Hornets Goaltender Rob Madore Ready to Compete for Starting Job with Chicago Steel

May 6, 2006By Brian McDonough - USHL Director of Communications

The Chicago Steel auditioned five goaltenders last season while allowing the most goals against in the entire USHL. That translated into the league's worst record and an immediate search for a bona fide goaltending tandem.

The Steel wasted no time addressing the issue during Thursday's USHL Entry Draft, as Chicago jumped on two blue-chip netminders with its first two picks.
Cushing Academy's Richard Bachman, who was picked No.1 overall, and the Pittsburgh Hornets' Rob Madore, who went with the first pick in the second round (13th overall), are the only two keepers the Steel plans on using this season as second-year Chicago coach-GM Chris Imes began his assembly of a championship contender.
"He (Imes) led on to the fact that if you look at the two teams last year that were in the finals (Des Moines and Sioux Falls), both of them had exceptional goaltenders," said Madore. "I know that's a recipe for success and Richard Bachman and I will be able to fit the bill there and try to make a run at a Clark Cup."

Both goaltenders boast winning resumes. In 29 games at Cushing this season, Bachman held a 2.06 goals-against average and a .931 save percentage. The Colorado College recruit also backstopped the Boston Jr. Bruins' 18-and-under midget team to the Tier 1 national championship last month (the B's defeated the Chicago Chill in overtime, 2-1).
His efforts didn't go unnoticed by NHL Central Scouting, which pegged Bachman No. 26 among North American goaltenders on its final rankings of 2006 of draft eligibles.

Madore guided the Hornets to the semifinals of the 18-and-under Tier 1 midget nationals the past two years. In 63 appearances this season (including nationals), he fashioned a 38-20-3-3 record to compliment a 1.98 goals-against average and a .934 save percentage. The Hornets lost in the national semis this year to the Chill, who had four players selected in the first two rounds of the draft.

News of his No. 1 selection didn't come as a complete surprise - Chicago told him a few days earlier that he might go first overall - but Bachman was nonetheless humbled by the recognition.
"I was at school when it happened and all my buddies told me, so I was pretty excited," said Bachman, who was drafted into the USHL last year by Tri-City but decided to finish his high school career at Cushing. "It shows that Chicago has a lot of confidence in me to come in and do the job for them. There's the pressure of being the No. 1 draft choice, but it think it will be fun to prove that I deserve my selection." Madore, on the other hand, wants to prove some people wrong, specifically the USHL teams that overlooked him in the first round of the draft.

"I was watching (the draft on the Internet) and saw team after team pass me up and that adds a little chip on my shoulder," said Madore, who talked to a number of teams prior to the draft. "Not to sound cocky, but I'm kind of surprised I didn't go higher, because I know there's a lot of teams that need goaltenders, but that's just a little added incentive to work my tail off.
"But it's very exciting. I'm just looking forward to the season starting. I've been working hard since I started playing hockey and I've been working to get to this point right here, and obviously I'm working to get to the NHL, but this is the step I have to take and I'm really looking forward to going in and competing with Bachman."

Both Bachman, who turns 19 in July, and Madore, who turns 18 on May 28, are valuing the stiff competition in anticipation of molding each other into better goaltenders."I actually like that they picked a goalie in the second round," said Bachman, a Highlands Ranch, Colo., native. "I know a little bit about Madore. It will be good to have good competition at practice and have someone there pushing me to keep getting better."

"He's definitely a very good goaltender," Madore said of Bachman. "I don't want to take anything away from him. He's the first overall pick and he's got a scholarship to Colorado College, but don't think for a second that that's going to intimidate me."Bachman's Bruins and Madore's Hornets faced off against each other at last year's national tournament. The Hornets won, 5-3, but Bachman didn't play."No one is going to give me a lot of credit because I'm the second goalie picked and Bachman was first, but I think the competition will be good for both of us," said Madore.

Both masked men are familiar with the Steel. A few of Bachman's teammates at Cushing are from Chicago and know a few of the Steel players. Madore is good friends with Chris Clackson, who just finished his second season with Chicago and is heading to Western Michigan this coming fall.With Bachman's college future secured, Madore is looking forward to garnering more attention in that department. He's confident the situation will take care of itself with a solid season between USHL pipes."I know that if I go out there and play my game I'm not going to have any problems as far as that (college) goes," said Madore, who will be a high school senior in 2006-07. "Having a good team, which it looks like we will, definitely isn't going to hurt."

Madore lived out every young Pittsburgh player's fantasy for a day this past season. With goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury out with the flu and the team's AHL and ECHL affiliates on the road, he got between the pipes during a Pittsburgh Penguins practice.
"I got the call up," Madore joked. "I was in awe with all these future Hall of Famers, players you watch on TV, but I picked up a lot of good practice habits, like going all out every time."
Madore credits much of his recent success the Hornets' strong defensive unit."I have to thank my defensemen from the last two years for helping me get this far," he said. "I wouldn't be here without them. As a goaltender, without a good defense you're up the creek without a paddle."
Regardless of where either went in the draft, both Bachman and Madore know their work ethic - and ultimately their performance - will dictate their minutes.

"I think he (Imes) expects me to come in and be the guy," said Bachman. "Obviously I have to go in and prove that, but it's a good opportunity for me.""I'm just looking forward to going all out no matter where I am - at home working out or on the ice - just because I want to win that starting job,"