I was originally thinking of doing a countdown of the best NHL goal songs tonight. Then I found a YouTube channel that has all 31 of them and I couldn't decide which ones would make the cut. There are too many good ones (the Blackhawks, the Flames, the Predators, the Blue Jackets, the Maple Leafs) that I was bound to either forget one or have a list that was ridiculously too long. So, I decided to pivot and do another NHL topic instead.
A guy named David Ayres was the toast of the league a few weeks ago when he stepped in as an emergency goaltender for the Hurricanes and earned a win over the Maple Leafs (in Toronto...on Hockey Night In Canada). The 42-year-old Ayres, who's normally a Zamboni driver for the Maple Leafs' AHL affiliate, made the talk show rounds and was even flown down to Raleigh so that he could be honored at Carolina's next home game. It really was a feel-good story all around.
Ayres was only in the game because the Hurricanes' starter and backup both got hurt and he was the designated on-call emergency goalie for both teams. The EBUG (which is the NHL's answer to baseball's now-extinct LOOGY) is required at every NHL game so that both teams will still have a goaltender available should both of theirs become injured.
Team employees are not allowed to serve as emergency goalies, so they're primarily local amateur goalies. There are 136 such goalies on file with the NHL who are eligible to serve as an EBUG. They participate in practices (sometimes for visiting teams, as well) and know that they have little to no chance of seeing any game action. And some may only dress for a period until the Minor League goalie arrives. But if they do, they get to keep their jersey!
In fact, in the nearly 50,000 NHL games since backup goalies were mandated in 1965-66 (before then, some teams only had one goalie on the entire roster), Ayres is just the second EBUG to see significant playing time. The other was accountant Scott Foster, who made a save for the Blackhawks in a 2018 win over the Jets. That's two guys in 55 years. And they both became cult heroes!
That's what makes the EBUG so great. Now, these aren't random guys off the street. They're experienced goalies who still play the position, even if they have other full-time 9-to-5 jobs. But it's that idea of some working stiff living every boy's dream of being a professional athlete, even if it's just for a day.
So, of course, the EBUG was a topic of conversation at the NHL's general manager meetings. There was some fear that the GM's would have a knee-jerk overreaction to Ayers' new cult hero status and make changes to the status-quo regarding the EBUGs...even though there's nothing wrong with the system.
Fortunately, rational thinking prevailed and they decided to leave it as-is. Because, seriously, what harm is David Ayres doing? The NHL is getting mainstream press--from places that never cover the NHL--because of this story. I even saw it mentioned on ESPN, which took a break from its 24-7 NBA coverage to actually acknowledge that the NHL exists! And all of the coverage has been positive! Everyone's saying what a great story it is, which is why they're covering it.
It would've been a mistake to make any changes to the EBUG. Especially since it's so rare that they're actually pressed into game action, and very little is expected when they do. These aren't NHL goalies. They're not supposed to stop shots from Alex Ovechkin or Connor McDavid, so if they get lit up, is anyone going to be surprised? Which is why it becomes a story when they do.
And, again, it's not like EBUGs are becoming so rampant that the league needs to call an exterminator. The NHL can afford to have a feel-good story every once in a while. If it takes a successful EBUG to do it, so be it! I'd even argue that the problem worth looking at is less David Ayres and more figuring out a way to keep the NHL in the news once David Ayres Mania dies out.
Some pundits want to view this as some sort of joke--for whatever reason (I think their biggest issue is the fact that Ayres is 42, which happens to be the same age as Tom Brady). That might be why they want to squash the EBUG once and for all (no more bug puns, I promise!). In response to that, I suggest they ask the EBUGs if they think it's a joke. Because not only are they not laughing, they take their role very seriously.
These guys know their purpose. They know that they're only there in case something happens. (The word "emergency" is in the freakin' title after all!) They know they're most likely not going to play. Most likely, all they'll get out of it is a free jersey, a chance to feel like one of the guys for a night, and a bunch of memories.
If the situation arises where they actually get into a game and play well, so what? It's not going to suddenly turn into an NHL career. Everyone knows that. So let them have their 15 minutes of fame. And if the league can get some good publicity out of it, all the better!
The David Ayres story is something the NHL should be embracing, not running away from. That old adage "there's no such thing as bad publicity" really rings true here. It's got people talking, even those who don't care or know nothing about the NHL. And it took an EBUG named David Ayres for that to happen.
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