His head protected by a plaster cast, Mattson continued to tend goal for the Gophers after suffering a fractured jaw in 1954.

Jim Mattson, who played for the Gophers in the mid-1950s, was a thinking man’s goaltender in the mold of NHL Hall of Famer Ken Dryden. Mattson used his head as much as his hands and feet. He was a first-team All-American and made the NCAA all-tournament teams in his sophomore and junior seasons. He still holds the University of Minnesota career records for goals-against average (2.48) and save percentage (.906). And all without a mask (save for the temporary cast shown at right).

Before joining the Gophers, Mattson played in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and for the Minneapolis Bermans of the AHL, where he was a teammate of my Uncle Bob. Mattson also played 10 seasons for the Green Bay Bobcats of the Central and U.S. Hockey Leagues. According to a gophersports.com report on his induction into the M Club Hall of Fame last summer, he still played hockey three times a week at age 70. Whether or not he still plays goal, I’ll bet he uses better equipment.

In this story, Mattson offered Tribune readers some goaltending tips that have stood the test of time, despite the evolution in hockey theory and equipment: Don’t make the first move and keep your eyes on the puck. Easy, eh? You try it!

Goal Tending Easy? Join Gophers’ Jim Mattson in the Nets

For today’s lesson in the science of goal-tending step into the three-sided cage with Minnesota’s Jim Mattson, a 5-8, 140-pounder.

An opponent is skating in on you alone with the puck on a clean break when Mattson picks up the commentary.

“First, remember to keep your feet at all times and watch the puck. Don’t watch the man or any stick fakes, just keep your eyes glued to that black rubber disc.

“As he moves in closer watch for a long shot, but with a clean break he’s more likely to ride in on top. Okay, when he’s about 10 feet out, he’s most dangerous as far as goalie thinking is concerned, because you can’t get to him yet. If you leave your feet now, you’re through.

“Watch his every move and if you always can keep your body between the puck and the cage, he’ll never score. Now as he gets in close to the net, he’s less dangerous but then it becomes a game of who will make the first mistake.

“The goalie can’t commit himself. Watch his every move and move with him. When he moves, you’ve got to react just as quickly and adjust to the shift. But if he catches you moving, he’s got you beat. Don’t go for the deke or the fake.

“Now it’s time for the goalie to be quick with the stick. Maybe you can catch him in the middle of a move by poke-checking with your stick, or maybe, occasionally, by kicking the puck.”

That’s how Mattson, a 10-year veteran in the cage as a 22-year-old university senior, has helped Minnesota hockey become NCAA championship variety. Matty does not just don the pads and take the ice. He gives it a lot of thought, every move, every play. He doesn’t see the game in the attacking zone, because he watches just the legs.

“It gets down to who makes the mistake and if the goalie makes it, well, that’s fatal because there is one tally on the scoreboard against you,” Mattson continues.

“Sure, it’s nerve-wracking and tiring too, carrying that 30 pounds of equipment through 60 minutes over three periods.

“The toughest shot to stop? About six inches off the ice, just off the shoe tops. Of course, some screen shots can be awfully tough, too. Usually a long shot can be handled unless the puck tips over on end and dips.

“Best shooters are those who do it with a flick of the wrist, one who doesn’t have to wind up with a long sweep of the stick to shoot.” (Mattson calls Minnesota’s Johnny Mayasich the best college shot he’s seen.)

Jim Mattson shows the form that made him an All-America goaltender for the Gophers. Few of today’s goalies would dare face shots with so little protective gear — although I admit to playing four seasons for Holy Angels with Cooper leg pads just like these back in the mid-1970s.

Yes Mattson has ideas of giving pro hockey a whirl. He was once on the Minneapolis list after coming out of St. Louis Park high school and going into Canada for a couple of years.

Mattson credits Bill Durnan, a Montreal goalie, for giving him most help with his job, “but mostly it’s just a matter of experience and correcting your mistakes. My biggest job was to remain on my feet.”

Matty admits goal-tending is the toughest part of the game, but it has its compensations, too. He was not forced into the net, but took to it in the seventh grade when he experimented in building up a regular hockey stick to goal-tending size by tacking on boards.

And now he’s still holding the fort, where Coach John Mariucci of the Gophers says Mattson has kept them in many a game, especially on the last western tour.

“In building a hockey team,” adds Maroosh, “the first thing you do is get a goalie. Your team is only as strong as your goalie.”

So you see Mattson has made Minnesota a winner. He hopes the trend continues in the week-end series with North Dakota at Williams Arena.

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