Former Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk tries his hand at broadcasting

Former Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk is now retired and has entered the broadcasting field, working with the NHL Network.

By Dane Mizutani / St. Paul Pioneer Press

October 26, 2022 at 9:10 PM

ST. PAUL -- Devan Dubnyk shot a 77 at Interlachen Country Club on Wednesday despite a pesky frost delay that pushed back his original tee time.

It was his lowest score of the year — and just in time for the golf season to come to a close in Minnesota.

“Exactly,” Dubnyk said with a laugh during a chat with the Pioneer Press shortly after finishing up. “Maybe my last round.”

Now that he is retired from the NHL, the 36-year-old Dubnyk is enjoying his time away from the rink. He’s also finding ways to stay involved in the game, trying his hand at broadcasting as an analyst for NHL Network.

“Honestly, it was pretty random how it happened,” said Dubnyk, who made a name for himself in Minnesota as the goaltender who saved the 2014-15 season for the Wild. “I always thought I could potentially do it at some point. Just never really thought about until during the playoffs.”

The story goes a little something like this. While watching the first round of the playoffs last spring from his suburban Minnesota home, Dubnyk remembers getting the itch.

“I was in the basement watching the first round, and I was like, ‘I think I could do that,’ ” Dubnyk said. “I was literally sitting there and texted my agent and asked if he knew anyone over at NHL Network.”

Not long after his agent reached out, Dubnyk hopped on Zoom for a brief interview. He felt good about how it went and thought maybe he might be in the rotation at some point in the future. Not quite.

“They got back to me and asked if I could come in, like, 10 days,” Dubnyk said with a laugh. “I was like, ‘Umm, sure.’ ”

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His first day on the job was May 26. That happened to be the same day the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames played a game that featured four goals in less than 90 seconds.

“I got thrown into the fire there,” Dubnyk said. “I remember we came back from break and there were so many goals in that game that I hadn’t seen all of them. It was live and I was trying to give my take on a goal that I hadn’t even seen yet, just because it happened so quick.”

The fact that Dubnyk enjoyed that first day on the job despite it being so chaotic was all the proof he needed. He chatted with NHL Network a little bit more over the summer and worked out an agreement for this season.

He will make his regular season debut on Thursday, Friday and Saturday as an analyst on NHL Tonight. Fittingly, the Wild play the Ottawa Senators at 6 p.m. Thursday. Which means Dubnyk will get a chance to commentate on his former team.

Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk is interviewed in the team locker room at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul in 2017.

“The hosts are incredible,” Dubnyk said. “I’ve worked with Jamie Hersch, Jamison Coyle and Tony Luftman. It’s unbelievable to watch them work. They run the entire show, and they are so good at letting me know when it’s my time to talk. I never have to think about that. Then they will let me know when it’s time to stop talking.”

The biggest thing Dubnyk has had to work on is making sure to look at the camera.

“I had a bad habit at the start,” he said. “I kept glancing up at the TVs. I watched it back and I could see myself glancing up to look at the TV. I was like, ‘Alright I’ve got to stop doing that.’ ”

Asked if he wants to bring anything specific to NHL Network now that he’ll be in the rotation, Dubnyk said he’s hoping to share a goalie’s point of view.

“I wanted to go on there and explain to people what it’s like,” Dubnyk said. “It’s almost unacceptable nowadays for a goalie to get beat by a shot.”

More than anything, though, Dubnyk wants to bring a sense of positivity to the set. That shouldn’t be too difficult for him. He was among the most personable people during his playing days.

“It’s been fun to stay in the game,” Dubnyk said. “There were some nerves going in. Now, getting a chance to do it more, I’ve been able to put my own personality in there. I’m really enjoying it.”

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