Coyotes G Matt Villalta to make first career NHL start vs. Oilers

Arizona Coyotes goaltender Matt Villalta will make his first career NHL start on Monday against Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and the visiting Edmonton Oilers.

The 24-year-old made his NHL debut in relief of Karel Vejmelka in a loss to the Carolina Hurricanes last Friday, stopping all four shots he faced.

The struggling Coyotes, losers of nine in a row, are being forced to dig into their goaltending depth with Connor Ingram sidelined with an undisclosed injury. Villalta was recalled on an emergency basis last week.

A native of Godfrey, Ont., just north of Kingston, the six-foot-three Villalta went undrafted in the OHL and played his first junior season with the junior-B Westport Rideaus.

The Soo Greyhounds then gave Villalta a look the next season and his strong year led to the Los Angeles Kings making him a third-round pick (72nd overall) in 2017.

Villalta told Morgan he did not expect to be selected in the NHL Draft.

“I didn’t really expect anything so I went fishing that day,” he said. “I had a pay-as-you-go phone so I had to go down to the gas station in Verona (north of Kingston) that day — a place called Topper’s Market — to add minutes on my phone so if someone did call me I would be able to talk to them.

“I refilled my minutes and then I went back up to my grandparents’ house up the road and I went into the freezer to get some of my grandmother’s chocolate chip cookies — she makes really good cookies. My mom and my dad and my sister and my brother were already up there just kind of hanging out so I sat on the couch with them and it was the start of the third round. L.A. just came up on the ticker and it said my name. It was crazy.”

After three seasons with the Soo, Villalta bounced between the AHL and ECHL in the Kings’ organization before L.A. opted not to qualify him after last season.

The Coyotes then signed Villalta, who made the AHL All-Star Game after an excellent start to the season with Tucson (22-11-1, 2.58 goals-against average, .913 save percentage).

Villalta hails from the same area as another goalie with Coyotes ties — Mike Smith, from Verona, Ont. Smith played for both the Coyotes and Oilers during his 670-game NHL career.

Watch the Oilers-Coyotes game at 4 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. MT on Sportsnet ONE or Sportsnet+.