Matt O’Connor is ready to put his recent past behind him.
The Boston University goaltender has agreed to terms with the Ottawa Senators on a two-year entry level contract, the team announced Saturday. O’Connor will get a maximum deal that includes bonuses, according to Sportsnet’s Mark Spector.
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O’Connor’s junior season with the Terriers ended in horrific fashion when he allowed a brutal own goal in the third period of BU’s eventual loss to Providence College in the NCAA championship game. After the game, the 23-year-old lamented that his teammates deserved better.
Yet the Senators appear to be welcoming O’Connor with open arms, as general manager Bryan Murray had nothing but positive things to say about his team’s new goaltender.
“We are very excited to welcome Matt to the Senators family,” Murray said in a statement Saturday. “Matt is a fine example of both the type of player and person that our organization looks for when we are acquiring talent. We are confident that under the tutelage of our player development staff, Matt will have the opportunity to develop into an outstanding National Hockey League goaltender.”
O’Connor put together a solid season for BU despite his gaffe, posting a .927 save percentage and 2.18 goals against average while compiling a Hockey East-best 25-4-4 record. He’ll also have the chance to learn from two quality goalies in Craig Anderson and rookie sensation Andrew Hammond.
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O’Connor will be the fifth Hockey East netminder to recently be signed or drafted by an NHL team, joining Providence’s Jon Gillies (Calgary Flames), Boston College’s Thatcher Demko (Vancouver Canucks), Notre Dame’s Cal Peterson (Buffalo Sabres) and Merrimack College’s Rasmus Tirronen (Carolina Hurricanes).
Thumbnail photo via Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports Images
