Ty Conklin

Who is Ty Conklin?

Ty Curtis Conklin is an American retired professional ice hockey goaltender. He most previously played with the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League.

Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Conklin grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, and was an early recruit of the now-famed Minnesota hockey prep school Shattuck-St. Mary's. He later played under Don Granato for the Green Bay Gamblers of the United States Hockey League, before attending the University of New Hampshire and playing for the Wildcats under long-tenured coach Dick Umile.

A self-described "late-bloomer", and "shorter kid" at age 18, while spending his draft-eligible years remaining off the radar of professional scouts – first as a post-graduate at Shattuck, and then in his first year in Green Bay – Conklin went unclaimed by any team in the NHL's Entry Draft.

Subsequently, he went on to earn numerous goaltending awards and accolades in both the USHL and NCAA, however, Conklin claims he never thought of becoming a professional until his junior year at UNH.