Michael McNiven

Michael McNiven (born July 9, 1997) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. Originally undrafted by teams in the National Hockey League (NHL), McNiven played seven seasons of professional ice hockey between 2018–2024, mostly in the Montreal Canadiens organization.

Early life McNiven was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. After his parents were unable to take care of him, he was raised by his paternal grandparents, Jim and Christine. Although he had limited contact with his mother, McNiven's relationship with his father improved throughout his adolescence. He spent the 2012–13 minor ice hockey season as a goaltender for the Halton Hurricanes of the South-Central Triple A Hockey League (SCTA), where he posted an 11–9 record and 1.48 goals against average (GAA).

Playing career Junior McNiven joined the Georgetown Raiders of the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) for the 2013–14 season; at 16 years old, he was younger than many other players in the league, who were around the age of 20. McNiven finished the season with a 21–10 record and a .915 save percentage; despite not being expected to make the OJHL playoffs, the Raiders defeated both the Milton Menace and the Buffalo Jr. Sabres before falling to the Toronto Lakeshore Patriots in the West conference finals. That May, he was awarded both the Jim Rutherford Trophy as the best goaltender in the OHL, and the CHL Goaltender of the Year award. He finished the season with a 41–9–4 record, 2.30 GAA.915 save percentage, and six shutouts in 54 games.

Professional After going undrafted in the 2015 NHL entry draft, the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL) signed McNiven to a three-year, entry-level contract on September 24, 2015. He made his NHL debut on January 24, 2022, relieving Cayden Primeau in the third period of an 8–2 loss to the Minnesota Wild. Primeau left the game after allowing five goals on 32 shots, while McNiven allowed an additional three on seven shots. On March 2, 2022, McNiven was traded to the Calgary Flames in exchange for future considerations. Before he made an appearance within the Flames organization, McNiven was again traded to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for future considerations on March 21, 2022.

As a free agent from the Senators after his contract, McNiven went unsigned over the summer. Approaching the 2022–23 season without an NHL or American Hockey League (AHL) offer, McNiven was signed to a contract with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits of the ECHL on October 10, 2022.

In November 2023, McNiven agreed to a one-year contract to join the Wheeling Nailers for the 2023–24 season. After appearing in six games for the Nailers, posting a 3.98 GAA and a save percentage of 0.859, McNiven was traded to the Savannah Ghost Pirates on December 6, 2023. Just over a month later, McNiven would be traded to the Cincinnati Cyclones on January 26, 2024, his second transaction of the season. However, McNiven opted to continue his professional career overseas, agreeing to a contract with the France-based Rapaces de Gap of the Ligue Magnus in early February 2024.

In August 2024, McNiven announced his retirement from active play. He subsequently took an assistant coaching position with the Powell River Kings of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) beginning in the 2024–25 season.

Career statistics Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP W L OTL MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV% 2013–14 Georgetown Raiders OJHL 35 21 10 0 1,891 82 5 2.60 890 13 8 5 778 35 0 2.70 .908 2014–15 Owen Sound Attack OHL 24 15 8 0 1,334 62 2 2.79 .914 — — — — — — — — 2015–16 Owen Sound Attack OHL 53 21 18 10 2,964 145 3 2.94 .902 6 2 4 360 22 1 3.67 .875 2016–17 Owen Sound Attack OHL 54 41 9 4 3,184 122 6 2.30 .915 17 10 7 992 46 2 2.78 .908 2017–18 Laval Rocket AHL 25 6 16 2 1,407 82 0 3.50 .884 — — — — — — — — 2017–18 Brampton Beast ECHL 4 0 2 1 201 14 1 4.19 .868 — — — — — — — — 2018–19 Laval Rocket AHL 30 11 12 6 1,619 68 2 2.52 .902 — — — — — — — — 2018–19 Brampton Beast ECHL 1 1 0 0 62 2 0 1.94 .935 — — — — — — — — 2019–20 Laval Rocket AHL 3 3 0 0 180 7 0 2.33 .919 — — — — — — — — 2019–20 Adirondack Thunder ECHL 4 3 1 0 240 7 2 1.75 .941 — — — — — — — — 2019–20 Jacksonville IceMen ECHL 10 4 5 1 559 26 1 2.79 .915 — — — — — — — — 2019–20 Norfolk Admirals ECHL 8 2 5 1 476 33 0 4.16 .889 — — — — — — — — 2020–21 Laval Rocket AHL 13 7 3 3 787 34 1 2.59 .895 — — — — — — — — 2021–22 Laval Rocket AHL 11 4 4 1 520 35 1 4.04 .869 — — — — — — — — 2021–22 Montreal Canadiens NHL 1 0 0 0 20 3 0 9.00 .571 — — — — — — — — 2021–22 Belleville Senators AHL 2 0 0 1 100 6 0 3.61 .878 — — — — — — — — 2022–23 Greenville Swamp Rabbits ECHL 8 4 1 2 472 20 0 2.54 .913 — — — — — — — — 2023–24 Wheeling Nailers ECHL 6 2 2 1 331 22 0 3.98 .859 — — — — — — — — 2023–24 Savannah Ghost Pirates ECHL 7 0 4 1 328 16 0 2.93 .886 — — — — — — — — 2023–24 Rapaces de Gap Ligue Magnus 7 2 5 0 389 23 0 3.29 .893 — — — — — — — —NHL totals 1 0 0 0 20 3 0 9.00 .571 — — — — — — — —

Awards and honours Award Year RefOHL CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game 2014–15 F. W. "Dinty" Moore Trophy 2014–15 First All-Rookie Team 2014–15 Dave Pinkney Trophy 2016–17 Jim Rutherford Trophy 2016–17 CHL Goaltender of the Year 2016–17