Spencer Knight

Spencer Knight (born April 19, 2001) is an American professional ice hockey goaltender for the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Panthers, 13th overall, in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.

Playing career
Ranked as the top eligible goaltender in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, Knight was the first goaltender chosen, selected 13th overall by the Florida Panthers. It marked the first time in franchise history that Florida chose a goaltender in the first round.

Knight played collegiate hockey with the Boston College Eagles in the Hockey East. He emerged during his freshman year as one of the NCAA's top netminders, earning a top-10 finish in the Mike Richter Award voting with his 1.97 GAA, .931 SV%, and 23–8–2 record over 33 games, along with 5 shutouts. He also was named to the conference All-Rookie team and Second All-Star Team.

He excelled again during his sophomore season with a 2.18 GAA and .932 SV%, going 16–4–1 in 21 games with 3 shutouts during the COVID-19 pandemic-abbreviated year. Knight's performance earned a number of accolades; he was named a CCM/ACHA First Team All-American, a top 3 finalist for the Mike Richter Award and a top 10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. He earned conference Player of the Year and Goaltending Champion honors and was a Hockey East First Team All-Star.

Following his sophomore season with Boston College, Knight left college and signed with the Florida Panthers to a three-year, entry-level contract on March 31, 2021. On April 20, Knight made his NHL debut and earned his first win with a 5–1 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. He also became the first goaltender born in the 21st century to play in the NHL. After securing a 5–4 overtime victory over the Dallas Stars on May 2, Knight became the youngest goaltender in NHL history to start their career 4–0.

Knight made his Stanley Cup playoffs debut on May 24, in Game 5 of the Panthers' first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Down 3–1 in the series, he was given the start over both Sergei Bobrovsky and Chris Driedger in an attempt to stave off elimination. Just 53 seconds into the game, Knight allowed a goal on his first shot faced. However, he made 36 straight saves afterwards en route to a 4–1 victory. In doing so, Knight became the second youngest goaltender ever to win their postseason debut, and was also the very first goaltender to appear in both the Stanley Cup playoffs and the NCAA Tournament in the same calendar year. However, the Panthers would be eliminated in the next game, ultimately falling 4–2 in the series to the Lightning.

International play
Knight was the starting goaltender for the United States at the 2021 World Juniors played in Edmonton, Alberta. Knight posted a 1.63 GAA and a .940 SV%, he started seven games and went 6–1 during the tournament, including wins in all three playoff rounds and a 2–0 shutout of Canada in the gold medal game to give the US its fifth title.