Arizona Coyotes goaltender Connor Ingram made history against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday night — and eclipsed his teammate in the process.
Ingram, 25, stopped all 47 shots he faced through regulation and overtime in the Coyotes’ 1-0 shootout win over the Lightning at Mullett Arena on Wednesday, setting the new NHL record for most saves made in a goaltender’s first career regular-season shutout.
Karel Vejmelka, who just so happens to be Ingram’s tandem partner with the Coyotes, previously tied Dan Bouchard’s 49-year-old record with 46 saves in his own first NHL shutout against the Winnipeg Jets on Nov. 29, 2021.
Another twist: Tampa Bay originally selected Ingram with the No. 88 overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft.
Ingram stopped two of the three Lightning shots he saw in the shootout, with Steven Stamkos just managing to score by banking the puck off his shoulder. Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov failed to beat Ingram; Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz both scored for Arizona.
The Coyotes claimed Ingram off waivers from the Nashville Predators just before the start of the 2022-23 regular season. The 6-foot-2, 196-pound goaltender struggled to start his tenure with the Coyotes but has markedly improved over his last 10 starts, going 3-5-2 with a .934 save percentage.
Ingram has faced 40 or more shots in five of his last 10 starts. The Lightning outshot the Coyotes 47-26 on Wednesday. (Lightning goaltender Brian Elliott also received credit for a shutout.)
The Lightning traded Ingram to the Predators on June 14, 2019, receiving a 2021 seventh-round draft pick in return. The Saskatoon, SK product spent parts of three seasons in the Nashville organization, making his NHL debut with the Predators late in the 2021-22 season.
Ingram ultimately appeared in all four of the Predators’ 2022 Stanley Cup playoff games against the Colorado Avalanche, posting a .913 save percentage in the series.
Through 18 games with the Coyotes this season, Ingram has a 4-11-3 record and a 3.38 goals-against average. His save percentage improved by eight points — from .899 to .907 — after his performance against the Lightning on Wednesday.
Ingram is under contract with the Coyotes at a $733,333 NHL cap hit through the end of the 2022-23 season, at which point he’ll be eligible to become a restricted free agent.
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