Thorimbert emerging over Howe as No. 1 goaltender for Tigers

If Josh Thorimbert getting his number called in seven of nine games is enough proof that he has solidified his spot as Colorado College’s starting goaltender, the Tigers have found a new No. 1 between the pipes. Still, CC coach Scott Owens isn’t crowning Thorimbert.

There’s no disputing that Thorimbert has moved ahead of Joe Howe on CC’s depth chart, having allowed more than two goals only once in what’s the best stretch of his career, yet Howe received an unexpected start Saturday against St. Cloud State at World Arena.

Earlier in the year, Thorimbert, a sophomore with an 8-3 record to go with a 2.33 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage, and Howe, a junior with 40 career wins, operated out of a platoon, with neither starting more than three times in a row, mainly due to a lack of dependability. Now, Thorimbert is the go-to guy, letting in one goal Friday in a victory over St. Cloud State, and he’s likely to start next weekend’s opener at No. 5 Minnesota.

Owens won’t discount Howe, saying “they both want to play all the games. But they’ve been a part of teams their whole careers, and they know the situation. We’re not going to paint ourselves into any corner here at this juncture. … We want to keep guys involved, and we want to keep them fresh, and we want to play guys that give us the best chance.”

A majority of the issues for the No. 8 Tigers don’t stem from goaltending, argued Owens, who called upon his team’s forwards “to have offensive pressure in their end for a longer period of time, and they need to generate more chances five on five. Defensively, we’ve got to improve – tighten up a little bit. … We’re still a work in progress. We’re not real good. We’re not bad. We’re just kind of right there trying to figure things out right now.”

Thorimbert remembers Owens preaching stability in goaltending in preseason workouts. “And I believe that consistency is giving the guys two goals or less and giving the guys a chance to win every game,” Thorimbert said. “That’s what me and Joe have been doing.”

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