World on a string: How Jake Oettinger is navigating an exciting chapter in life

You know those moments in life when everything just feels right?

Maybe you recently got married to the love of your life. Perhaps you’re building a house with your new wife in the town where you both grew up. Maybe you’re on a roll at work and just signed a long-term extension. Heck, maybe all of that is playing out at the same time.

It feels like you’ve got the world by the tail, right?

“When you put it that way, yeah,” Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger said with a smile on Tuesday morning in Buffalo. “I was talking to my wife about all that has happened to us in 2024 and you can’t even make it up if you wanted to. It’s insane.”

That’s a pretty good way to summarize an incredibly busy year for the 25-year-old.

It all began with Oettinger going on a 24-7-2 run to help the Stars close the 2023-24 regular season as Central Division champions. He then led the team through an arduous 19-game playoff run that ended two wins short of the Stanley Cup Final. Following the season’s wrap, he tied the knot with his longtime girlfriend, Kennedi. And if that wasn’t enough to fill the 2024 memory bank, he also signed an eight-year, $66 million contract extension on October 17 that locks him in as the Stars’ starter for the prime of his career.

So yeah, it’s been a pretty fun ride.

“When I think about it that way, I’m grateful,” Oettinger added. “I’m the luckiest guy in the world, very blessed and have a lot of great people around me. 2024 is going to be really hard to beat.”

And to put the figurative cherry on top, Oettinger is off to a red-hot start backstopping the Stars in the 2024-25 season.

After winning four straight starts to open the campaign, Oettinger currently sits 4-1-0 with a .941 save percentage, 1.81 goals against average and one shutout. It’s his fourth straight season winning four of five games to open the year and once again has him near the top of the NHL goalie ranks.

It’s a much different story than a year ago. After dealing with surgery and the recovery that accompanied it for a large chunk of the 2023 offseason, Oettinger was able to get back into his normal routine this past summer.

“When you get three months in the offseason to grind like that, it’s so big for your body,” Oettinger said. “The summer before, I was playing catchup the entire summer and couldn’t do anything I wanted to do. Even like golf or hanging out with family, that part of it was affected, too. I didn’t really feel fresh going into that season.”

That all changed this past summer (along with a lot of other stuff, of course).

“I try to stay off the ice until I’m dying to get my gear back on or I’m fiddling with my equipment down in the basement. I think that’s a great sign, so that’s what I did this summer. I had two and a half months to really work on my body and on-ice game. I also got to spend a lot of time with family and friends and just be fresh and energized for the season.”

The early-season surge has tacked onto the 2017 first-round pick’s unbelievable career numbers in October. With a record of 13-2-1, Oettinger has the best win percentage of any goalie in NHL history during the month (minimum 15 games played). Tack on a .945 save percentage and 1.63 GAA and you’ve got a serious weapon that can help your team soar out of the gate.

“As a goalie, you can have a big impact on the season right away if you’re hot,” Oettinger said. “Obviously, every team isn’t going to have their best game right away and have the growing pains of new guys, new systems and new seasons. If I can be a rock and have a big impact early in the year, there’s no better feeling.

“You’re setting yourself up at the start of the season like we did last year when we were in the driver’s seat the whole year. That’s what we want to do again this year and put ourselves in the best position to win the division again.”

And in a season where the Stars face a heavily-condensed schedule due to a trip to Finland, two weeks off in February, and several other factors, a fast start could mean everything in the big picture. That’s where a confident and sharp-off-the-draw goalie pays dividends.

I’ll try to keep that going, and my next focus will be on my November stats,” Oettinger said with a laugh.

What’s next on tap for Oettinger in the here and now is a trip to Boston to face the Bruins. It’s a city he’s quite familiar with after playing three seasons at Boston University. The goalie amassed 109 games and a career save percentage of .923 during his time as a student athlete. He also became a bit of a Bruins fan in the process after BU teammate Charlie McAvoy signed his entry-level deal with the NHL club. McAvoy would often get his college teammates tickets to home games, and Oettinger spent many a night at TD Garden watching some of the best goalies in the world. From Henrik Lundqvist to Andrei Vasilevskiy, Oettinger forged plenty of fun memories in the stands during his time in the Northeast.

Of course, now he’s taken their place on the ice and is putting together a new set of memories at the Bruins home barn. That includes now being the one getting former teammates as well as his college goalie coach, Brian Eklund, and his family tickets to the game when the Stars are in town.

“It’s one of my favorite cities in the world,” Oettinger said. “Every time the calendar comes out, I’m looking for that road trip. I’m so excited every time I go back there. It’s got a special place in my heart. I love playing in that building, too.”

And if all of the hoopla and life-changing moments weren’t already plentiful enough, Oettinger is two games away from hitting 200 in his young NHL career. His 117 wins are the most through the first 198 games of any goalie in franchise history and is in search of his fourth straight season with 30 or more wins.

“It’s just a dream that I’ve even been able to play this many games in the NHL,” Oettinger said. “It’s something I don’t take for granted. It’s crazy because I feel like I still haven’t played close to my best hockey yet. I feel like my best is yet to come. I’m pretty proud to have played that many games already, and hopefully there’s a lot more in the future.”

When you step back and take a look at the big picture, Oettinger seems to be in a great spot in life, both professionally and personally.

But the goaltender isn’t letting himself rest on the good times.

“It’s going great right now, but goaltending is the most humbling position in the world,” Oettinger said. “I know it’s game-by-game, so I’m just trying to keep doing what I’m doing well right now and still working on some stuff I need to get better at.”

A 4-2 loss to the Sabres on Tuesday reiterated the power of that mindset. Like a metaphor for life, taking it game-by-game is the smartest move for a Stars team hoping for an even longer and more successful season than the previous two.

At the heart of it all sits Oettinger, and there’s nowhere else the goalie would rather be.

“Times are going to be great and times are going to be tough,” Oettinger said. “You have to enjoy the whole thing, no matter what.”

Pretty wise advice from a 25-year-old with the world seemingly on a string right now.

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.