The NHL's Carolina Hurricanes were put in a tough position this weekend when, during a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, both their goalie and back-up goalie left with injuries. That is when Dave Ayres, the 42 year-old Zamboni driver, entered and managed to block eight shots to win the game for the Hurricanes.
On Tuesday, NBC Sport Boston’s Trenni Kusnierek stopped by to recount the career-high for the emergency backup.
“He’s just hanging out … kind of on-call," Kusnierek said. "And he sees one goalie go down, and when one goalie goes down, just to be prepared, he goes down into a media-like waiting room. … [and] all of a sudden, his phone is blowing up.
“He goes in the game with Carolina clinging to a small lead, and he gives up two goals — first two shots, two goals. And then he settles in … and Carolina wins the game!”
On Tuesday, Ayres, an employee of the Toronto Maple Leafs, was named an honorary North Carolinian by North Carolina governor Roy Cooper.
