Unger Growing in Role as Warriors Starter
November 30, 2023 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Moose Jaw Warriors News Release
Moose Jaw, SK - Jackson Unger has been busy this season, in fact, the Moose Jaw Warriors netminder has been the busiest in the Western Hockey League.
Heading into this weekend's action, Unger has a league-high 748 saves this season, which is 117 more than any other goaltender in the WHL.
"I don't mind it," Unger said on the busy workload so far this season.
"It just keeps you dialled throughout the whole game, just just feel the puck and you feel good in there."
In his third season with the Warriors, Unger has taken the reigns this season as the team's full-time starter and ran with it.
Unger currently leads the WHL in saves, wins with 13 and appearances with 23. He's also ninth in the league with a 0.916 save percentage.
"I think I'm playing really well," he said. "The key is to keep it consistent and go from there, build off each game."
Heading into a two-game Alberta road trip this weekend, Unger has his best two games of the season to build off.
The 18-year-old goalie is coming off his second career shutout when he made 32 saves in a 4-0 win over Swift Current on Tuesday. The game before that saw Unger turn away a career-high 52 shots in a 6-3 win over Prince Albert.
Head coach Mark O'Leary said Unger has been building towards the type of performance that he's put together in the past two games.
"Jackson's been solid all season long and he gives us a chance to win games," he said.
"He's been keeping us in games," Warriors forward Brayden Yager added. "We have a lot of trust in him, he's feeling himself right now, he's confident, so it's always nice when your starting goalie is feeling good."
For Unger, he said he's put in a lot of work in practice to continue to improve his game.
"My feet and my movement [have been a focus] and then just making sure I'm square and make every save as easy as possible," he said.
Those improvements have helped Unger move among the league leaders, which he also credits the team in front of him for helping out.
"It's nice to get a bunch of games in and obviously leading the league in wins is huge, but there's more to come with our team and how we're playing," he said.
"I just need to keep it consistent, obviously every game give us a chance to win and some games where they need to be stolen, this is where I need to step up and play my role."
Unger and the Warriors are in Alberta this weekend for a two-game road trip, which opens on Friday in Red Deer and finishes on Sunday in Edmonton.
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