When the Carolina Hurricanes came to Toronto on February 22nd they thought it would be just another normal NHL game. However, they soon realized that this was no ordinary game and that they would be behind some history when the game was all said and done.
The Game
Former Maple Leafs goalie James Reimer started the game for the Hurricanes. Reimer would only see about six minutes of action before he would leave the game with an injury and he would be replaced by his backup Petr Mrazek. After Mrazek came into the game the Leafs would get the first goal of the game thanks to Alex Kerfoot and the Leafs would head to the room with a 1-0 lead. That would be where the fun stopped for the Leafs in this game. Carolina would get three goals in the first ten minutes of the period before Kyle Clifford would get a charging penalty when Petr Mrazek came out to the top of the faceoff circle to make a play and Clifford ran into him. Mrazek would be unable to continue in the game and this was when Dave Ayres was forced into action in the game. Toronto would get two quick goals on Ayres and Carolina would get one more goal before the end of the period to make the game 4-3 Carolina heading into the third period. Carolina would shut down the Leafs in the third period and managed to score twice more and they walked away with the victory.
History Made
With the victory over Toronto, Ayres became the first emergency backup goalie to record a victory. He also became only the third EBUG to actually dress in an NHL game.
Backstory
Ayres had a history with the Toronto Maple Leafs organization before this game. He is currently employed by the team as the Zamboni driver for the Leafs AHL team the Toronto Marlies. Ayres had thought his chance to continue playing hockey had ended over 15 years ago when he had to have a kidney transplant.
Aftermath
When Ayres went into the game he became an internet sensation as he was number one on trending on twitter during the game. Ayres after the game received a few gifts from the Hurricanes to thank him including an autographed game puck and an autographed bottle of Wine from head coach Rod Brind’amour. After his win, he would also make the rounds on the American talk shows to talk about the experience. But the story doesn’t end there. Ayres was flown to Raleigh for the Hurricanes’ next home game after the appearance where the Mayor of Raleigh declared the day Dave Ayres day. The hurricanes also released shirts with ayres name and number on them with Ayres receiving the money as well as a kidney foundation of his choice.
