Matt Villalta

Matthew Villalta (born June 3, 1999) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a goaltender for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the third round (72nd overall) of the 2017 NHL entry draft.

Playing career Villalta played for the Greater Kingston Jr. Frontenacs U16 team in 2014–15 and for the club's U18 squad in 2015–16. At age 15 in 2015, he was the only person from Greater Kingston to receive an invite to the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) combine. However, he was not selected in the OHL Draft and signed with the junior-B level Westport Rideaus.

Villalta began playing in the OHL for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds starting in 2016, after having impressed at a Greyhounds tryout. He appeared in 33 games with 28 starts in the 2016–17 season, having a 25–3–0–0 record with a .918 save percentage while having a team record 2.41 goals against average (GAA) mark. He received a league rookie of the month honor and became the winner of the F. W. "Dinty" Moore Trophy for having the best GAA in the league among first-year players.

Villalta was selected in the third round (72nd overall) of the 2017 NHL entry draft by the Los Angeles Kings. He returned to the Greyhounds for the 2017–18 season and had a 40–5–2–2 record while playing 49 games, having a save percentage of .908 with a GAA of 2.58. He was named third-team All-OHL and was the recipient of the Dave Pinkney Trophy for best GAA. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Kings on April 27, 2018.

Villalta played for the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League (AHL) in 2019–20, playing 22 games while having a record of 10–6–2–0, a save percentage of .899 and a 3.27 goals against average. He returned to the Reign in 2020–21 and had an 8–8–1 record while being one of the members of the Kings' taxi squad. The following season, he ranked third in the league with 28 wins and was fourth with 2660:32 minutes played; in 46 games played his record was 28–10–7, and he helped the team reach the AHL playoffs while having a .903 save percentage.

Villalta signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with Los Angeles on July 1, 2022. He played in 22 games and had a record of 12–8–1 in the 2022–23 season. He became a free agent after the season and signed with the Arizona Coyotes. He was sent to their AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, and became the team's top goaltender and one of the best in the league. He started the season with a record of 22–11–1 with a 2.58 GAA and .913 save percentage, being named an AHL All-Star before being recalled to the Coyotes. Three days later, he made his first start against the Edmonton Oilers, resulting in a 6–3 loss.

Personal life Villalta was born on June 3, 1999, in Kingston, Ontario.

Career statistics Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP W L OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV% 2016–17 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 33 25 3 0 1,795 72 1 2.42 .918 2 1 1 100 — 0 4.20 .841 2017–18 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 49 40 5 4 2,904 125 3 2.58 .908 24 14 9 1,416 — 1 3.30 .893 2018–19 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 51 33 12 5 2,930 148 1 3.03 .903 11 6 5 630 — 1 3.43 .885 2019–20 Fort Wayne Komets ECHL 8 4 3 1 468 30 0 3.85 .864 — — — — — — — — 2019–20 Ontario Reign AHL 22 10 6 2 1,157 63 0 3.27 .899 — — — — — — — — 2020–21 Ontario Reign AHL 18 8 8 1 1,016 58 1 3.43 .889 1 0 1 69 5 0 4.35 .828 2021–22 Ontario Reign AHL 46 28 10 10 2,661 132 0 2.98 .903 3 2 1 168 13 0 4.64 .829 2022–23 Ontario Reign AHL 22 12 8 1 1,288 57 1 2.65 .910 — — — — — — — — 2023–24 Tucson Roadrunners AHL 51 31 17 3 3,049 129 3 2.54 .911 2 0 2 117 5 0 2.56 .914 2023–24 Arizona Coyotes NHL 2 0 1 0 72 5 0 4.17 .828 — — — — — — — — 2024–25 Tucson Roadrunners AHL 43 18 22 3 2,532 128 4 3.03 .905 1 0 1 58 4 0 4.12 .826 2024–25 Utah Hockey Club NHL 1 1 0 0 60 3 0 3.00 .903 — — — — — — — — 2025–26 Tucson Roadrunners AHL 33 16 12 3 1914 99 1 3.10 .895 — — — — — — — —NHL totals 2 1 1 0 132 8 0 3.64 .867 — — — — — — — —