NLL Insider

Matt King (Photo: Matt J. Wiater)

A year ago, Matt King would likely have been slotted into the “flash in the pans” thread being discussed on the forums right now. Actually, forget likely, he definitely would have been included by many in that rundown.

At just 27-years of age heading into the ‘09 National Lacrosse League season, many within the league were throwing terms around like burnt-out, career backup and not good enough, when talking about King and his future endeavours in the bigs.

Come May though, the only thing burnt about King’s game was the heat radiating off his gear from all the rubber he was turning aside en route to the Calgary Roughnecks’ Champion’s Cup triumph. 

Prior to the start of last year, King was tossed into the Steve Dietrich deal that saw the two keepers swap Alberta pro sweaters, finished off with draft picks and Kris Hartzell also in the mix. An impact trade? If you say you saw King’s rebirth coming, you sir are most definitely full of sh…

In fact, when the keeper swap was initially made, Calgary Owner and GM, Brad Bannister, told the Calgary Herald the switch was flipped cuz, “Matt King is just a little closer, a little younger and a little cheaper,” versus Dietrich, who the team was flying in from the East.

Anyways, King spent the first part of the year behind Pat Campbell, who himself was playing some solid ball, but once Kinger got the wink to man the Necks’ cage, he made the most of it like few before him in this league had done.

The former Victoria Shamrocks’ Jr. A MVP ran a regular season record of 7-0, held down an impressive 10.23 GAA and .773 save %, and most importantly, was backstopping a Calgary squad that ruled the roost with a 12-4 record prior to the post-season.

Then the playoffs hit and King continued and arguably exceeded the pace he’d set for himself during the year, maintaining a 7.67 GAA, playing every minute of the Necks’ Cup drive, potentially even playing well enough to land Champion’s Cup MVP honours.

Matt King wasn’t supposed to come close to achieving any of the above mentioned accolades in ‘09 or any season after that. His claim to pro fame was supposed to be that insane rookie season he threw together in Calgary when almost no mainstream fan even knew his name (aka, flash in the pan).

What he was supposed to do this year was save the franchise some coin, but his money backstopping did a lot more than keep a little dough in the Necks’ pockets at the end of the year, he helped stuff a whole damn Champion’s Cup in there too.

Matt King, a pro rookie phenom AND a two-time Champion’s Cup winning keeper. How many tenders can lay claim to those bullets?

Fact: King spent more minutes in a pro cage during his rookie year with the Roughnecks in ‘02 (888) than any other year after that, which included stints in Anaheim, Portland, Edmonton and then of course his two spans with Calgary. In fact, combine any two season past his improbable rookie campaign, and you still won’t match the amount of time he logged during his first pro year. Matt King is also one of just two keepers to have two NLL Cup rings over the past six seasons as either a starter or backup. The other tender? Phil Wetherup.

# (last year)
48 (NR) Matt King, Calgary Roughnecks
49 (NR) Mac Allen, Rochester Knighthawks
50 (NR) Nick Inch, Minnesota Swarm

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