(PRINCETON, NJ) – The Rapid City Rush, in conjunction with the ECHL, announced today that Rush net-minder Danny Battochio has been named the CCM/ECHL Goaltender of the Week for his stellar performance in the week dated from February 15th to February 21st. This is first ECHL recognition that Battochio has earned in his career, and he becomes the second Rush goalie this season to earn CCM/ECHL Goaltender of the Week, joining rookie Marek Langhamer who is currently in the AHL with the Springfield Falcons.
“Without great goaltending, you’re not going to win many games in this league. Both Danny and Sammy played great games for us this past week, and have instilled a positive vibe in our locker room,” said Rush Head Coach, Mark DeSantis. “When you have great goaltending like we’ve had these last four games, it gives our players more confidence knowing that these guys will be there when we need the big saves. It’s a great recognition for Danny. When we went through this rough patch we had, Danny stood up to the challenge. That’s what we need in pushing for a playoff spot.”
Battochio put together his best week of the season last week, making four appearances, three of which were starts. After coming into the game for 12:30 of relief on Monday, when he stopped all 4 shots he saw, the 5’10”, 180-pound backstopped blanked the then-co-West Division leaders, the Idaho Steelheads, with a 24-save shutout. He then bookended the series against the Alaska Aces this last weekend, making 22 saves on 24 shots in a 3-2 win on Friday, followed by a near-perfect 33-save performance on 34 shots in a 3-1 win on Sunday.
Overall last week, Battochio posted a 3-0-0 record, a 0.96 GAA, which led all goaltenders with a minimum of 120 minutes played, a 0.965 SV%, which was second among goalies with the same qualification of the statistic, and was one of only five goaltenders to register a shutout.
“It’s obviously a great honor to be recognized, especially with so many great goaltenders at this level,” said Danny Battochio regarding his first ECHL recognition. “It wasn’t an easy week of hockey that’s for sure. Playing five games in seven nights with travel was a challenge, but at the same time, coming out with 7 of a possible 10 points after the rough patch we suffered earlier was a step in the right direction.”
A native of Lively, Ontario, Battochio is in the final stages of his seventh season as a professional, six of which have been spent in the Black Hills. As the Rush backstopper, Battochio owns a vast majority of the goaltending section in the Rush record book, sporting an all-time record of 127-75-20 with a 2.58 GAA, a 0.913 SV%, and 13 shutouts. Prior to playing professionally, Danny played Canadian collegiate hockey with St. Francis Xavier University in the CIS and major-junior hockey with the Ottawa 67’s of the OHL.
