Wranglers’ goalie Fallon views game from quirky angle

Hockey goalies have a reputation for being an odd breed.

"We always call goalies the weirdos, but not in a bad way," Wranglers defenseman Mike Madill said. "They just have their own kind of different personality than everybody else.

"You've got to be different to stand in there and take 90 mph shots to the head."

Las Vegas goalie Joe Fallon does little to dispel such notions.

Quiet and quirky, the cerebral fourth-year pro from Bemidji, Minn., spends most of his spare time studying advanced mathematics.

"It's kind of a hobby of mine," said the soft-spoken Fallon, 27. "I like to read as many books on math as I can.

"It kind of helps me to focus on something else for a while, and when I come back to hockey, I'm ready to go."

Described as a math whiz by teammates, Fallon said he's searching for equations to help him discover very large prime numbers -- up to an elusive million digits -- which can be divided evenly only by 1 or itself.

Just for kicks, Fallon also dabbles in physics.

"It really helps me to study a lot of branches of mathematics," he said. "It keeps me interested."

Fallon earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Vermont -- where he compiled a school-record 20 shutouts -- but he didn't develop a passion for math until after he graduated.

During Wranglers road trips, Fallon has been known to read a calculus book on the team bus.

"Some guys like to read murder mystery novels. Joey likes to brush up on his calculus," Madill said jokingly. "He's a very, very smart guy on and off the ice."

A sixth-round draft pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2005, the 6-foot-3-inch, 190-pound Fallon has been an ironman for Las Vegas (30-14-4, 64 points), leading the ECHL this season in games played (40) and minutes played (2,307).

He has compiled a 25-8-4 record with three shutouts and a 2.44 goals-against average while fellow Wranglers goaltender Mitch O'Keefe has undergone elbow surgery and battled groin injuries.

"It's tough when goalies get hurt and leave one guy to carry the mail, but he's been amazing," Madill said. "He's just very calm and very controlled all the time. He's never worried."

Fallon recently was named the league's goalie of the week after going 3-0 with a 1.30 GAA in three games at Colorado from Jan. 25 to 28.

He stopped 26 of 27 shots Friday to help the Wranglers to a 2-1 win over league-leading Alaska (32-11-6, 70), preserving the victory with a spectacular kick save in the final minute.

Fallon had 19 saves Saturday in Las Vegas' 4-2 victory over the Aces at Orleans Arena.

While some goalies rely on athleticism to excel, Wranglers coach Ryan Mougenel said, fittingly enough, Fallon leans more on his intellect.

"He's more of a student of the game. He plays the percentages," Mougenel said. "He's really square for a big goalie and takes away a lot of the net being positionally sound.

"He's rarely off his angles."

As for the angle that all goalies are superstitious oddballs, Fallon, who has a sly sense of humor, argues they're merely misunderstood.

"They just keep to themselves and people just make up things about them just to rattle them," he said with a smile. "Some goalies really try to do everything they can to play well that day, and some things might seem really odd to outsiders."

Fallon tries to adhere to the same game-day routine, which includes a pregame meal of spaghetti and meatballs, two 40-minute naps and several showers.

But unlike some of the complex mathematical equations he has cracked, Fallon is still striving to solve the riddle of how to stay in the zone of peak performance.

"It's difficult to get in the zone every day. If I can figure it out, I'd be a much better goalie," he said. "I'm still trying to figure it out."

Don't be surprised if he does.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354.