5 ms·

I'm surprised its not just one of the players on the roster. Somebody who played goalie in high school or something. In soccer you occasionally see a hurt or

I'm surprised its not just one of the players on the roster. Somebody who played goalie in high school or something. In soccer you occasionally see a hurt or red carded goalie replaced by a field player if the team has already used their allowed substitutions for the game. But I guess goalie is just that different in hockey.

mikemac 9y ago
Getting the equipment on is a bit of a process, so I doubt teams would want to be down a rostered skater in the event they need someone to sit on the bench as a goaltender. It's also extremely rare for these backups to see playing time. This is only the second time it's happened in the NHL; the previous was last year when an equipment manager stood in for 8 seconds.
johns 9y ago
Good explanation of why that's not practical from a long-time goalie: https://deadspin.com/1824202533 https://deadspin.com/1824202533
michaelgrosner2 9y ago
I played hockey all through college as a forward and a couple times have thrown on goalie equipment just to try it out after practice. I have found that being a goalie is a completely different skill set than being a skater, it's almost like you are playing a different sport. It's all about playing angles, body positioning, quick reflexes, and spatial awareness - those skills are important for skaters but we usually focus on play formation, north/south speed, agility, and passing.
- DrScump 9y ago
  Plus you're on the ice for the entire game rather than one 40-60 second shift at a time (with no chance for a rest in the penalty box, either).
atomic77 9y ago
This being HN, I should point out that getting goalies to play can be such a problem that there is even an "Uber for goalies" app in Canada: https://www.puckapp.ca/ https://www.puckapp.ca/
- toyg 9y ago
  Are goalies so rare / specialised / injury-prone in ice-hockey that they need a dedicated app? Wow. I don't think anyone would need anything like that in football (soccer), but maybe there is a business opportunity I had never thought of...
  - ninkendo 9y ago
    Pretty much. If you're in a rec league and your goalie can't make the game you have to scramble to find one, or forfeit the game (or play without one, which trust me, sucks for both teams since the other team feels like they have to take it easy on you even though they really shouldn't.) Usually the league you're in provides this service though, there's a sort of standby list of goalies that can get called on if you know enough in advance that yours can't make it. Goalies also almost never pay the league fees (the team distributes the fees amongst the skating players and doesn't make the goalie pay). Not having a goalie is basically the death of a team.
    - moondev 9y ago
      Agreed! The other thing is if you don't play goalie mainly, many skaters just would rather not. I know I would much rather play as a forward than get shot at all game.
    - evanspa 9y ago
      In my beer hockey league (Charlotte), goalies have to pay the league fees too. And it's up to the player-coach to find a sub if the primary goalie can't make the game. Our league is relatively "formal" in that we all have to be registered with USA Hockey; our games have real refs, time keeper, etc. But I've been in other leagues, less formal, where goalies skate for free.
DrScump 9y ago
They have to have the full goalie gear on in advance and for the entire game. You'd be sacrificing a skater for that game. It's not like baseball, where some non-catcher on the roster is considered emergency catcher (generally anybody bilingual and with past catching experience). I saw this happen in pro roller hockey (RHI) where the San Jose Rhinos' then-GM (but previously a champion goalie) had to sign himself to a 1-day contract and dress for a game.

mikemac 9y ago

Getting the equipment on is a bit of a process, so I doubt teams would want to be down a rostered skater in the event they need someone to sit on the bench as a goaltender. It's also extremely rare for these backups to see playing time. This is only the second time it's happened in the NHL; the previous was last year when an equipment manager stood in for 8 seconds.

johns 9y ago

Good explanation of why that's not practical from a long-time goalie: https://deadspin.com/1824202533 https://deadspin.com/1824202533

michaelgrosner2 9y ago

I played hockey all through college as a forward and a couple times have thrown on goalie equipment just to try it out after practice. I have found that being a goalie is a completely different skill set than being a skater, it's almost like you are playing a different sport. It's all about playing angles, body positioning, quick reflexes, and spatial awareness - those skills are important for skaters but we usually focus on play formation, north/south speed, agility, and passing.

DrScump 9y ago
Plus you're on the ice for the entire game rather than one 40-60 second shift at a time (with no chance for a rest in the penalty box, either).

atomic77 9y ago

This being HN, I should point out that getting goalies to play can be such a problem that there is even an "Uber for goalies" app in Canada: https://www.puckapp.ca/ https://www.puckapp.ca/

toyg 9y ago
Are goalies so rare / specialised / injury-prone in ice-hockey that they need a dedicated app? Wow. I don't think anyone would need anything like that in football (soccer), but maybe there is a business opportunity I had never thought of...
- ninkendo 9y ago
  Pretty much. If you're in a rec league and your goalie can't make the game you have to scramble to find one, or forfeit the game (or play without one, which trust me, sucks for both teams since the other team feels like they have to take it easy on you even though they really shouldn't.) Usually the league you're in provides this service though, there's a sort of standby list of goalies that can get called on if you know enough in advance that yours can't make it. Goalies also almost never pay the league fees (the team distributes the fees amongst the skating players and doesn't make the goalie pay). Not having a goalie is basically the death of a team.
  - moondev 9y ago
    Agreed! The other thing is if you don't play goalie mainly, many skaters just would rather not. I know I would much rather play as a forward than get shot at all game.
  - evanspa 9y ago
    In my beer hockey league (Charlotte), goalies have to pay the league fees too. And it's up to the player-coach to find a sub if the primary goalie can't make the game. Our league is relatively "formal" in that we all have to be registered with USA Hockey; our games have real refs, time keeper, etc. But I've been in other leagues, less formal, where goalies skate for free.

DrScump 9y ago

They have to have the full goalie gear on in advance and for the entire game. You'd be sacrificing a skater for that game. It's not like baseball, where some non-catcher on the roster is considered emergency catcher (generally anybody bilingual and with past catching experience). I saw this happen in pro roller hockey (RHI) where the San Jose Rhinos' then-GM (but previously a champion goalie) had to sign himself to a 1-day contract and dress for a game.