By: Ryan Finch | Follow me on Twitter/X @RyanFinch0815
The Maine Mariners have added another piece to their goaltending picture, agreeing to terms with Christian Propp for the 2026-27 season. The signing gives Maine a goaltender with 37 games of ECHL experience, nearly 60 games of U SPORTS experience and five seasons of junior hockey under his belt. More importantly, it gives head coach and general manager Rick Kowalsky another option between the pipes as the Mariners continue putting together a roster capable of following up last season’s historic playoff run.
Propp, a 27-year-old native of Milton, Ontario, stands 6-foot-2 and 192 pounds. He began his professional career late in the 2023-24 season, appearing in one game for the Wheeling Nailers before joining the Rapid City Rush. It didn’t take long for Propp to make an impression.
He appeared in nine games for Rapid City to close out the 2023-24 season, going 5-3-1 with a 3.35 goals-against average and a .899 save percentage. He became the Rush’s primary option in net during the final three weeks of the season and helped the team make a late push.
That performance earned Propp another opportunity in Rapid City the following season. He appeared in 16 games during the 2024-25 campaign, posting a 5-6-3 record with a 3.39 goals-against average and a .897 save percentage. He also faced a substantial workload, seeing 497 shots during those 16 appearances. His 2025-26 season became a much more traveled one.
Propp suited up for three different ECHL organizations, seeing action with the Greensboro Gargoyles, Tulsa Oilers and Norfolk Admirals. Across 11 ECHL appearances, he finished with a 2-9-0 record, a 3.96 goals-against average and a .870 save percentage. He also spent time with the Pensacola Ice Flyers of the SPHL, where he went 3-2-0 with a 2.99 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage during the regular season. In the SPHL playoffs, he appeared in three games and recorded a 2.98 GAA and .913 save percentage.
Those numbers don’t tell the entire story of Propp’s development, however. His path to professional hockey included plenty of experience at both the junior and collegiate levels. Propp spent five seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, playing 162 games with Barrie, North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Kingston. He finished his OHL career with a 62-76-11 record, a 3.86 goals-against average and a .888 save percentage.
He then moved on to Wilfrid Laurier University, where he spent three seasons between the pipes. In 59 games, Propp went 28-30-1 with a 2.73 goals-against average, a .918 save percentage and three shutouts. He finished his collegiate career ranked fifth in Ontario University Athletics in save percentage and led the conference in total saves during his final season.
That collegiate workload is important when looking at what Propp could potentially bring to Maine. He has experience playing regularly, handling high shot volumes and taking on the responsibility that comes with being a team’s primary goaltender. He also arrives in Portland with something the Mariners will value tremendously: professional experience.
Maine’s goaltending situation was one of the biggest questions entering the offseason. Brad Arvanitis, who established himself as the winningest goaltender in franchise history during the 2025-26 season, has moved on to the Guildford Flames of the EIHL. That leaves a significant hole to fill after Arvanitis helped form one of the league’s strongest tandems with Cavallin.
Cavallin remains an important part of the Bruins’ goaltending pipeline after his breakthrough 2024-25 campaign with Trois-Rivières, when he helped the Lions capture the Kelly Cup and was named playoff MVP. During that postseason run, he posted a 15-5 record, a 1.53 GAA and a .948 save percentage. He then joined the Bruins organization and split the 2025-26 season between Maine and Providence.
That means Propp’s arrival doesn’t necessarily signal a competition for one predetermined job. Instead, it gives Maine valuable insurance and another experienced option as the organization navigates the relationship between the Mariners and Providence Bruins.
Goaltending depth becomes especially important in the ECHL because movement between levels can happen quickly. Injuries, NHL call-ups and AHL assignments can change a team’s situation overnight. Having a goaltender with 37 career ECHL appearances gives Maine someone who has already experienced that level of professional hockey and won’t be stepping into the league for the first time. There is also an opportunity here for Propp himself.
At 27, he is still looking to establish himself as a consistent presence in professional hockey. His career has taken him through several organizations and leagues, but his earlier stops have shown that he is capable of putting together strong stretches when given an opportunity. Maine could provide him with exactly that opportunity.
The Mariners are coming off a 42-win, 93-point season that ended one victory short of the Eastern Conference Finals. But the team that takes the ice in 2026-27 will look different from the group that accomplished all of that. Several important pieces have moved on, including Arvanitis, meaning the goaltending position will have to be rebuilt rather than simply carried over.
Propp now becomes part of that rebuilding process. For Kowalsky, the addition provides flexibility. For the Mariners, it provides insurance. And for Propp, it provides another opportunity to show that the flashes he has demonstrated throughout his career can become sustained success.
Maine already knows what it has in Cavallin. Now, the organization has added another goaltender with professional experience, size, a history of handling significant workloads and something left to prove.
The Mariners’ goaltending tandem helped carry them through a historic 2025-26 campaign. With Christian Propp now in the picture, the next chapter between the pipes is beginning to take shape—and once again, there will be plenty of competition for the crease in Portland.
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