A twist of fate has been a blessing for the Windsor Lancers men's hockey team. Nathan Torchia was on the team's recruit list but head coach Kevin Hamlin didn't have room for the Baden, Ontario native. "We had such a solid group coming back I couldn't commit to him."
Torchia was playing in the OJHL for Georgetown before getting called up to the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL during the 2019 season. As a 19-year old he got into a pair of games with the Rangers but did not return the following year.
The 2020 season saw Torchia playing senior hockey. "For me personally it was kind of a battle the first semester not having anywhere to play. I was playing senior hockey just to try and stay on the ice as much as I can, hopefully something came about."
When Noah Giesbrecht left for Ferris State after the first semester Hamlin reached out to Torchia. "We thought we had a real good goaltender in Dakota Lund-Cornish but you always need two." said Hamlin who gave Lund-Cornish and Torchia a chance to earn the starter's job. "Torch's won the net. He's been solid ever since."
Torchia played seven games and posted a 4-2 record, 2.09 goals against average and had a save percentage of .933. This season the 22-year old has elevated his play. Heading into the weekend Torchia leads the OUA with a 1.76 GAA and .944 save percentage.
"He's a guy that is low-maintenance, works hard every day and is a great teammate. Everything he has been given has been earned. We're just really fortunate we found each other." said Hamlin.