The Avalanche’s Trent Miner will make his first NHL start on Wednesday against the Blackhawks

Wednesday will be a day to remember for Trent Miner of the Colorado Avalanche, as the 23-year-old goaltender will earn his first ever NHL start against the Chicago Blackhawks, head coach Jared Bednar confirmed. Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette.

While Wednesday will mark Miner’s first start, his NHL debut came in mid-November against the Washington Capitals when he stepped in in relief of former Avalanche netminder Justus Annunen. In just under 35 minutes of action, Miner turned aside 12 of 13 shots in a final 5-2 loss.

Originally selected by the Avalanche in the seventh round of the 2019 NHL Draft, Miner has spent much of the last four seasons with the Colorado Eagles, the Avalanche’s top minor-league club. Through 16 outings with the Eagles this season, Miner has posted an 8-5-3 record along with a .903 save percentage and 2.47 goals against average.

In all, Miner’s time with the Eagles totals 46 games, during which he has established a winning record of 21-17-7. Miner also has significant professional experience at the ECHL level, counting as part of three seasons and 76 appearances with the Utah Grizzlies, finding the win column 39 times while recording a .911 save percentage and 2.88 goals against average.

Miner, a native of Brandon, Man., graduated from the WHL’s Vancouver Giants, counting parts of four seasons from 2017-21 in which he went 48-28-5 with a .910 save percentage and 2.49 goals-against average .

Miner was recalled by the Avalanche earlier this month after backup goaltender Scott Wedgewood suffered an injury that will keep him sidelined week-to-week. Miner joins an Avalanche team that has won eight of its last 10 outings and climbed into the Western Conference’s second wild-card position with a 25-15-1 record and 51 points.