What’s the best way to sum up Kam Ragon’s senior hockey season at Hartland?
Let’s gather DJ Khaled and friends.
Because all Ragon did was win, win, win.
No matter what.
It did not matter whether it was the two intense rivalry matches with Brighton, the numerous clashes with other state Division 2 challengers or the two overtime matches in the last four at the USA Hockey Arena.
When freshman Ian Kastamo scored in overtime to beat Trenton in the state championship game, it was 21 starts and 21 Ws for Ragon.
It is an extremely rare achievement that got the Ragon Player of the Year in Livingston County, a region that had 12 first-team all-states and put two teams in the state finals.
Anyone who said they saw this coming is lying.
A goalkeeper who gets the most starts for a team playing such a difficult program as Hartlands is expected to take a few hits along the way, especially if it’s his first season as the No. 1 man. Ragon was the backup for all-states Ryan Piros last season, playing just 77 minutes in three appearances.
“Clearly, it is certainly not expected to go undefeated,” Ragon said. “We knew we had a really tough schedule this season. It’s just a crazy feeling that it’s happened. There were definitely a lot of ups and downs. We just struggled through it all the way.”
Hartland has had a goalkeeper who has received all-state recognition eight times in the last nine seasons, but no one came close to sending a perfect record. Even two-time state champion Brett Tome had two losses and a draw in 2017-18 and four losses in 2018-19.
“If you imagine something like that, it’s almost wrong to think a goalkeeper can go undefeated because you know how tough a hockey season can be,” Hartland coach Rick Gadwa said.
There was no guarantee that Ragon would even become Hartland’s No. 1 goalkeeper, let alone an undefeated All-States.
He entered the season and battled seniors Cole Gumiela and Owen Pogue for the starting job. Ragon started early to separate from the pack, stopping 48 of 49 shots in victories over Rockford and Brighton in a Thanksgiving tournament.
After adding victories over Houghton, Trenton and Birmingham Brother Rice to his CV before the Christmas break, Ragon entrenched himself as the goalkeeper the Eagles would roll with in the matches that mattered most.
When there are three quality goalkeepers fighting for only one fold, it can cause some enmity in the group. It did not happen at Hartland.
The bond between the three goalkeepers was on full display at the USA Hockey Arena after Kastamo’s overtime goal. Before joining the rest of their teammates for a party in the corner of the Trenton zone, the backup goalkeepers hurried towards Ragon, and all three fell to the ice together in a pile of dogs near the middle of the ice.
“You never see the two goalkeepers go directly to the goalkeeper,” Gadwa said. “I’ve never seen it before. It’s really special. You see some things like that, it makes it all worth it, even for a coach.
“You fear that the toxic negativity is seeping in. What an honor to that group for not letting it be close to a problem. They attacked every day in the right way and did not let it affect the group’s overall behavior.”
When he was interviewed throughout the season, Ragon often credited the competition from his other net reminders for making him a better player.
“We’ve always had a pretty special bond throughout the year,” Ragon said. “We’ve been pretty close. It was a great feeling to be able to celebrate with them after the big win.
“We just tried to take it one day at a time. We are all friends from the ice, which helped a lot. We had a really good bond. Everything in the locker room went smoothly, so it helped a lot.”
Ragon scored 1.37 goals against the average with a save percentage of 0.938 and five shutouts. He allowed more than two goals just three times in 21 starts.
Ragon hopes to continue playing hockey after high school. He said he will attend some junior camps this summer in hopes of grabbing a team in the North American Hockey League or British Columbia Hockey League.
Gadwa believes Ragon will succeed on the next level.
“The numbers speak for Rags,” he said. “He played 21 games and won 21-0. He is a winner.”
Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillKhan.