“My time at Danville allowed my game to mature to the point where I had a greater appreciation for the off-ice aspect of hockey, a very crucial aspect of the sport,” Grumet-Morris said.

He also earned the admiration of his coaches and teammates through his confidence, talent and work ethic.

“Dov was very confident in practice,” Adrahtas said. “And he was a class-act off the ice. He’s a very loquacious kid and was a popular teammate.”

Adrahtas continues to follow Dov’s progress, talking on the phone with him about once a week and checking his games over the internet. He considers his former pupil the prototype at the backstop position.

“If you were to build a goalie from scratch,” Adrahtas said, “you’d give him great reflexes, make him a good skater, confident without being egotistical, mentally strong enough to withstand and thrive under the pressure of the position, and have an unparalleled work ethic. I’ve just described Dov Grumet-Morris.”

Given their high opinion of Grumet-Morris, the Wings were not at all surprised when he took over the starting job at Harvard so early in his career.

“We expected him to have an immediate impact,” Adrahtas said. “Being a former goalie, there was no way Coach Mazzoleni was going to miss exactly what Dov could accomplish. We were not surprised.”

With the experience gained from his time in Danville and his first season at Harvard, Grumet-Morris says he is ready for his sophomore year and is confident in what he and his team can accomplish.

That’s good because much of the team’s playoff aspirations will rest on his shoulders. Of course, as last year’s playoff run showed, he’s more than capable of bearing that burden.

“The team is very confident in Dov, as is the coaching staff,” Mazzoleni said. “We are going to give him the opportunity to run with it.”