Gylander’s Phenomenal Colgate Career

Carter Gylander ’24 had a 2022-23 season for the ages. 

He helped the Raiders win the ECAC championship — the program’s first in more than three decades — and was recognized for his brilliance between the pipes when he was named the tournament’s MVP.

But Gylander, always striving to improve, has entered the new season itching to do better, not just individually but as a team. While the taste of glory has the Raiders salivating for another title, the conclusion of the 2022-23 regular season, when a crucial loss bumped Colgate from the No. 4 seed to the fifth, is still on the minds of everyone in maroon and white.

“The team is hungry for another title,” said Gylander, an economics major from Beaumont, Alberta. “I think we have some unfinished business. Not getting the fourth seed left a sour taste. We are using that as motivation for this year.”

Despite the short slide in the standings, the 2022-23 season was a triumphant achievement for Gylander. He started 39 out of Colgate’s 40 games, playing a whopping 2,385 minutes, which was the second-most in team history.

He broke the program record for saves in a season with 1,044, which led the ECAC and ranked fifth-most in the nation. He finished with a 2.46 GAA and two shutouts. 

In the conference playoffs, he played 88 minutes and stopped 40 out of 41 shots to take down No. 1 Quinnipiac in a dramatic 2-1 victory in double overtime. That’s the same Quinnipiac that later won the national title.

And in the ECAC championship game, where Colgate toppled Harvard 3-2, Carter was again outstanding, stopping 34 shots and taking home the ECAC Hockey Tournament Most Outstanding Player award along with the Whitelaw Cup.

Gylander said it was a nice recognition to be named the tournament’s MVP, but it can’t compare to winning a conference championship. 

“Winning a championship is by far more important than being the MVP,” he said. “It’s nice to be recognized, but a lot of guys stepped up and played really well in that tournament, and a lot of guys deserved to win that accolade.”

Stellar goaltending is a commodity that not all teams can enjoy. But for those who have it, it’s an enormous weapon. It means any game is winnable, and even the mightiest of opponents could be slayed. Colgate beat Quinnipiac twice in 2022-23, which includes a win in the regular season.

And the Raiders certainly have top goaltending in Gylander, who works tirelessly to refine his game and maintains sky-high expectations for himself — all while working on his degree in economics. 

The many hours he’s spent developing his skills with Colgate coaches and fellow teammates have been crucial to his success. But another important component is his off-season training with another team — the Detroit Red Wings.

WELCOME TO DETROIT

Gylander was working a summer job at a golf course near Edmonton in 2019 when he received the phone call. On the other line was his advisor, who broke the news that the Red Wings had drafted him in the seventh round.

He was 17 at the time, playing for the Sherwood Park Crusaders of the AJHL, a top junior hockey league in Alberta. He was still a year or so away from beginning his college career. After a strong season with the Crusaders, Gylander believed he should be drafted.

When the call came, it was a relief. 

“That phone call was a really cool feeling,” he said. “The Red Wings — it’s definitely a great organization to be drafted by. It’s an original six team. The hockey culture in Detroit is top-notch. And to be drafted by Steve Yzerman is really cool, too. It was a surreal feeling.”

Friends and family called to congratulate him. And soon after that, members of the Red Wings organization were on the line, inviting him to their development camp that was going to start right away in Detroit. 

“I had to head to Detroit immediately after that. It was bang-bang, a quick turnaround,” he said.

From that point on, he would spend parts of each summer training with Red Wings coaches, prospects, and other players from across the organization.

His ice time with NHL players was an enormous learning experience. But equally important was the time he spent off the ice, training and picking up tips on being a better hockey player.

“It’s pretty cool, especially skating with multiple goalie coaches and skill coaches, and being on the ice and in the gym with NHL regulars. It’s an awesome feeling and great getting that exposure and being in that pro environment.

“It has helped me a lot over the last few years, learning how to be a pro and picking up habits that they practice.”

LIFE AT COLGATE

Colgate coaches found Gylander while he was playing at Sherwood. A year before the Red Wings drafted him, he was already in talks with Colgate about coming to Hamilton, N.Y. 

One of the coaches who met him in western Canada was Mike Harder ’97, who was an assistant coach at the time. Harder and other coaches stopped by his house for dinner, met his family, and told him everything he needed to know about the University.

Gylander later completed a virtual tour and committed to Colgate without making an official visit. An opportunity to play for a strong hockey program while receiving an excellent education was paramount in his decision. 

“From speaking to the coaches, they absolutely sold me, and I’m really glad they did,” Gylander said.

His courses proved to be as demanding as he had expected. By his sophomore year, he had settled into his work, learning how to better manage his time. 

Gylander said he appreciates Colgate’s small class sizes. 

“My classes here are smaller than my classes in high school, where we had 1,000 students,” he said. "Being able to have that student-professor relationship at Colgate, it’s pretty unique. You’re not in a 300-student lecture. 

“Colgate’s economics degree is top-notched. It was a really attractive degree, and that was one of the reasons I chose Colgate.”

He’s also savored the University’s strong sense of community, which reminds him of his hometown.

“It’s very tight knit, it’s very community based. You can tell,” he said. “You walk around campus and there will be people who you see every day and will be saying hello to you. Colgate feels like home to me.”

Gylander wants to pursue pro hockey after he graduates. While he’s part of the Red Wings organization, he still has to receive a contract offer before he could be assigned to a team within its farm system. That offer could come after he graduates. 

His impact on Colgate hockey goes beyond his work on the ice. When the Raiders began a search following the retirement of Don Vaughan over the summer, Gylander and other teammates were involved in the search. 

Gylander said he was grateful for the opportunity to provide input on the next coach, who became Harder, the coach who recruited him. 

He also appreciates the visit he received from Harder, who traveled across North America to meet every student-athlete and recruit on the team after he was hired. 

Now with the 2023-24 season well underway and a new coaching system in place, Gylander said the team is dialed in, ready to tackle the many conference battles that await over the winter. 

“We are coming off the championship year, and our expectation is to do it again,” he said. “That’s always been our goal and I think we have the right pieces and the staff to do it again. We are really excited about it.”