Top 10 Moments: Alexander and Clang Notch First Win in First Starts

Jun 26, 2023

By Paige Burnell/SanDiegoGulls.com

With the 2022-23 season in the books, SanDiegoGulls.com looks back at some of the biggest moments, from individual highlights to impressive theme nights and more. Today we continue our Top-10 Moments series, spotlighting the Gulls’ youngest goaltenders, Gage Alexander and Calle Clang, and their first appearances in net.

First impressions hold a lot of weight, especially when you’re a goaltender in the American Hockey League.

Netminders Gage Alexander and Calle Clang certainly made the most of their first moments between the pipes for San Diego, each player earning his first win in the first start of his AHL career.

"That's by far the most exciting part of the job this year was the fact that we got a bunch of good young goalies that are all taking steps in the right direction…" Gulls goaltending coach Jeff Glass said. "Each one of them had goals to meet at the end of the year and I think all them working towards it got much closer to them by the end of the year."

Hailing from Swift Current Broncos of the Western Hockey League (WHL) where he posted an 8-5-1 record through 15 games in 2022-23, Alexander became an impact player from the moment he hit the ice.

"He works so hard and gauge is such a fun guy to work with because we all know how big he is and the raw talent is there," Glass said in reference to Alexander. "So with Gage, it was fun to watch his game evolve and he's taking steps. He realizes he still has more steps to take if he wants to play at this level or the next, but he took those first few steps this year, which is so encouraging for a coach to know that he wants to learn, that he can develop and that you know the potential is there."

The 20-year-old made his AHL debut on Feb. 14 against the Tucson Roadrunners, allowing only one goal on 30 shots with .967 save percentage and guiding the Gulls to a 5-1 win at Pechanga Arena.

"You come down here you don't really know what to expect and you just kind of learn every day," Alexander said. "You learn new things that you take [in] as your life moves on and it was pretty easy, to be honest. Everyone here made it a lot easier on me to come in and to feel welcomed and it's a special group in here."

Clang covered a lot more distance on his way to the Gulls’ net, traveling straight from Sweden where he collected a 12-10-1 record in 25 appearances with Rogle of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) in 2022-23.

However, San Diego wasn’t the first stop in the United States for Clang as he met the Gulls amid a road trip in Iowa.

Clang’s first experience minding San Diego’s net gave fans a preview of what was to come as the goaltender stopped all shots faced (4-of-4) in 13:48 of relief on Apr. 1 against the Iowa Wild.

The 20-year-old appeared in his first career AHL start the following day against the Wild, making 20 saves on 22 shots in. The 4-2 win not only marked his first AHL victory, but also the team’s only win against Iowa in 2022-23.

"Calle’s got a ton of raw talent," Glass said of Clang. "That's the most obvious thing that stands out is he's a goalie and he battles hard in the net. The most exciting part for myself is that he's come over and maybe a few of those things that he might have had to learn at the beginning of next season he's already learned now. So, he's come over and he's familiar with the organization and with the environment. So next year, maybe there's less of a learning curve and we can get right to work. It's very exciting as far as seeing where he's at already at his age and then where he could go."

Clang recorded an impressive .909 save percentage through his first weekend in the AHL and even attempted to notch the ever-elusive goalie goal when the opportunity arose.

"I think I breathe confidence," Clang said. "So, I just want to keep that going for next year, maybe build up a little bit more and you know those things. It's just fun to do…I'm excited to have a full year here next year."

The Gulls’ season didn’t end how the team intended, but the outlook for goaltending in San Diego is sunny with the team’s up-and-coming netminders.

"It shouldn't be lost on us that we didn't have the success as a team we wanted, but the goaltenders are looking like they're shining fairly bright and that's exciting," Glass said.  "I'm looking forward to working with these guys. That's the part I get to enjoy the most is seeing these guys develop day in and day out. I hope they all go home have a great offseason - get a little bit bigger, stronger and then we get back to work next year."