By: Jake Ferraro | Follow me on Twitter/X @18Jxxx18
Last season, the Maine Mariners fell one game short of making the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals after falling 4-3 in Game 7 to the Wheeling Nailers in the North Division Finals. Even with the Game 7 loss, excitement across Maine is at an all-time high for the Mariners’ 2026-27 ECHL season. This Friday and Saturday night, the Mariners will play two preseason games against the Worcester Railers before meeting again for the season opener on Oct. 17 at DCU Center in Worcester, Massachusetts, with puck drop scheduled for 6:05 p.m. ET.
The Mariners made moves to their roster this offseason, but one key loss was goaltender Brad Arvanitis. Last season, Arvanitis was Maine’s number one goaltender, but he struggled in the 2026 Kelly Cup Playoffs. Losing Arvanitis put the Mariners in search of a new goaltender to play with Luke Cavallin, who also had a solid season. However, having Max Lundgren and Cavallin together in between the pipes should excite the Mariners heading into this season.
Cavallin finished last season with an 18-10-3 record, a 2.35 GAA, and a .917 save percentage in 34 games. Cavallin played four fewer games than Avanitis did last season. However, Cavallin mattered most in the 2026 playoffs. The Mariners started Cavallin in the first two games of their first-round series against the Adirondack Thunder, and he made 47 combined saves. Arvanitis started the next three games, but the Mariners switched back to Cavallin after losing Game 5. After a tough overtime loss in Game 6, Cavallin delivered with 20 saves in the Mariners’ Game 7 win.
The second round saw another goaltending change. Cavallin allowed four goals to the Nailers in the Mariners’ Game 1 loss. The Mariners then fell in Game 2 with Arvanitis starting; Cavallin started Game 3 and never got pulled. Cavallin helped the Mariners win the next three games. Although the Mariners lost Games 6 and 7 to lose the series, Cavallin still played strongly in both games. Cavallin’s best game of the season was a 46-save performance in the Game 6 loss to the Nailers. Cavallin finished the 2026 playoffs with five wins, posting a 2.02 GAA and a .924 save percentage in ten games. Cavallin’s 2026 playoff performance and his regular-season play last year should give Mariners fans plenty to watch for another season at 25.
Now onto Lundgren. For the past two seasons, Lundgren played college hockey at Merrimack College. During the 2024-25 season, Lundgren won eight games and posted a 2.90 GAA and a .909 save percentage in 24 games. Last season, Lundgren bounced back with a dominant season, winning 21 games and posting a 2.55 GAA and a .920 save percentage in 39 games.
Lundgren played every minute for Merrimack College last season, ranked eighth in GSAx nationally, and led all NCAA goaltenders with 1,134 saves. Lundgren turned into a fast-rising goaltending prospect whom the Boston Bruins signed to a one-year entry-level contract this past March. Lundgren’s 6-foot-5 presence at 24 is a big asset for the Mariners.
Arvanitis and Cavallin together were a solid duo throughout the ECHL last season in Maine. Cavallin showed how good he can be during the 2026 playoffs. Now, Cavallin has Lundgren to form another great duo. While Lundgren hasn’t played a single game in the National Hockey League or American Hockey League, his play at Merrimack College has been exciting over the past two seasons, and he is now ready to get his feet wet in the ECHL.
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