PORTLAND, ME – September 21, 2021 – The Mariners added two more rookies to their 2021-22 roster on Tuesday, announcing the signings of forward Mathew Santos and goaltender Zachary Bouthillier. Santos becomes the second Ryerson University alumnus to sign in as many weeks while Bouthillier, a former NHL draft pick, is the first goaltender on the roster.
Mathew Santos is a 26-year-old forward from Etobicoke, ON who has played in the Ontario Hockey League, the ECHL, and USports. From 2013-16, he was with the OHL’s North Bay Batallion, where he averaged more than a point-per-game in his final season of 2015-16, when he registered 69 points (29 goals, 40 assists) in 64 games. He was also an alternate captain that season.
Santos jumped into the ECHL with the Toledo Walleye in 2016-17, appearing in 49 games, scoring six goals and adding six assists. After not playing in 2017-18, he enrolled at Ryerson University, where he joined the Rams for the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons. Each year he was in the top two on the team in scoring, totaling 79 points in 54 career USports games. Santos was a Ryerson teammate of forward Devon Paliani, who signed with the Mariners last week.
Zachary Bouthillier is the first goaltender in the mix, joining the Mariners from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In the “Q,” Bouthillier spent time with three different organizations. In 2016-17 with the Shawinigan Cataractes, he posted impressive stats as a rookie, with a record of 11-2-4, a 3.09 goals-against average, and a .889 save percentage. Prior to the start of the 2017-18 season, Bouthillier was dealt to the Chicoutimi Saguenéens. Despite having average regular season numbers, he was fantastic in six playoff games with a 2.76 GAA and a sparkling .931 SV%. The following summer he was selected in the 7th round of the NHL Entry Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The young netminder, now just 21 years old, was traded again in midway through the 2018-19 season. He went from Chicoutimi to the Saint John Sea Dogs, where he took on a heavy workload over his final two seasons. In the 2019-20 campaign, he played in 45 games, and faced 1,740 shots, the second highest number in the QMJHL that season. Prior to last season, Bouthillier joined the University of Quebec-Trois-Rivieres (USports), but the team did not play due to the pandemic.
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