Alex Stalock is home.
A native of South St. Paul and a college hockey star at Minnesota Duluth, Stalock returns to the State of Hockey after spending five years in the San Jose Sharks organization.
Stalock signed with the Minnesota Wild last summer as a free agent but has spent the season in the AHL, posting a .924 save percentage, a 2.31 goals-against average and four shutouts in 45 games for the Iowa Wild.
But now -- for the first time since the preseason -- he's preparing to suit up at Xcel Energy Center.
The Wild announced earlier this week that Stalock is in line to spell struggling starter Devan Dubnyk on Thursday night against the Ottawa Senators, his first NHL start in more than a year.
It could be an audition.
The Wild recently signed Stalock to a two-year extension that kicks in next season, a move that protects Dubnyk from the expansion draft with backup Darcy Kuemper set to hit free agency this summer.
Kuemper has struggled this season, and has a 3.26 GAA in 17 appearances for the Wild this season.
Since stopping 34 of 35 shots against the Dallas Stars in mid-February he has a dismal .857 save percentage, and allowed four goals on just 17 shots in the Wild's 4-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks last week.
With Stalock in the system and playing well, he could be a viable replacement.
But where did he come from, and how did he make his way back to Minnesota?
Get to know the newest face in the Wild locker room:
-- Stalock was the 12th goalie taken in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, and was selected in the fourth round -- 112th overall -- by the San Jose Sharks following a two-year career in the USHL.
-- He went on to spend three seasons at Minnesota Duluth, leading the Bulldogs to a WCHA playoff title in 2009 and finishing as one of the nation's top goaltenders with a .924 save percentage.
-- Stalock spent a few years bouncing around the Sharks organization, challenging for the backup job at times as one of the team's top goaltending prospects.
-- He was at his most productive during the 2013-14 season, when he had a .932 save percentage and two shutouts in 24 appearances for the Sharks, and had a career .911 save percentage in 62 appearances with San Jose.
-- That season capped a long recovery for Stalock, who suffered a grisly knee injury in early 2011 while playing for the Sharks' AHL affiliate. Another player stepped on the back of Stalock's left knee, severing the nerve that controls the lower leg and foot.
-- He was out of action for nearly a year, and couldn't feel parts of his left foot when he finally returned to the ice as a member of the ECHL's Stockton Thunder in January, 2012.
-- Despite his return the Sharks eventually moved on, dealing Stalock to the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he spent more time in the AHL, before eventually signing with Minnesota.
