6'3" - 190 LBS
D.O.B. July 24, 1994
The 45th overall pick of the Belleville Bulls started the 2010-11 season as a backup for the Jr A Nepean Raiders. An unfortunate injury to their starter thrust Altshuller into the limelight.
After a somewhat rocky start, he went on a run that opened everyone's eyes. It eventually led to an invite to the Team Ontario Camp for the U-17 World Challenge where expectations were low. But he eventually won the starters job and led Ontario to a gold medal and was named the tournaments top goaltender. He posted a 1.66 GAA and .924 SV% in the 6 games.
Once again as a long shot, Altshuller was invited to Team Canada Camp for the Ivan Hlinka Tournament where he wasn't expected to make the squad. And once again he beat the odds and led Canada to a gold medal with a 4-1 record and a 1.29 GAA while being named player of the game in Canada's final game.
It became evident that Altshuller was going the NCAA route where he could be a starter and finally, on August 31, the Bulls pulled the trigger and traded him to the Oshawa Generals. The Generals weak spot heading towards camp was obviously their goaltending. The acquisition of Altshuller solidifies the position for them and he will no doubt get the bulk of the action in goal.
So far in preseason, Altshuller has lived up to all the hype and then some. We have him ranked second in draft eligible goaltenders behind Malcolm Subban, but if he continues winning as he has everywhere he has played, he will quite easily dominate his position. Prior to the trade, and if Altshuller had chosen the Bulls over the NCAA, the Bulls could have had the OHL's most dominant tandem in goal in recent history with Altshuller and Subban.
Altshuller has good size, positions himself well while taking up large portions of the net in doing so. He has excellent lateral movement and very quick reflexes. He's well poised and is especially strong mentally, always thinking about the next save whether he just let in a bad goal or made a great save. He seems to play with that Carey Price calmness about him under pressure and with a heavy workload.
Photo courtesy of Aaron Bell
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