Hunter Shepard

Hunter Shepard Bio

Hunter Markus Shepard is an American professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing with the Belleville Senators in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was born on November 7, 1995, in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Shepard had a decorated collegiate career at the University of Minnesota Duluth, where he led his team to two NCAA titles and was recognized as a standout player, earning multiple accolades. Since turning professional in 2020, he has shown great promise in the AHL and ECHL, and recently made his NHL debut.

Early Life and Background

Hunter Shepard was born in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, to parents Mark and Terri Shepard. Growing up, he was placed in a daycare run by the mother of Adam Hauser, the University of Minnesota’s Golden Gophers men’s ice hockey team’s starting goaltender. He would use a goaltending glove to catch softballs in the Hausers’ living room and credits Hauser for encouraging him to become a goalie. Since no one in his family played hockey, his father and uncle coached him in baseball. He began playing competitive hockey at the age of five or six. Shepard attended Grand Rapids High School, where he played prep school hockey and baseball. In his senior year, he received a Minnesota Minute Men Mr. Hockey Award and joined the Bismarck Bobcats of the North American Hockey League (NAHL).

Path to Hockey

After two seasons with the Bobcats, during which he won their Goaltender of the Year award, he was approached by the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs men’s ice hockey team to be their third goaltender. Shepard played four seasons of NCAA Division I collegiate hockey with the Bulldogs, setting various records as the team’s co-captain. He became the first goaltender captain since Rick Heinz in 1976 and received the 2018 Keith Christiansen Award as UMD’s Most Valuable Player. Shepard started in over 105 consecutive games for the Bulldogs, setting a new NCAA record, and became the first netminder in a half-century to lead his club to two consecutive NCAA titles. As a result of his achievements, he was selected as an AHCA All-American twice, received the NCHC Goaltender of the Year Award twice, was named NCHC Tournament MVP, and was a finalist for the Mike Richter Award.

Hunter Shepard Career

Early Career (2020–2023)

Hunter Shepard officially concluded his collegiate career on June 25, 2020, by signing a two-year American Hockey League (AHL) contract with the Hershey Bears. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the AHL season did not start until February 5, 2021, while the ECHL’s began on December 11, 2020. As such, Shepard was re-assigned to the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL on December 2, 2020. He quickly mirrored his collegiate success during the ECHL’s opening month, posting a 2–0–1 record with a 1.89 goals-against average and a save percentage of .935 over three appearances. He earned his first professional win on December 18 against the Jacksonville Icemen after the team experienced two consecutive losses. This was the first win for the Stingrays of the 2020–21 season and the first ECHL victory for head coach Ryan Blair. As a result of his success, Shepard was named ECHL Goaltender of the Month of December. Shepard eventually made his AHL debut with the Hershey Bears on May 2, 2021, against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He stopped all 28 shots in his debut to secure a shutout and win for the team.

Breakthrough (2023–Present)

In the final year of his contract, Shepard began the 2022–23 season with the Hershey Bears in the AHL after attending the Capitals training camp. Although Fucale began the season as the Bears’ starting goaltender, Shepard earned significant playing time as he posted a 4–0–2 record through the team’s first 16 games. Across his six games, he also maintained a 1.80 goals against average and .935 save percentage. Shepard received the AHL’s Goaltender of the Month honor for his performance. Following this, he received his first NHL call-up of the season on December 5. He spent seven games serving as backup for Charlie Lindgren while Darcy Kuemper recovered from a concussion but returned to the Bears on December 19 without having made his NHL debut. Shepard and Fucale served a strong goaltending tandem throughout the season as the Bears qualified for the 2023 Calder Cup playoffs. The duo became the first two Hershey goaltenders to both win 20 games in a season since 2018–19. Shepard finished the regular season with a 20–8 record, a 2.18 goals against average, and .916 save percentage.

Notable Works and Milestones

During the 2023 Calder Cup playoffs, Shepard played in all 20 games for a total of 1188 minutes. He recorded a shutout in Game 5 of the finals to give the Bears a 3–2 series lead and later received the Jack Butterfield Award as the Most Valuable Player of the 2023 Calder Cup playoffs after Hershey clinched the championship with a Game 7 overtime win. Following his Calder Cup win, the Capitals re-signed Shepard to another two-year, two-way contract worth $775,000. After participating in the Capitals training camp and preseason, Shepard was reassigned to the Hershey Bears to start the 2023–24 season. He made his NHL debut on October 25, 2023, against the New Jersey Devils, winning his first NHL game.

Hunter Shepard Award Nominations

Throughout his career, Hunter Shepard has received several nominations, particularly during his collegiate years, where he was recognized for his outstanding performance as a goaltender.

Hunter Shepard Awards Won

Hunter Shepard has won numerous awards throughout his career, including the AHCA All-American, NCHC Goaltender of the Year, and the Jack Butterfield Award for his performance in the Calder Cup playoffs.