Warriors' Banini Focused Following Stellar WHL Debut
October 17, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Moose Jaw Warriors News Release
Moose Jaw, Sask. - Josh Banini had the best debut for a Moose Jaw Warriors goaltender in the modern era.
His 48-save performance in last Friday's 4-2 win over the Everett Silvertips was the most saves by a Warriors goalie in their first career start since Joey Perricone stopped 46-of-46 in 2003.
That debut performance earned Banini the WHL Rookie of the Week honours on Tuesday.
"It's been a pretty cool last few days, but we've got some pretty tough tests coming up and I'm ready for that," the 18-year-old netminder said.
The crowd at the Hangar was chanting Banini's name by the end of the game and even broke out into more chants when he was shown on the scoreboard during Tuesday's game.
"I've never had anything like it before," Banini said.
"It was cool to know that they have my back and I'm going to try to keep supporting the fans and supporting this team."
Banini got the call to face a tough opponent in the Silvertips, who sit at 7-2-0-0 on the year and only lost to Moose Jaw on their East Division road trip.
He said there were some nerves going into his first start.
"When I went to go play the puck the first time, it felt like I was going to drop my stick," Banini said. "As the game went on, I felt more comfortable and with my game, the biggest thing is just having fun and at the end of the day, it's just hockey."
As he settled in, Banini fed off the crowd and his growing confidence to continue making bigger stops as the game went on, finishing off by stopping all 16 shots he faced in the third period.
Banini said this game will help his confidence moving forward.
"Just knowing that I can play against any team," he said. "I got to make some big steps because there were moments in the game where I didn't feel my best, obviously at some point you're going to get exposed, so I'm going to keep working hard on the ice and clean up somethings."
The Edmonton product didn't have the start to the season that he had hoped as he was injured just before training camp, suffering a broken collarbone on a shot.
That kept Banini off the ice until into the preseason and he worked his way into his first start last week.
"I think everything happens for a reason, but the way I handled it was important," he said. "I watched Jackson [Unger] and Dimitri [Fortin] in the net and learned a lot from their games.
"It was important to take a breath and in years past, it's been a bit of a rush into the game, so it was nice to have that time to get ready."
Banini was selected in the eighth round of the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft by the Warriors.
Last season with the Edmonton Jr. Oilers Blue U18 AAA team, he posted a 14-8-2 record with a 2.46 goals against average and a 0.929 save percentage in 25 games on his way to being named the AEHL's top goaltender.
He said his game has grown a lot over the past few seasons.
"For sure just mentally, I've always been good enough, but as a young goalie, it's hard upstairs to put it all together and I'm starting to do that, so I'll try to keep it going," Banini said.
Banini and the Warriors will return to action this weekend when they host the Medicine Hat Tigers on Friday night for Military Appreciation Night. Moose Jaw heads to Swift Current on Saturday.
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Western Hockey League Stories from October 17, 2024
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