Former Cyclones, MJDP Goaltender Hits Ice At Detroit Red Wings Development Camp

By Joshua Boyd / NCDCHockey.com 

First round draft picks, longtime prospects making the move from one pro level to the other, and red-hot NCAA Division I players looking for their first free agent contract. 

Goaltender Kristoffer Eberly was certainly in for a busy week in net when he signed on with the Detroit Red Wings Development Camp in early July. But the Ohio State University rising sophomore wouldn’t have had it any other way. 

“It was awesome and definitely a lot of fun. I learned a lot while I was there,” said Eberly, a former NCDC goaltender with the Northern Cyclones and also a USPHL Premier alum with the Metro Jets Development Program (MJDP). “You see all the little – and big – things that the professional guys do to make it to the next level. It was very eye-opening. It was also really cool to meet with and skate with guys like Pavel Datsyuk, Niklas Kronwall, Niklas Lidstrom, Kris Draper and Dan Cleary. The experience itself helped me learn a lot in a short time that I can put right into my game now. I think I did pretty well. When I got there, there was no stress and I just did my thing as best I could.” 

With Ohio State, Eberly put up a .911 save percentage in his 14 games as a freshman goaltender for the Buckeyes. Facing Big Ten competition nearly every weekend certainly put him into a good frame of reference to take on the snipiest of snipes from the Red Wings top young prospects. Knowing the illustrious history of the Red Wings franchise well, he was happy to have gotten his own shot to make a name for himself. 

“As a Michigan guy, I always rooted for the Red Wings. It was super cool to drive one hour from my home and put on a Red Wings practice jersey,” said Eberly. 

Whipping Up A Cyclone

Coming out of Dexter (Mich.) High School, Eberly joined the MJDP to start his junior career in 2019-20. He played in 14 Premier regular season games, posting a very impressive .925 save percentage. He also registered a .914 in a single playoff game that year. 

That introduction to junior hockey ultimately helped set Eberly up for the full season he would play two years later with the Northern Cyclones. In 2021-22, Eberly played 36 games for the NCDC Cyclones, and he registered a .924 save percentage in a 15-win season. 

“I can’t say enough good things about the Cyclones. I thought everything they had to offer was great, from Coaches Bill Flanagan and Bill Weiand to Joe Fallon, who was big for me as a goaltender coach,” said Eberly. “He had a really successful past, and being able to always talk to a guy like him, who was as successful as him, helped me a lot not only in terms of what to do in certain situations and reading the game, but he also helped a lot in reaching out to colleges.”

He praised the Cyclones as well for providing a college-like atmosphere for development, where players lived in a dorm and were able to access a gym essentially anytime they wanted. 

“That’s something I always took advantage of during my time there. The sky’s the limit where you can end up,” said Eberly. “I was a little older and out of high school, so I just put everything I had into hockey. Having that mindset transitioned me to the United States Hockey League.” 

Backstopping The Buckeyes

This past season, as aforementioned, Eberly was impressive in his first season with the Buckeyes, registering a .911 over 14 games, and he hopes to improve even more for his squad this year. 

“Last year, I had a slower start, but zeroing in, I was able to get into some games. We’re actually back in school in Ohio State. We have June and July at Ohio State, and then we’ll get August off. We’re allowed to work with our strength and conditioning coaches,” said Eberly. “I also have some goalie coaches I’m working with privately, and then I plan on heading home and going back to my gym and working out with my goalie coaches back home,” said Eberly. “In my time off, I also hope to get out on the golf course a bit.” 

The NCDC congratulates Kristoffer Eberly for earning a spot at the Detroit Red Wings Development Camp and we wish him the very best of luck in his college hockey future.