Stepke a stone wall for Planets in victory
PITTSBURGH — How do you top this?
Mars goalie Tyler Stepke pondered the question, scratched his head and cracked a big smile.
"Come back, play these guys again, beat them again — I don't know," the junior goaltender said. "I don't have an answer for that one."
It was the only thing that stumped him all day.
Stepke made 36 saves in the Planets' 4-1 Class A hockey state championship victory over West Chester Bayard Rustin Thursday at Mellon Arena. A number of those were from the high slot or point-blank range.
He stopped Golden Knights senior Brian Christie, a 35-goal scorer, on numerous occasions, earning a sportsmanlike tap on the shoulder from Christie during postgame handshakes.
"I didn't know anything about him, other than he had all those goals and no one else on their team had more than 14 points or so," Stepke said.
"He was the guy to stop."
Stepke posted a 1.27 goals-against average during the regular season. In many of those games, he saw little action.
"It was hard staying focused on the game at times, standing back there by myself most of the time," he said.
The playoffs have been a different story.
Stepke stopped 11 Serra Catholic shots during a scoreless first period in the Penguins Cup championship game last Saturday. He stopped a few breakaways in the Planets' 7-3 win over Bishop McCort in the semifinals.
"When the playoffs start, a goalie is going to see more shots," Mars coach Steve Meyers said. "The more shots Tyler faces, the tougher he gets. That kid is a money goaltender."
Stepke has been a goalie since second grade. He's stayed with it because he likes being the last line of defense.
"It's fun being the go-to guy in pressure situations, when it gets tight out there," Stepke said.
He emulates Dallas Stars goaltender Marty Turco because of Turco's ability to handle the puck.
"He's like a third defenseman back there," Stepke said. "That's the way I like to play."
Stepke even had an assist on a goal during Mars' Penguins Cup semifinal win over Bishop McCort.
That's not why his teammates like him so much.
"Stepke is a brick wall back there. Good luck getting something past him," junior center Robbie Sigurdsson said.
