Mammoth Goaltender Dillon Ward Earns Franchise Records During 2024-25 Campaign

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NLL Colorado Mammoth

Mammoth Goaltender Dillon Ward Earns Franchise Records During 2024-25 Campaign

April 24, 2025 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Colorado Mammoth News Release


DENVER - Ending the season with an 8-10 record isn't where the team expected or wanted to be when its 2024-25 regular season slate came to a close in Calgary.

But with a team which witnessed waves of bright spots within its roller-coaster campaign, it's important to remember that highs come with lows.

And anytime the organization's All-Pro netminder in Dillon Ward is around, the team and its fans are traditionally operating on a Rocky Mountain High, as the team isn't the team without the likes of its epic goaltender.

Originally drafted in the first round (third overall) of the 2013 NLL Entry Draft, the man they call Wardo has now enjoyed more than a decade donning the Mammoth crest. All while creating one hell of a resume in the lacrosse world - Both on and off the turf.

Which fans know by now - He leads the team's youth lacrosse efforts and continues to show up in a big way each and every time he steps in net. He's a voice in the locker room and occasionally shared a good laugh on social media.

He gets his role and excels within it.

What fans might not know is that Ward continues to ink records books left and right - Both at the organization and league level.

Setting a pair of single-season franchise records, now associated with one of the busiest workloads in Colorado Mammoth history, Ward stopped a team-high 722 saves across his 17 games played.

Furthering the accolades from the season past, he also logged a franchise-best 1016:09 (1,016 minutes, nine seconds) minutes played, officially becoming the first netminder sporting burgundy and black to surpass the 1,000-minute mark.

The potentially craziest part of these statistics involve the idea he only participated in 17 games this season.

Having logged 18 appearances in five previous seasons, Ward had never turned away as much rubber as he did throughout the 2024-25 season, with his previous best save total sitting at 688 from the team's 2021-22 Championship campaign - The very same year he managed a then-high 985:53 (985 minutes, 53 seconds) time on floor.

While both of the aforementioned honors spell out how active and involved Ward was during the team's most recent run, perhaps his most impressive feature yet involves his regular availability.

Appearing in 15-plus games during each season he's been in Colorado (short of a 13 GP season during the league's pandemic-shortened season), he's been more than a regular to the Mammoth lineup. He's been the heart of it.

Which is why it's rather fitting he passed the organization's former captain and longtime defenseman John Gallant in logging the most games played in Mammoth history.

Passing Gallant at the 181-game mark, Ward completed the season with 184 games played, now three more than Gallant and 14 more than the team's current captain in Robert Hope.

Thinking back to any game, or even surfing the internet to any one contest leads us to back to at least a few eye-popping saves in even the team's worst efforts. Pulling off Sportscenter Top 10 plays is never an easy feat. Doing it down several goals while it's looking like the team might not pull off the W is a completely different scenario. Yet, Ward was always up for a challenge.

Regardless of any given score or any given game, No. 45 continues to show up and give everything he's got. All while passing down some of his wisdom last season to youngsters in Nathan Whittom and Ethan Robertson.

Ending the season with 9781:40 (9,781 minutes, 40 seconds) minutes played, 6,580 career saves and 81 regular season victories to date, he continues to climb the league's all-time records in several categories.

Ranked seventh in minutes played, fourth in saves recorded and wins earned, it's rather easy to see why he's considered one of the best to ever do it - Both in Colorado and throughout North America!

Mammoth fans can stay tuned to coloradomammoth.com and Colorado Mammoth social media throughout the offseason for the organization's most recent news, transactions and beyond!

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