A topic that has been of serious concern to Montreal Canadiens fans has been the depth and quality of the goaltending prospect pool. Jakub Dobes has been quietly going about proving that it shouldn’t be as much of a concern.
Related: Canadiens Prospect Pyramid: Midseason 2022-23
The Hockey Writers got to sit down with Jakub Dobes in an exclusive interview to get to know more about the Canadiens’ 2020 fifth-round selection. When he sat down with me, Jakub was at the end of a long day, but he was still upbeat, polite, and in a good mood. He is a good young man with great character, and it shows in how he approaches the game and also in his interactions.
Who Is Jakub Dobes?
The native of Ostrava, Czechia, was raised in a blue-collar family by a school teacher (his mother Viera) and a road construction manager (his father Zdenek), where he was taught the importance of hard work and education, lessons he has put to use as a student-athlete. He was born to be an athlete. His mother was a figure skater who competed in World Championships, and his father played professionally in Czechia.
Last season, Dobes leaped onto the radar screens of Habs prospect watchers. During the 2021-22 season, he put up a record of 21-12-2 with 2.26 goals against average (GAA) and a .934 save percentage (SV%), earning him NCAA Big 10 conference goaltender of the year and a nomination for the Mike Richter Award (top goaltender in the NCAA).
So far this season, Dobes, who majors in international business, has started every Ohio State game and has put up stellar numbers. His record after 26 games is 16-9-1, which places him second nationally in wins this year (16), and he ranks in the top 15 in goals-against average (2.18) and save percentage (.921). He is one of three Ohio State candidates for the Hobey Baker Award. These are possibly strong enough to have him in the Mike Richter Award for the 2022-23 season. His goaltending coach at Ohio State University, Dustin Carlson, expects him to leave for the professional game soon stating:
“Its wishful thinking to believe he will play the full four seasons here (Ohio State). If he stays another season that would be fantastic.”
–Dustin Carlson (Guillaume Lefrancois, Développement en accéléré pour Jakub Dobes, La Presse, 23 Nov 2022)
The Canadiens hold his rights until August of 2025. And while his numbers seem slightly lower this season in comparison to last season, his consistent…
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