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Alex Nedeljkovic Making a Name for Himself

By Scott Harrington, 04/06/20, 11:30AM EDT

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Parma native on the cusp of NHL career

Trivia question:  How many Ohio-born goaltenders have played in the National Hockey League?

I’ll save you some time: two.

Pat Jablonski (Toledo) played for five different NHL franchises during a 14-year pro career that included a stop in Cleveland (IHL) during the 1997-98 season.

One of the franchises Jablonski played for was the Carolina Hurricanes (five games during that same 1997-98 season).  The only other goal-tending Ohioan to make it to The Show has also played for the Hurricanes – only two games so far – but he is destined to play a whole lot more.

Parma-born Alex Nedeljkovic is a fourth-year pro plying his trade with Carolina’s top farm club, the Charlotte Checkers of the American Hockey League (AHL).  His name is familiar to some people in Cleveland hockey circles but he will likely be known to a much wider audience in the next few years.

Nedeljkovic (nuh-DELL-kuh-vich) is positioned as the “Goaltender of the Future” for an NHL franchise and is on the cusp of the next stage of his career. 

That career started with Parma Flyers Youth Hockey and included a five-year run with the Cleveland Jr. Barons that took him through his Bantam Major season.  After a one-year stint with the Belle Tire AAA program in Detroit, he was drafted into the Ontario Hockey League in the sixth round of the 2012 draft and quickly earned a key role with the OHL’s Plymouth Whalers.

In just a two-year period Alex went from living at home in Parma with his parents Butch and Theresa, and playing at his local rink, to living with billets and playing in front of 9,000 crazed fans and legions of pro scouts at London’s Budweiser Gardens in the OHL’s 2013 Eastern Conference Final.

Those two steps – from the Jr. Barons to Belle Tire, and from Belle Tire to the OHL – presented an unbelievable opportunity for Alex, but also a colossal challenge, and a huge decision for his family.  How can you know if your son, at that age, is skilled enough on the ice and mature enough off of it to handle something like that?

Moving away from home to live with people you have never met, and getting a whole new set of teammates not once, but in consecutive years as you tackle a higher level of competition than you have ever seen, could knock a lot of youngsters off course.

“He was always pretty mature for his age,” says Butch.  “He had no problem during that time.  He knew what he wanted to do.”

AAA-level hockey can be a competitive environment not just on the ice, but in the stands.  We have all met hockey parents that think the only thing standings between their kid and a D1 scholarship is a coach that doesn’t know what he’s doing or teammates that are making them look bad.

Butch and Theresa have no time for that.

“We always told all our kids to do their best and that it was not about who did what out there,” Theresa said.  “Just play your game.”

Alex was a very focused youngster but the talent was certainly there as well.

“In our eyes he’s always been good,” said Theresa.  “But I’m his mom of course we think he’s the best!”

“Everybody always said he had potential,” added Butch.

Asked if there was a point at which he realized the extent of that potential, Butch points to the 2010 Silver Sticks tournament in Whitby, Ontario.  Alex backstopped the Jr. Barons AAA Bantam Minor team to the championship and appeared to be "head and shoulders" above the competition between the pipes.

Alex and his family loved playing for the Jr. Barons but, by the end of the 2011-12 season, they realized he might need to move on to another challenge.  That summer, Alex made an immediate impression on goaltending coach Stan Matwijiw at his Bandits Goalie School.  Matwijiw was also the goalie coach for the Belle Tire AAA program. 

“He was raw when I first got him,” Matwijiw said.  “But there was a lot there.”

Alex headed north to Detroit to play the 2012-13 season with the Belle Tire AAA U16 team and live with a host family.

“We really didn’t even talk about it until the summer after that last year with the Barons,” Alex says about the decision to leave home.  “I didn’t even really, at the time, realize what a jump it was.”

He thrived with Belle Tire practicing against, and playing with, the likes of Dylan Larkin, Kyle Connor, Brendan Perlini and Zach Werenski.

Matwijiw was impressed at how quickly Alex picked things up and says he kept him on his toes because he had to keep finding new ways to challenge the 15-year-old.

“I would present him with concepts that would take lots of good goalies a month or two to master, but he was getting it in a week,” he said.  “He’s very intelligent and he sees the game so well.  He is the smartest player on just about every sheet of ice he steps onto.”

OHL/NHL DRAFTS

Matwijiw was also the goalie coach for the OHL’s Plymouth Whalers and put Nedeljkovic on their radar.  As Plymouth general manager and head coach Mike Vellucci prepared for the 2012 OHL Draft he consulted Matwijiw, who provided a list of names.

Vellucci quickly put him on the spot, asking if he could take just one kid and had to do it right then and there who would it be?  Stan replied that Nedeljkovic was the most physically and mentally ready for the challenge of playing major junior hockey.

“He is also very efficient and effective handling the puck,” Matwijiw added.  “If there is a play to be made up-ice he’ll take it, but he won’t force it.  He’s always a step ahead of everybody else on the ice.”

With the endorsement of Matwijiw, Alex was placed on the Whalers’ board for the 2012 OHL Draft.  Many Ontario Hockey League clubs thoroughly scout the Michigan AAA ranks so, truth be told, he was likely on the radar of a lot of teams.  The Whalers got to him first, however, claiming him in the sixth round, and Alex headed to his first junior training camp to compete for a job.

The OHL was a quantum leap forward in competition.  Goalies are usually brought along more slowly.  For one thing, it is a difficult position to master.  There is also a tremendous amount of pressure at that position and, more practically – there is only one net.  You usually have to wait your turn in a league that is home to some of the top 19- and 20-year-old players in the world.

But after getting some Junior A playing time with the Metro Jets to start the year, Alex was given a shot with the Whalers and he did not give the crease up, taking over as their number one goaltender for the second half of the season on a veteran team in “win now” mode.  He played the bulk of the games after Christmas, then started all 15 games of Plymouth’s playoff run, which amounted to three rounds of best-of-seven series.

As the pressure mounted, Nedeljkovic just kept things simple and remembered it was still the same game he had played back home in Parma.

“Plymouth was still just hockey,” he said.  “I was just trying to win.  I didn’t realize what a big impact that year really had in setting me up for my (NHL) draft year.”

Butch was not surprised to see Alex handle the transition smoothly.

“He’s pretty even-keeled,” he said.  “He does not get rattled easily.”

Alex backstopped the Whalers on a run all the way to the OHL’s Eastern Conference Final.  After losing just one game over the first two rounds against Saginaw and Kitchener, Plymouth ran up against the London Knights.  There, the Whalers’ season was ended at the hands of Max Domi, Bo Horvat and future Columbus Blue Jackets Josh Anderson and Scott Harrington (the other Scott Harrington).

Two things happened as a result of that playoff run with the Whalers:  1) his profile was raised significantly, causing his draft stock to shoot through the roof, and 2) he earned the trust of Mike Vellucci.

Following Alex's rookie season, key Whalers like leading scorer Garrett Muers and future NHLers Tom Wilson, Vincent Trochek and Rickard Rakell aged out of the junior ranks and moved on to pro hockey.  Vellucci had plenty of holes to fill on the team that year but there was one name he knew he didn’t need to worry about when filling out his lineup card every night.  Alex was his workhorse #1 goalie, keeping the team in games many nights it felt like the ice was tilted towards their end of the rink.

Butch, Theresa, and the rest of the Nedeljkovic clan - Andy, Anna Marie and Nina - moved to Michigan to support Alex and also allow Andy to play AAA hockey in the Victory Honda program.  

Alex, still just 17 years old, played in 61 of 68 games that year and his performance continued to trend upwards.  He was named the OHL Goaltender of the Year and a member of the First All-Star Team after posting a 26-27-7 record, 2.88 goals-against average and .925 save percentage for a rebuilding team.

Vellucci, who ran the Whalers for 13 seasons, had seen literally hundreds of players go through their NHL Draft year in Plymouth.  Few were as far along in their development as Nedeljkovic.

“I’ve had other guys get drafted into the NHL,” said Matwijiw.  “But none of them were as ready as Ned at that age.”

Just like in the business world, networking can be a big part of moving up in the hockey world.  It worked with Matwijiw to make the Belle Tire/Plymouth connection and the same dynamic was about to pay off again.

“You are around a person every day, so they get to know what kind of person you are and you kind of get your foot in the door a little bit,” Nedeljkovic said of his time with Vellucci and the Whalers.

Following the season, Vellucci was promoted within Peter Karmanos’ hockey empire from the OHL franchise to the NHL where he assumed the role of assistant general manager of the Hurricanes under Ron Francis.  Francis was just beginning his tenure as general manager after being promoted to the position on April 28, 2014 and the new management team had little time to prepare for the 2014 NHL Entry Draft coming up in June.

The ‘Canes needed to bolster their goaltending pipeline and Vellucci had just the kid.  He told Matwijiw “If Ned’s there in the second round we’re taking him,” and that’s exactly what the Hurricanes did, selecting Nedeljkovic 37th overall.

When NHL teams are investing high draft picks, they certainly want to know about all of the technical abilities of the players on their list.  But they also need to be able to trust them.  Francis, as a rookie GM, needed to have a successful draft and Vellucci, also a first-timer in NHL management, was putting his neck on the line, so that comfort level was important.

“If you keep doing what got you to that point, and keep working to improve and get better and better, hopefully you make a good enough impression on somebody that they are willing to take a chance on you,” said Nedeljkovic.  “Fortunately, that’s the way things worked out with Mike. He brought me into the Whalers and threw me into the fire at 16 years old and then he brought me along to Carolina.”

Nedeljkovic would be the third goalie taken – one spot behind Thatcher Demko, who went to the Vancouver Canucks following a stellar freshman season at Boston College.

The Hurricanes were placing a lot of trust in Nedeljkovic, who was a mere three years removed from playing Bantam hockey for the Jr. Barons.

Just 18, Alex returned to junior hockey and resumed his heavy workload.  He led all OHL goaltenders in saves (1,827) and shots faced (1,994), tied for third in shutouts (5), was fourth in games (55) and minutes played (3,206) while sporting a healthy .916 save percentage for Plymouth in 2014-15.  After the Whalers' season ended, Nedeljkovic had an opportunity to report to the ECHL’s Florida Everblades – Carolina’s “AA” affiliate – and make his pro debut, playing in three late-season games.

The following summer, with the boys established with their respective hockey teams, the rest of the family moved back to Parma, allowing Anna Marie and Nina to rejoin their friends and classmates and attend Valley Forge. 

Andy stayed behind to continue playing with Victory Honda and went on to play in the USHL and NAHL.

With one season of junior eligibility remaining, Alex moved with the OHL franchise as it relocated to Flint and became the Firebirds.  His stay in Flint was short-lived.  The Niagara Ice Dogs were loading up for a playoff run and dealt for Nedeljkovic, now a seasoned OHL veteran, mid-season.  He joined the team and backstopped them all the way to the OHL championship series.  They came up short – again falling to the London Knights – and that closed the book on Alex’s OHL career.

He left the OHL with 228 games played, including two long playoff runs, OHL Goalie of the Year and two All-Star appointments.

He was ready to play pro hockey full time.

INTERNATIONAL SUCCESS

Nedeljkovic’s Junior career cannot be discussed without mentioning his experiences with USA Hockey.

Typically, the roster for Team USA’s entry at the U18 world championships in April is made up of players from the U. S. National Team Development Program.  At the U20 World Junior Championship you get mostly college kids.  In both cases, USA Hockey made an exception and brought Nedeljkovic in from the OHL to guard the cage – and both times he rewarded them with medal-winning performances.

Nedeljkovic backstopped Team USA to a gold medal at the U18 Worlds in 2014 in Finland.  His teammates included many players who are already NHL stars:  Austin Matthews, Jack Eichel, former Belle Tire teammates Dylan Larkin and Kyle Connor, as well as Alex Tuch, Sonny Milano, Anders Bjork and Noah Hanifin.

In the opening game of the tournament against Switzerland, Nedeljkovic gave up a goal to Kevin Fiala (Minnesota Wild) 46 seconds into the third period that tied the game, and that seemed to rattle the U. S. team. The Swiss goalie stood on his head at the other end of the ice and Team USA lost, 4-2.  It was a surprising result for a loaded team, but the upset seemed to wake them up.

The Team USA head coach was NHL veteran bench boss Ron Wilson (Anaheim Ducks, Washington Capitals, San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs).  He went right back to Nedeljkovic in the next game against the Czech Republic and, although Alex still didn’t get a ton of goal support, he stopped everything the Czechs threw at him in a 3-0 win that was a turning point for the Americans.  The 24-save shutout came against the likes of David Pastrnak, Jakub Vrana and Pavel Zacha.  The U.S. beat that same Czech team again in the gold medal game, following a 4-1 win over Sweden in the semifinals.

Two years later, again in Finland, USA Hockey assembled their roster for the U20 World Junior Championships.  It was another star-studded roster:  Matthews, Werenski, Charlie McAvoy, Matthew Tkachuk, Brock Boeser and Alex DeBrincat among others - again coached by Wilson, with “Ned” between the pipes.

Team USA came close to repeating the gold medal of two years earlier in the U18s but, following another shutout over the Czechs (7-0), Team USA suffered a 2-1 loss in the semifinals against Russia that forced them to play for the bronze medal – which they won decisively over the Swedes, 8-3.

 “We should have done better than bronze,” Nedeljkovic said recalling the collection of talent on that team.  “We ran into a hot goalie.”

At least he knows how it feels…

Team USA celebrates their gold medal at the 2014 U18 World Championships

Highlights of USA's 4-2 win over Canada at the 2016 World Junior Championships

Team USA Gallery

NHL DEBUT/FIRST START

Nedeljkovic’s first season of pro hockey was quite eventful.  He played at three different levels and scored a goal into an empty net while playing in the ECHL with the Florida Everblades.  He earned his first NHL recall to Carolina on January 16, 2017 and made his NHL debut against the Blue Jackets in Columbus the following day.  He stopped all 17 shots he faced in 29:57 after starter Cam Ward was pulled by head coach Bill Peters.

Nedeljkovic returned to Charlotte two days later and ended up back with the Everblades for the final month of the season after management brought in a veteran goaltender, Thomas McCollum, to help the team during the AHL stretch drive.

Alex returned to Florida and helped the team reach the South Division Final of the ECHL playoffs, stopping 37 of 38 shots in a 1-0 double-overtime loss in Game 3 at South Carolina.

Vellucci became the head coach in Charlotte for the 2017-18 season and was reunited with his old junior hockey goalie.  Nedeljkovic spent the full season with the Checkers and became the 13th goaltender in AHL history to score a goal during a 7-3 win over the Hartford Wolfpack on March 10, 2018.

If he ever scores in the NHL he’ll be the first goalie to score in three different professional leagues.

More importantly, his play between the pipes progressed over the course of the season.  He posted a 13-3-1 record, 2.25 goals-against average and .915 save percentage with three shutouts over his final 17 appearances of the regular season, then started and won the first three games of the playoffs.  He set a Checkers playoff record with 51 saves in a 2-1, Game 4 loss vs. Lehigh Valley on May 9 that went to five overtimes and ended as the longest game in AHL history.

Although it was great to get his first taste of NHL action out of the way – making his debut in Ohio no less – Alex had yet to make his first NHL start.  But with Carolina dealing with an injury midway through the 2018-19 season, Nedeljkovic was called back up to the big club in January.

“Mike told me I was going up for the road trip,” Alex remembered.

With the Hurricanes playing back-to-back games on a Western Canadian road trip right before the NHL All-Star Break, he had an inkling that he might get his shot at starting his first NHL game.  Up with the Hurricanes, head coach Rod Brind’Amour was keeping him updated on what was going on.

“He just told me to do my thing and to be ready,” said Nedeljkovic.

Then, following a game in Calgary, Carolina goalie coach Mike Bales let him know he’d be starting the following night against the Vancouver Canucks.

Alex texted Butch at what was around 1:00 a.m. Cleveland time.  He and Theresa were able to get a flight out the next morning and be there at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena to see Alex stop 24 of 26 shots in a 5-2 win over the Canucks.

It’s a nice side benefit that Charlotte is in the same league as the Cleveland Monsters so the Nedeljkovic's do not have to go to such great lengths to see Alex play while he's in the AHL.  The Checkers made two trips to Cleveland this year – the second one right after their Christmas break which allowed Alex, girlfriend Emma Flageole-Bray and dog Zeke to drive to Ohio early and spend some time with Alex’s family before meeting up with the team in Cleveland.

The rest of the time they stream Checkers games online, which was what they were about to do when they talked to Ohio Hockey Digest.

Highlights of Nedeljkovic's first career start in Vancouver

Highlights of the Charlotte Checkers' Calder Cup-clinching win over the Chicago Wolves.

CALDER CUP CHAMPIONSHIP

Although the lone start in Vancouver was the only NHL game Nedeljkovic played last season, it ended up being a tremendous year for his development.  He won the Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award as the AHL's most outstanding goaltender during the 2018-19 season, posting an impressive 34-9-5 record with four shutouts and leading the league in wins (34) and goals-against average (2.26) to go with a .916 save percentage.

He followed up a stellar regular season with a championship-caliber playoff performance, registering a 10-4 record in the postseason and earning the win in all four series-clinching victories as the Checkers captured their first Calder Cup in franchise history.

Nedeljkovic rebounded from an overtime loss in Game 1 of the championship series to stop 38 of 39 shots in his next start in Game 3.  He also started and won the clincher in Game 5 and was on the ice as the clock ticked down to the championship celebration.

Despite his impressive performance in the 2019 post-season, which also included making 43 saves in a double-overtime win in Toronto to clinch the Eastern Conference title, Nedeljkovic disagreed with the assumption that he must have been on top of his game during that stretch last spring.

“No, not really,” he said “You could not say that was even the best I have played.  There were games that I couldn’t stop a beach ball.”

In Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final in Toronto he says he gave up three “five-hole” goals. 

“I just couldn’t make a save that night,” he said.  “But, at that time of year, you just want to get the job done and win the game somehow.”

It didn’t matter to Nedeljkovic how many goals he gave up as long as he made that next save, or won that next game, to keep his team in the game or series.

“That was the biggest thing – just bouncing back,” he said.  “Especially in those seven-game series.  It doesn’t matter what you did the day before,"

Chicago scored with 39 seconds left to get within a goal and make things interesting, but an empty-netter set off the celebration for Charlotte.

“Watching Alex win the Calder Cup was unreal,” said Theresa.  “It was an incredible experience.  A huge accomplishment for the team and well-earned.”

All of the players from the Cup-winning team got to spend a day with the Calder Cup and Alex spent his in Cleveland.  The celebration was subdued - just a backyard BBQ and a visit to some Cleveland landmarks with the Cup.

“We had a small party,” he said.  “Just friends and family, nothing crazy.”

SOME EXTRA SEASONING ON THE FARM

Despite all of the accolades he added to an already impressive resume last year, Nedeljkovic finds himself back in Charlotte this season, repeating a level at which he has clearly proved himself, and patiently waiting for another shot with the parent club.

It seemed like the planets were aligning for him with the Hurricanes this off-season. The contracts of both of Carolina’s veteran goaltenders – Petr Mrazek and Curtis McElhinney – were set to expire, making them unrestricted free agents on July 1, 2019.  If general manager Don Waddell wished, he could re-sign one and let the other walk, making room for Alex – who was also set to negotiate a new contract as a restricted free agent.

But on June 24, with Alex still unsigned, Waddell swung a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks to acquire Anton Forsberg – a 27-year-old veteran who played 35 NHL games during the 2017-18 season.

Alex agreed to a new two-year deal on June 28.

The Hurricanes are a team on the upswing, and they have their eyes on a deep playoff run in 2020.  They also may have at least some hesitation to lean entirely on the talented but mercurial Mrazek.  Forsberg, while he added experience, was not a playoff-tested entity.

So, two days after Alex signed, on the eve of NHL free agency, Waddell decided to trade for yet another veteran goaltender – James Reimer of the Florida Panthers.

Mrazek was re-signed the following day, completing the Carolina/Charlotte goaltending picture for 2019-20.

So, in the span of a week, the organizational goaltending picture in front of Nedeljkovic changed from a wide-open spot as a full-time NHLer, to having three more experienced goaltenders in the mix and a return ticket to the minors for a fourth season.

Despite all of the usual talking points about a meritocracy and jobs up for grabs in training camp, it was clear the plan was for Nedeljkovic – the youngest of the group – to spend another full season ripening on the vine in the AHL.

A fourth season in the American Hockey League is not an uncommon path for an NHL goaltending prospect – even a good one.  It is easy to forget the fact that the likes of Braden Holtby, Jimmy Howard, Devan Dubnyk and Ben Bishop all spent 3-4 seasons developing in the AHL before moving to the NHL full-time.

Alex Nedeljkovic hopes to be the next name on that list when it is all said and done but he is not putting the cart before the horse.

“You’ve just got to do what you’ve got to do wherever you are,” he said referring to the organization bringing in more goalies.  “They made those decisions and did what they thought was the best for them up top and for us down here.  You just keep working, keep improving, so when you get a chance to go up and play you make the most of it.”

Forsberg is on a one-year deal while Mrazek and Reimer are both under contract through 2020-21.  But another thing that makes it easier for Alex to remain patient is the fact that the second year of the new two-year deal he signed over the summer is one-way, meaning he is guaranteed to be paid the full NHL salary in 2020-21.  It does not guarantee that he will be in the NHL full-time, but it is a big step in that direction.  He is scheduled to become a restricted free agent again on July 1, 2021.

“It’s just nice having it – to have another year to come in and not even have to worry about that kind of stuff,” he said of the contract.  “It’s taken care of and you can just go out and play.”

The Checkers started slow – they are not the first championship hockey team to be sluggish coming off a short summer full of celebrating – but they won 14 of 17 games heading into the AHL’s All-Star break.

The Checkers as a team, and Nedeljkovic individually, seem to have things back on course.

Alex represented Charlotte at the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic in Ontario, California last weekend.  He teamed with crease-mate Vitek Vanecek of the Hershey Bears to backstop the Atlantic Division to the championship in a four-team three-on-three tournament.

Nedeljkovic was very active in net, firing several passes from near his net to the far blue line and being aggressive with his poke-checks.  At one point, with a lone teammate being pressured in the corner to his left, and with no support available, Alex skated out of his crease to make himself available for an outlet pass, which he quickly relayed up-ice to start a break the other way.

“I really enjoyed the 3-on-3 format in the All-Star Classic,” he said. “I think it’s a fun way of showing fans the individual talents of not only the players but the goalies as well. You’re put in situations to make some incredible saves, and even though most times you’ll get scored on, the handful of saves you do make can be pretty spectacular which is always fun. It’s also a little more intense at times because most shots and scoring chances are of such high quality that every save matters in the end.”

The wide-open format also led to a situation where Alex had a close encounter with Ontario Reign forward Martin Frk, who a day earlier had hammered a 109.2-mph slap shot in the skills competition.

Frk got the puck all alone in the right circle with plenty of time and space to wind up.  He unleashed a slapper that just missed the net wide from about 30 feet out.  Nedeljkovic had a candid response when recalling the play.

“I am very thankful he missed the net because that was going to hurt if I managed to somehow make a save,” he said.  “That was something special we all got to witness the night before seeing him break the record, not just the AHL but the NHL as well. That was a special moment for him and I’m just happy it didn’t hit me!”

It’s back to business this weekend as Nedeljkovic and the Checkers head to Toronto for games against the Marlies Friday and Saturday.

You can count on most of the pucks hitting him this time.

 

--- Scott Harrington for Ohio Hockey Digest