Michigan hockey holds onto goalie Erik Portillo for next season

It may be a summer of change for Michigan hockey, but the Wolverines will have one thing stay the same: sophomore goaltender Erik Portillo will reportedly return for his junior season in Ann Arbor.

The 6-foot-6 Swede had the option to sign with the Buffalo Sabres, who drafted him in the third round (No. 67 overall), one spot after the Red Wings selected Swedish right win Albin Grewe. But Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that Portillo is headed back to school. Portillo was the fifth goalie selected in his class. Two of those four taken ahead of him — Spencer Knight for the Panthers (No. 13 overall) and Mads Søgaard for the Senators (No. 37) — but the pick is looking better and better for the Sabres despite having to wait another year.

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Portillo started all 42 games for the Wolverines during the 2021-22 season, stopping 92.6% of the shots he faced with a 2.14 goals-against average for a 31.10-1 record with three shutouts. That included a four-game stretch during the Big Ten tournament in which he stopped 90 of the 95 shots he faced in leading U-M to the conference title and an automatic berth in the NCAA tournament. For his efforts, Portillo was named the Big Ten tourney’s Most Outstanding Player.

Portillo wasn’t as effective in the NCAA tournament, though the Wolverines had defensive issues throughout, with American International, Quinnipiac and Denver combining for nine goals over three games. Still, the sophomore goalie won the first two games and kept his team in the national semifinal on Thursday in Boston. He allowed two goals in regulation, but stopped all nine shots he faced in the third period as the Wolverines forced overtime.

"He's an unbelievable goalie, and an unbelievable guy to have around on the team," senior captain and defenseman Nick Blankenburg said of Portillo after the 3-2 loss to Denver. "He's a great competitor. He'll do anything to win."

The 2019-20 USHL Goalie of the Year, Portillo didn’t make his U-M debut until Dec. 3, 2020, with the experienced Strauss Mann as the Wolverines’ starter. Portillo appeared in seven games as a freshman, stopping 93.5% of the shots he faced with a 1.67 GAA. He also played for his country, winning bronze at the 2020 World Juniors.

Michigan will be without sophomore stars Kent Johnson (a forward) and Owen Power (a defenseman), who signed three-year, entry-level deals with the Columbus Blue Jackets and Sabres, respectively, on Friday. (Blankenburg, an undrafted senior, signed a one-year deal with the Blue Jackets on Friday.)

Contact Ryan Ford at rford@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @theford. Read more on the Detroit Tigers and sign up for our Tigers newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Erik Portillo staying with Michigan hockey rather than jump to NHL