Matt Tomkins

History

2009-10: Matt Tomkins skated for the Sherwood Park Squires Midget Minor team that captured a provincial championship in Alberta. He was 8-5-5 with a 2.69 goals against and .900 save percentage as Sherwood Park finished fourth in the AMMHL. In the playoffs he was 8-0 with one shutout and had a 2.08 goals against and .931 save percentage. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the AMMHL North playoffs.

2010-11: Tomkins shared the goaltending duties for the Sherwood Park Kings midget AAA with Adam Clark. He was 6-8-1 with a 3.83 goals against and .890 save percentage as the Kings finished fourth in the AMHL’s Dodge Division.  Tomkins was 3-3 with a 4.14 goals against and .836 save percentage as Sherwood Park reached the Division Finals.

2011-12: Tomkins played in 33 of 60 games for the Sherwood Park Crusaders in the AJHL. He was 18-11-2 with a 3.41 goals against and .894 save percentage. After finishing fourth in the North Division, the Crusaders advanced to the second round of the AJHL playoffs. Tomkins played in all ten playoff games and was 4-6 with one shutout and had a 3.53 goals against and .897 save percentage. He committed to playing college hockey at Ohio State in 2013-14. Tomkins was invited to the NHL Draft Combine and was ranked tenth amongst North American goalies in Central Scouting’s final rankings prior to the 2012 NHL Draft.

2012-13: Tomkins appeared in 44 of 60 games for the Sherwood Park Crusaders in his second AJHL season. He was 22-14-6 with 4 shutouts and had a 2.56 goals against and .924 save percentage. The Crusaders finished eighth in the North Division and reached the second round in the playoffs. Tomkins was 5-5 in the playoffs with a 3.26 goals against and .899 save percentage.

2013-14: Tomkins played in 17 games for Ohio State as a freshman — emerging as the starter over sophomore Collin Olson (Carolina), who eventually left school. Tomkins suffered a leg injury in November and after returning in January he split time with Christian Frey, who joined the Buckeyes in December from the USHL. In 17 games Tomkins was 6-7-2 with a 2.78 goals against and .911 save percentage. Ohio State finished fourth in the Big Ten and reached the conference championship game but did not receive an NCAA tournament berth after losing to Wisconsin, 5-4, in overtime.

 

 

Talent Analysis

Tomkins is a sound positional goaltender who plays a heady game between the pipes.  While he had consistency issues in the past, he seems to have settled down and is playing a more controlled game that relies more on solid instincts and athletic ability.  Tomkins has the size that many NHL teams seem to seek in a goaltender, so it is just a matter of fine-tuning his game as he develops in the NCAA.

 

 

Future

Tomkins is healthy once again and is splitting time with Christian Frey at Ohio State as a sophomore. He will likely continue to develop during his four-year college career; after which the Blackhawks will have a truer picture of his long-term potential.