The St. Louis Blues had to dress an emergency goaltender earlier in the 2017-18 season. It almost feels like that is becoming a regular thing.
You may be wondering what sort of blasphemy has a picture of a Chicago Blackhawk on a story for a St. Louis Blues website. Well, that’s because Scott Foster, an emergency goaltender in Chicago, actually got into a game.
Foster is the latest in a string of emergency goaltenders to gain some notoriety. Ok, in reality, you could probably count on one hand the number of guys garnering any attention for being an emergency goaltender. However, it is the practice that has come under a little scrutiny.
For those still unaware, and in between situations where this pops up I am among those, the NHL has a system in place to help out teams in desperate goaltending situations. Each city is responsible for having an emergency goaltender on call in the rare case that either team playing needs to suit them up.
99% of the time this never happens. Most injuries occur in a fashion timely enough for someone to be called up from the minors.
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So, mainly these guys just get a free meal or the honor of telling their friends and relatives they are technically part of the NHL. Rarely, if ever, do they actually get to suit up, let alone play.
Things have been different this year. Tyler Stewart got to suit up for the Blues earlier this season when Ville Husso could not show up until midway through the second period.
Then, on March 30, Foster got to actually play for the Chicago Blackhawks. The game was already well in hand and he only played 14 minutes, but that’s 14 more minutes in the NHL than any of us will ever suit up for.
The interesting part of all these stories is the question of whether it should ever happen. Of course there are some crusty people in the sports talk world that think this should not be the case. They question what kind of professional sports league has guys walk off the street and actually play.
I choose to ask the same question, but in a positive light. What other sport can someone just jump in and play for the highest level teams?
You don’t see a guy from the local rec league going on an NBA floor, unless they’ve had way too much to drink. You don’t see a guy that played high school baseball suddenly behind the plate.
The NFL is about the closest thing with a guy like Kurt Warner going from stocking grocery store shelves to playing. However, even that is not the same thing since he got scouted playing in a pro league, even if it was the Arena League.
So, why is it a bad thing for a guy who holds down a regular job to be able to have this moment in the sun? Is it jealousy? I would hope not.
This is not a regular thing, but it’s not a regular sport or a regular position. Other than a pitcher, no individual player impacts a game the way a goaltender can. If a pitcher gets injured, you have four other starters or a bullpen full of relievers.
If you have an injury in warmups and then a backup gets hurt, you are putting a team at a severe disadvantage if you suddenly ask an on-ice player to strap on pads. That is why this emergency position exists.
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These guys all have some sort of experience playing goalie. Most are former college goaltenders that realized they had no pro dream and went on to other careers.
Stewart works for a vending machine company. Foster is an accountant. To me, those are fantastic stories.
Those guys will be able to tell their grandkids about dressing for an NHL team. Yes, it does not exist in other sports. That’s what makes it good and special. It is another reason we love hockey.