Morgan Cey could flat out play at the college level.
There was never any dispute to his talent, and despite the fact that his team only had five wins, it was never his fault.
The Tampa Bay Lightning saw this in Cey, as well, and inked him to a multi-year contract announced Aug. 26.
Cey finished his career with the Irish as one of the finest goalies to ever come through Notre Dame, posting a 2.79 goals-against average, a .912 save percentage and six shutouts.
All three of those statistics were tops in Irish history.
Cey also finished second in career games and minutes, 112 and 6,456:04, respectively.
During Notre Dame's miserable 2004-2005 season, Cey's focus was never questioned, either by him or the coaching staff.
Notre Dame's previous head coach Dave Poulin always complimented Cey after losses, and at the end of the season spoke about his importance to the team throughout his time at Notre Dame.
"He's carried the load for us basically through the bulk of his whole career," Poulin said last February.
"He'll have an opportunity to play, there is no question. Too many people have seen him play too well over the years. He'll have an opportunity to play professional hockey, and then what he does with that will [be up to] him."
Well, Poulin was right.
Cey will join the Lightning, whose roster lists Sean Burke as the backup goaltender to John Grahame.
Cey had many fine moments during his career at Notre Dame.
Despite an unsuccessful 2004-05 season, Cey stopped 50 shots on Oct. 23, 2004 in the Irish victory over No. 1 ranked Boston College.
In 2003-2004, during Notre Dame's playoff run, Cey registered two consecutive shutouts on Dec. 28 and Jan. 3.
He also shutout Miami in back-to-back games of the first round of the CCHA playoffs in 2003.
Cey wasn't the only Irish player to sign a deal with an NHL team.
Yan Stastny signed a two-year contract with the Edmonton Oilers. This will be his first time playing with an NHL team after playing two years in Germany following his collegiate career. The Boston Bruins drafted Statsny in the eighth round of the 2002 NHL Draft.
Ben Simon and Mark Eaton, who were signed before the NHL lockout, signed deals with the Atlanta Thrashers and Nashville Predators, respectively. Both players had been with the teams before the lockout.
Simon played last year with the Chicago Wolves after spending the previous three with the Atlanta Thrashers.
