Welcome to the big leagues, kid.

20-year-old Vancouver Canucks goaltending prospect Ty Young made his professional debut with the Kalamazoo Wings (ECHL) on Sunday, stopping 38 of 39 shots faced against the Cincinnati Cyclones.

With his team up by just one goal, Young denied seven shots in the dying minutes to solidify his first professional victory and take home the game’s first star.

In a tradition that dates back to 2004, Young’s victory came on the ‘Orange Ice Game,’ where Kalamazoo players take the ice on an all-orange Halloween-themed surface. If your first professional game – and win – wasn’t already memorable, doing so on an all-orange ice surface will certainly engrain it into your memory.

Young playing pro games this year was no guarantee. As recently as two weeks ago, whether Young’s 2024–25 starts would come at the pro ranks or back in junior was still unclear.

Last year, the 2022 fifth-round draft pick had lost the crease to Joshua Ravensbergen (2025 NHL draft-eligible) midway through the season, and there was no guarantee that he’d see much, if any, ice time should he return.

Despite losing his starting role, Young still managed to post his best statistical season, sporting a 23-11-0 record with a 2.79 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage. Combined with a strong training camp, which caught the eyes of the coaching staff in Vancouver, his game felt ready to take on an elevated role. And a 38-save debut performance is a good way to instill confidence and trust.

Newly appointed goaltending coach Marco Torenius is quite familiar with Young’s game and bullish on his future development, having worked with him directly throughout last season. “I worked with him last year [at training camp],” Young shared with CanucksArmy. “He also came up to Prince George a couple of times, too. He always sends me clips and stuff, so I worked with him quite a bit.”

Of course, the goal does not stop at his first ECHL win. Using Sunday’s strong performance as a catalyst, Young aims to see more starts with the third-tier affiliates and eventually earn a promotion to Abbotsford. With Nikita Tolopilo playing strong hockey and the newly signed Jiri Patera swapping starting in Abbotsford, it may take patience as he awaits his opportunity for promotion.

For now, battling with AHL-signed Jonathan Lemieux in Kalamazoo, the 38-save victory is a nice story and a solid introduction to fast-track himself toward starts in the near future.

Young’s next opportunity to see game action will be next Friday, November 1st when the Wings host the Indy Fuel. The Kalamazoo Wings have begun their season with a perfect 3-0-0-0 record.