University. He played two more seasons at BU before signing with the Stars on March 25, 2019. From Lakeville, Minnesota, he played two seasons with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program before going to BU. He was a member of the U.S. team that won gold at the 2017 World Junior Championships and the 2021 U.S. team that took bronze at the World Championships.

In five seasons with Dallas, the 26-year-old is 149-66-27 with a 2.52 GAA, a .912 save percentage and 12 shutouts, and has helped the Stars reach the Western Conference Final in each of the past three seasons.

Swayman took perhaps the longest road -- literally -- to the NHL. Born in Anchorage, Alaska, he eventually ended up at the University of Maine, being selected by the Bruins in the same draft as Oettinger, 85 picks behind him, in the fourth round at No. 111. He has played in two World Championships for the United States, including last season, when he went 7-0 with a 1.69 GAA, .921 save percentage and two shutouts. One of those shutouts came when he made 25 saves in a 1-0 overtime victory against Switzerland in the gold medal game.

“We really have had different paths to get here," Swayman said, "but we've also crossed a lot of paths playing Hockey East, and all these great, great things that you know we all have in common.

"You know, knowing that we represent USA Hockey goaltending the right way is something that we're really prideful about.”

* * * * *

With the start of the NHL season still more than a month away, their focus at the orientation camp last week was on the U.S. Olympic team. But all three do have day jobs, and when NHL training camps open later this month, leading their respective teams to the Stanley Cup becomes the top priority.

Communication between the three becomes more difficult once the NHL season begins. A text here, a text there, but not much other than keeping an eye on each other from afar.

That being said, Hellebuyck and the Jets host Oettinger and the Stars in each team’s season opener on Oct. 9, a game many U.S. Olympic fans will be watching with a keen eye. The two teams will also face off on Dec. 9 in Dallas. Hellebuyck will see Swayman and the Bruins on Dec. 11, before the rosters are named.

“During the year, everyone's doing different things,” Hellebuyck said. “You’ve got your own family, got your own people you trust. That's essentially, if you're going to let someone into your bubble, you have to know that they're, you know, full in on that, got your back no matter what.

“And when you're playing against guys like that, everyone's got their own bubble, so it's hard to get into different bubbles. But you know, it's just whenever I see them, it's catching up.”

And playing well once the season starts not only helps the Jets, Stars and Bruins, it’s also a boost to the U.S. team even if the Olympics are still months away.

“I know that those two are going to be raising the level every single day," Swayman said, "so it's my job to stay in my lane and raise my level, because it's only going to elevate their play as well.

“And at the same time, I respect our respective teams, but in the back of our mind, it's raising the level for USA and USA Hockey. We're all very good about raising our own level, competing with ourselves, and understanding that we're indirectly pushing each other to be better, which is making Team USA better hockey.”

And that is the common bond all three share, to make the U.S. the best hockey-playing country in the world, to bring Olympic gold back to men’s hockey for the first time since the 1980 “Miracle On Ice,” while at the same time trying to beat the other two out -- and any other U.S. goalie who may come into the picture -- for the coveted space between the pipes in Milan.

“I think all three of us are competitive, we all know we can do well in that role and it’s up to us, whoever plays the best,” Oettinger said. “I look like it as, do whatever is my power to get the net and at the end, wherever the chips lay, you accept it.

“Whether you are playing or not, you try to be the best teammate you can be and you try to help Team USA win.”