From the Hartford Wolf Pack to Team Canada, Dylan Garand’s May is looking different this year.

For the past two years, Garand has been causing trouble for opponents. As a rookie in 2023, his Wolf Pack reached the Calder Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2015. Garand made it memorable for Wolf Pack fans, taking them to two series win before they ran into the eventual Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears. Garand went 5-3 | 1.76 | .935 in playing eight of nine of Hartford’s playoff contests. A year later, the Wolf Pack eliminated the Charlotte Checkers and Providence Bruins before again falling to Hershey, but Garand put together a 5-4 | 2.59 | .922 line in his nine games while also getting a quick recall to the New York Rangers during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

This season the Wolf Pack failed to qualify for the Calder Cup Playoffs as did the Rangers. While the Wolf Pack stumbled to a seventh-place finish in the Atlantic Division, Garand put together a stout third pro season. He made 39 appearances for the second straight season and finished 20-10-8 | 2.73 | .913 with three shutouts in an ongoing tandem with veteran Louis Domingue.

With roles in both New York and Hartford not happening this year, Garand had a free calendar. Hockey Canada included Garand in the first round of 15 players named to its roster for the IIHF World Championship this month co-hosted by Sweden and Denmark. Earlier this week he saw action in international friendlies against Austria and Hungary before Canada’s contingent continued on to Stockholm to set up camp before the tournament began Friday.

So imagine being 22 years old, starting for Team Canada, and having Marc-Andre Fleury as your back-up with Sidney Crosby as your captain. That's how Garand spent this fine Saturday. Head coach Dean Evason went with Garand as his starter for Canada’s opening game against Slovenia at Avicii Arena.

Fleury and Jordan Binnington, two Stanley Cup champions, complete Canada’s goaltending group. Fleury will retire following the tournament while Binnington is the top candidate for Canada’s number-one job next February at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Binnington helped to lead Canada to a gold medal at the 4 Nations Tournament this past February and went to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in first-round play with the St. Louis Blues.

Canada faces Latvia on Sunday followed by a match-up with France this coming Tuesday. From there it is meetings with Austria, Slovakia, Finland, and Sweden to complete the tournament’s round-robin portion. With Binnington and Fleury there in Stockholm, playing opportunities will likely be minimal for Garand. So with Slovenia back in the IIHF’s top pool, going with Garand for this start made sense.

Garand had a quiet afternoon, facing only 11 shots in a 4-0 win.

Garand, taken in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL Draft by the Rangers, had big-game experience even before fully moving into the pro game. He twice represented Canada at the IIHF World Junior Championship, winning a silver medal and a gold. In 2021-22 with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers, he was named CHL Goaltender of the Year and WHL Top Goaltender. He also took the Blazers to Game 7 of the Western Conference Final.

Where exactly Garand fits long-term for the Rangers remains to be seen. Igor Shesterkin’s recently signed eight-year, $92 million contract takes him through the 2032-33 season. Shesterkin’s back-up, 39-year-old Jonathan Quick, signed a one-year contract extension with the Rangers two months ago amid Garand’s strong third season in Hartford. To date, Garand has not made his NHL debut and has only served in a back-up role with the Rangers.

And does bringing Garand to Sweden mean that Hockey Canada wants to take a further look at him? Much has been made about Canada’s goaltending shortage in recent years, something that takes on even more significance with increased international play to come. After the return of NHL players for the 2026 Olympics, the World Cup of Hockey returns in 2028 following a 12-year hiatus. From there the aim is for the Olympics – with NHLers – and World Cup to alternate in even-numbered years beyond that. And of course there is the IIHF World Championship each year.

So, Fleury will be retired, and Binnington is 31. Mackenzie Blackwood, Adin Hill, Sam Montembeault, and Logan Thompson are other potential candidates, though hardly long-term shoo-ins four or eight years out.

Garand has shown that he can be a highly effective number-one goaltender even for a struggling AHL club. Add in that high-end junior experience and now this chance to work alongside the likes of Binnington and Fleury. At some point not too far off, Garand may well force the Rangers to make some difficult decisions.

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