Martin G. Houle (born February 12, 1985) is a Canadian former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

who played one game in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) for the

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Wells ...

during the season.

Playing career

As a youth, Houle played in the 1999

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament (french: Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec) is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, ...

with the Richelieu Éclaireurs

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from cla ...

team. Houle played

junior ice hockey Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

for the

Cape Breton Screaming Eagles The Cape Breton Eagles are a major junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Their home rink is Centre 200 in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada. History The franchise was originally granted to the Sorel Éperviers (B ...

of the

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The l ...

from 2001 to 2005. He ended the 2003-04 season ranked second in the league with 34 wins and a 2.32 GAA. He was awarded the

Jacques Plante Memorial Trophy The Jacques Plante Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the goaltender in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with the best goals-against average. It is named for Hockey Hall of Fame goaltender Jacques Plante. Winners References External ...

as the QMJHL goaltender of the year, named a QMJHL first-team all-star, and a

Canadian Hockey League The Canadian Hockey League (CHL; french: Ligue canadienne de hockey ‒ LCH) is an umbrella organization that represents the three Canada-based major junior ice hockey leagues. The CHL was founded in 1975 as the Canadian Major Junior Hockey L ...

second-team all-star. House was drafted by the

232nd overall in the

2004 NHL Entry Draft The 2004 NHL Entry Draft was the 42nd NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 26 and 27, 2004 at the RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is especially notable because it was the last NHL event to take place before the beginning of the lockout, ...

. He was named the QMJHL Defensive Player of the Year, and finished 7th in the QMJHL in wins (26) and 5th in GAA (2.51). Following his senior season in the QMJHL, he attended Flyers training camp, but was reassigned to the

Trenton Titans The Trenton Titans were a professional minor league ice hockey team that played in the ECHL. The team last played in the Atlantic Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference. The Titans played their home games at the Sun National Bank Center in Tren ...

of the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The E ...

at the close of the

Philadelphia Phantoms The Philadelphia Phantoms were a professional ice hockey team that played in the American Hockey League (AHL) from 1996 to 2009. The club was based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and played most of its home games at the Spectrum (arena), Spectrum ...

training camp. Houle had played seven straight games for the Titans after Scott Stirling was traded to the

San Antonio Rampage The San Antonio Rampage were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League based in San Antonio, Texas. The Rampage was primarily owned by Spurs Sports & Entertainment throughout the team's existence. In 2020, the franchise was sold ...

. In those seven games, he managed to put together the sixth best

goals against average Goals against average (GAA) also known as "average goals against" or "AGA" is a statistic used in field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, and water polo that is the mean of goals allowed per game by a goaltender or goalkeeper (depending on s ...

in the ECHL. The Phantoms liked what they saw in him and decided to switch him with Rejean Beauchemin, who was struggling early in the season. At the AHL level, Houle excelled. However, the test truly came when

Jamie Storr Jamie Storr (born December 28, 1975) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. Playing career Storr was the first goalie selected in the 1991 OHL Entry Draft and played major junior with the Owen Sound Platers and the Windsor Spitf ...

was called up to be backup goalie for

Antero Niittymäki Antero Pertti Elias Niittymäki (; born June 18, 1980) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey goaltender who last played for TPS of the SM-liiga (Finnish elite league). He additionally played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the P ...

while

Robert Esche Robert L. Esche (born January 22, 1978) is an American former professional ice hockey goaltender who is the current president of the Utica Comets of the American Hockey League (AHL) and the Utica City FC of the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). ...

was on the injury list. With Storr in the

, Houle became the starting goalie and retained this for the rest of the season. Scheduled to be a restricted free agent following the 2007-08 season, Houle became an unrestricted free agent when the Flyers didn't extend him a qualifying offer. Houle eventually signed with the ECHL's Las Vegas Wranglers, but after three games and recording a 1-2-0 record with a 3.03 GAA, Houle was traded to the

Cincinnati Cyclones The Cincinnati Cyclones are a professional ice hockey team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The team is a member of the ECHL. Originally established in 1990, the team first played their games in the Cincinnati Gardens and now play at Heritage Bank Cen ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Houle, Martin 1985 births Canadian ice hockey goaltenders Cape Breton Screaming Eagles players Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) players Ice hockey people from Montreal Las Vegas Wranglers players Living people Philadelphia Flyers draft picks Philadelphia Flyers players Philadelphia Phantoms players Trenton Titans players Wheeling Nailers players