By definition, self-confidence is a feeling of trust in one’s abilities, qualities, and judgment.
It is a huge component of a professional athlete’s overall makeup and can make or break their performance.
No one knows this better than a goaltender in the NHL.
“When you have confidence, the game is so easy,” New Jersey Devils netminder Nico Daws said to The Hockey News. “The second you lose it, it is so hard to get it back.”
At 24 years old, Daws is experiencing the mental ebbs and flows that are part of the development players in his position deal with, while his goaltending partner, Jake Allen, has already lived it.
“Everyone goes through it,” Allen said. “There are not many goalies that don’t go through it. If they don’t, then I would like to meet them. It is just part of the game. It is impossible in today’s world not to have bad games in this position. It is just the nature of the position.”
Daws was called up from the Utica Comets of the American Hockey League on Feb. 1 and played his first NHL game this season a few nights later against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Feb. 4. He earned a 3-2 shootout victory for his 20th career NHL win.
Sep 26, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; New Jersey Devils goalie Nico Daws (50) is sprayed during the third period against the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports
It was a quality return to the League for Daws after a difficult start with the Comets, who struggled to start the 2024-25 season as a team.
Before his call-up, Daws revealed to The Hockey News that things had been tough for him between the losses that piled up in October and a lower-body injury that kept him off the ice around the holidays.
Even still, his confidence grew as the calendar year progressed, and he focused on the mental side of goaltending.
“You can play 10 amazing games in a row, and then you play one bad game, and you feel a little shaky right away,” Daws shared. “It is something I am trying to work on, just letting go of the past and focusing on the present.”
“I have been in a lot of these young guy’s shoes,” Allen said. “A lot of times, they put their own pressure on themselves, more so than there actually is, and I think that is the realistic viewpoint.”
That self-imposed pressure can be daunting for young players who, game to game, don’t have full control over their stat lines.
“I think the minute that you can accept your stats are your stats and not worry about…