Emergency backup goalie Dave Ayres made eight saves in relief of Carolina’s two injured netminders in the Hurricanes‘ 6-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night.
Ayres, who works as a Zamboni driver for the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League, was forced into action midway through the second period after Carolina’s James Reimer and Petr Mrazek were injured. The Hurricanes were leading 3-1 when the 42-year-old Ayres took over.
Reimer started against his former team, but left just 6:10 into the first period with a lower-body injury after Toronto’s Zach Hyman shoved a Hurricanes defenseman on top of him in the crease.
Mrazek came in, but also had to leave after a thunderous collision with Leafs forward Kyle Clifford while attempting to play the puck near the face-off dot in Carolina’s zone in the second.
That forced Ayres, who was available to both teams, into action.
Sign that guy up!
Those gay assholes over at Barstool Sports will somehow drizzle all over this inspiring news story.
Did they have a backup Zamboni driver?
Toronto’s sports radio will be crucifying the Toronto Maple Leafs for weeks after this loss.
I’m a Bruins fan & A Blackhawks fan.
The Leafs have treated great hockey players like crap for the 50 years that I have been alive. (Daryl Sittler) It is where great players come to have their careers ruined. That is why I cannot stand them.
A few years ago I was having dinner at Leaf Function at the Hockey Hall of Fame & sitting next to Bobby Nevin (wearing his Stanley Cup 1963 ring) and Frank Mahovlich across the table. He was a very fun person (I love the older guys) but he kept asking me the the time. I asked him why. He was waiting for his wife to come by and pick him up since the Leafs never sent cars for him.
So at 11:00pm, I walked out with the 79 year old and stood with him at the curb until his wife pulled up & he got into the car.
Come on guys… Its not like there are that many Stanley Cup winners from Toronto still alive!!!!!!
Emergency backup goalie Dave Ayres made eight saves in relief of Carolina’s two injured netminders in the Hurricanes‘ 6-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night.
I used to be a big fan of an ECHL Appalachian team.
I never missed it later, until I saw the movie “Goon.” Now i wanna go back….
I was watching the Canucks-Bruins games and they showed the backup goalie in the stands — a UBC student. The commentators said that the backup goalies were getting more attention than usual. (The Vancouver goalie had gotten a stick in his eye in the first period and was out for a while but did come back later.)
So he could be the backup for either team? I was wondering about that. What happens if they both need one?
I have heard a couple of times when an MLB team brought in an outfielder to pitch: The Giants with Dave Kingman in 1971 and another team did it a year or two ago.
I would rather watch the Zamboni!
Amazing story! He’s a kidney transplant recipient too which makes this even more incredible. Good for him!
Back in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s I was watching a Maple-Leaf Bruins game on TV when the Bruin goalie either got injured or got sick, I can’t remember which. They called up a junior goalie from the Toronto area, about 16 years old, to tend goal for the Bruins. His name was Gerry Cheevers, who went on to a stellar career with the Bruins. He won a couple Stanley Cups and I believe he is now in the HOF.
It is similar to the story of Joe Nuxhall, who at age 16 was brought in by the Cincinnati Reds to pitch in 1944 when a lot of major leaguers were in uniform.
One of his first pitches, the batter smashed it so hard over Joe’s head that he got pretty frightened over what grown major league baseball players were capable of doing.
I don’t think he lasted long in that game, but later had a pretty good career with the Reds. He was still in those Topps baseball card packs until the early 1960’s.
Side note: Nuxhall’s ERA in that game in 1944 was 67.5.