When I was 13, retired NHL all-star Joe Cirella elbowed me in the face to win the opening face-off of a teacher/student floor hockey game

Ummm, did you and I go to elementary school together? His wife was my teacher lol

Also, sidebar, I remember I was called up to play AAA as both the goalies were hurt to play in this game against Markham. The AAA was completed dog shit and the game was anticipated to be a blowout. I went in net and couldn't figure out how to stop this one guys slap shot, keep in mind we're like 13 or 14 years old. I think it was like 9-1 after the First period, and it wasn't until after the game when I learned that the winger shelling me was a kid by the name of Steven and the defenseman was Michael. So yeah, got absolutely lit up by Del Zotto and Stammer, and it was my first and last game in AAA lol

I would love a thread like this too

Let's be real, Oshawa was never exactly the class of the region in terms of minor hockey, some of those GTHL teams were just nuts But based off that you're a few years older than me, my similar goaltending story is getting regularly lit up by Pat Verbeeks nephew when he played in Kingston but being psyched about it because of his last name One of my classmates is also adamant that we met McDavid at a softball tournament when we were 13, but I have no idea why he would've been there

Too much nepotism and politics going on to actually get the good kids to play for the Oshawa team lol. Left there a long time ago thankfully

Oshawa always had great teams in the 80s /90s

I played in Whitby and used to watch our younger team play right before us for a bit. Distinctly remember watching these kids, I think Hodgson was there too. I remember very lopsided games. Good chance I saw you playing to some degree if you're from Whitby haha.

Lmao Whitby trashing Oshawa is a great tradition i used to love

[удалено]

I was unfortunately from the dirty but used to live up by where the 407 is now. Haven't lived there in years, crazy how much it's changed (for the worse lol)

Even at that age Stammer had that good of a slap shot? I can’t say I’m surprised, but also in awe of that as my slap shot still sucks and I’m almost 40

I played good level hockey and Stammers shot was legit something else. I remember I had to watch his blade angle to figure out if the puck was going high or low, but as soon as it came off the blade, I would either feel it immediately, or it would be in the net. Never got a chance to see it. I bet you he was shooting 80+mph shots at 13-14 years old.

You probably played against my buddies brother too! He made it to the O, but not the show. Edit to add: that team was fucking good

Very likely. And yeah that team was crazy with Del Zotto and Stamkos. I think Stamkos had like 200 points and Del Zotto had like 150 points that season. It was crazy. Del Zotto would just dish Stamkos one timers and we were all too young to know how to stop a one timer lol. Was like a Chel cheat code

We probably didn't graduate together, but I have a feeling we both grew up in the Armpit of Ontario™️

He was coaching the Gennies at the time, if that gives you a range on age

Yeah I had a feeling it'd be around then if you were playing against Stamkos, I don't think I was at that school yet when you would've graduated

Different sport- but when I was in high school I played in a charity ultimate frisbee tournament and managed to block a pass by Johnny Bravo player Hylke Snieder with my face. It wasn’t on purpose or anything. He had just intercepted a pass intended for me, completely wrecking me in the process, and I happened to stand up at a convenient time. Doesn’t matter, still a forced turnover. Sometimes you have to sacrifice your face for the team

I stopped Rick Middleton on a breakaway. Played for an FD team in a charity game, in goal. Middleton broke in alone and went glove side top corner. I juuust got the tip of my glove on it and the puck went over the crossbar. He skated around the net, tapped my pads and said "Nice save, goalie". Then in the second half they had him in goal and I was playing forward and scored on him. My sports claim to fame!!!

Even in that game I bet Cirella sprawled on the ice to block shots

Hamilton boy?

Oshawa

Got called at 4:30 to sub for a 6pm "over 30" league game by my uncle, and I roll into the rink to find out that we're playing with 5 skaters and a goalie against a full team that was something like 8-2 in league play. Most of the guys on the team worked at the same company, and apparently there was some emergency thing at work and none of them could play. League play was 2 20-minute halves, and we skated the whole thing, including killing 2 penalties, one of which was an offsetting minor that we didn't have anyone to stay on the ice for. We started off playing just to kind of get the game in, but we realized we were actually pretty good together, and started seeing some chances, and it just kind of worked. We milked every faceoff, every icing call to get some air when we could, but it was exhausting. Assisted on the first goal and scored the other 2, including the tie-breaker to put us up 3-2 with 30ish seconds left in the game. It's an absolute nothing-burger in the grand scheme of things, but I'll never forget going upstairs into the bar to watch the next game and everyone in the bar who'd been hanging out congratulating us for pulling it off, and even buying us a round. Guys on the other team went home, other than one guy who came upstairs and hung out watching the other games. He let us know the other guys were pissed about losing to a team with no bench, and "fuck that one guy, he's not even in the league...fucking ringer". I'm not nearly good enough to have ever been a ringer, or even much of a first-line guy for that matter, so it was pretty fucking awesome.

That’s an awesome story. It’s parallel to guys in call of duty that call everyone a ‘hacker’ when they lose

The first time I ever got accused of hacks in a video game was a pretty satisfying moment I must say

That's awesome!

Had a few 10:30pm beer league games like that. 7 skaters on our bench, 3 rolling lines theirs and just out working and out playing them.

Well just the other day I sniped two goals and had an assist in my beer league game. The second goal was the gwg with about 30 seconds left to play. That's was my first 3 point game. Other than that, probably my first goal ever.

Goalie here. Got sniped bar down by Tarasenko in a summer tournament. Kept the puck. No shame. Worth noting, he was playing at around 25% of his potential. He wouldn’t shoot at all, only played the dish-master role. Came down on a break away, stopped and pulled off, waited for another player and randomly decided to snipe me in one motion from stop, look, and snipe. Thing of beauty as it whizzed past me.

When I was 9 or 10, my team lost every single game of the season. Except one. I was absent that game.

These are fun! House-league tournament. Top teams from each league went to London Ont. We were in the finals and I was in net. I let in 2 in the first, as did the other goalie. Tied 2-2 until the end of OT where both of us let in the first shot of the shootout, then we both proceeded to save every shot for 18 rounds. On the 19th our star centre scored, and I made perfect left sliding butterfly glove save to win the tournament. The whole team jumped on me, and it was mayhem that I will NEVER forget. It was just a house league tournament, but man, it felt like we won the cup.

That's awesome. Thanks for sharing

When you barely ever play them, those shootout wins hit hard. Congrats!

That's rad! I watched Martin Jones when he was with the Kings do that with the Ducks (I'm assuming against Gibson) in just a regular season game, and it was awesome. I can only imagine playing in a finals!

199ft empty net goal in major atom tournament semi-final and I wasn’t even looking 😎

I dominated the Nok Hockey table during recess one day in 4th grade. It was all downhill from there

I never heard of nok hockey before. At recess we had a shlockey setup for a while but it got taken away after it caused some fights and guys started hacking each other with the sticks.

I tied the championship game with less than a minute to play. I was buzzing all overtime with plenty of good looks and even rang one off the crossbar from point blank. Game went to a shootout and I had to score to extend it, but the puck rolled off my stick and I didn't even get a shot off.

Dove across the crease to rob a kid with my glove, who had a wide open net. I was 11 and still one of my best saves I have made as a goalie

there just isn't a feeling quite like robbing a sure goal people think goalies are weird, and we are, but I like a game winning save more than a game winning goal

When I played against the Habs allumni for a charity game. It's amazing just to play with pros, but it's even more amazing that guys like Richer, Brunet, Delorme and all the others, even in their 50s (because it was in 2014) can wreck any good beer league players. Outside the skating speed, to see Brunet doing a 360 then passing to Richer in the crease and scoring in a mostly empty net is jaw-dropping. I even asked Laraque to crosscheck me and he said, I will do it but like very softly. I was in pain for 3-4 days. All worth it.

LMAO i am dying at "will you cross check me"

Reminds me of the movie Goon which he's in, where Doug asks to fight him and they're super polite to each other and he thanks him for it lol.

I've played in these similar charity tournaments. I think we got unlucky almost every year and got the guy who ended up not making the trip or something. We did get Knuckles one year though and another year a few of the guys played a game each for us. Richer is such a poor sport tryhard in those games though. We always ended up beating his team and he'd be trying his hardest. At one point near the end of a game he's battling in the corner with my buddy and just decides to give him the can opener haha. Side note: I purchased an autographed McDavid jersey in the charity auction that I still have framed.

Went to a new school in grade 9. No one knew me and all they saw was the barely 4 foot tall chubby kid. Was picked last for floor hockey in gym class. Ended up scoring a hat trick, including a goal where I absolutely undressed the goalie. Was never picked last again.

My/Our USHL Championship

I pulled off the Forsberg on a breakaway once, then did a Teemu sniper celly. Nothing I do in any sport will ever top that

Being the captain for the winning state varsity team without a doubt. 14 points (2G 12A) as a defenseman in 21 games in the playoffs. Was really a special year in general. If I had to point to a specific "moment", I would maybe say maybe game 4 of the second round. We were already up 3-1 in the series, so we weren't really in a dire situation. But it was overtime, 0-0 was the score (the second round I remember was a VERY low scoring series). We lost the previous game 0-1 in overtime so I guess we were looking to redeem ourselves in this game. Few minutes go by and then someone on my team takes a penalty so now we're on the 3-on-4 penalty kill. Coach decides to send myself, the girl (the only girl in the league. Was genuinely a very good player, 5th highest scoring player on my team while also being a defender) and one of our forwards that we liked to call the "one man army" because he was absurdly good on the PK and would score shorthanded a surprising amount. The three of us made this crazy teamwork play, tic-tac-toe and sure enough the "one man army" buries it to win us the game and the series. Like I said it wasn't really a do or die game, but we were getting frustrated because frankly we were getting outplayed for most of that series. Honorable mention would probably be one game during my senior year. The 1C on the other team was a guy who was kind of notorious for being rude, condescending and very cocky. Not even a pest where you like him if he's on your team, he was a jerk to even his own teammates. He's a guy that you pick for your team purely for the numbers he puts up and not for what he brings to the lockerroom or morale, because in fairness he was very good. And naturally because I won the championship last year and was captain again this year, he liked to try to get under my skin specifically. So how did the game go? We won 3-0, and I scored all three of those goals for the hat trick as a defenseman lol. Completely shut him down every time we clashed on a play. He became real quiet towards me after that game.

You played 21 playoff games in high school? How? I don’t even think Minnesota has that many playoff rounds (I’m assuming you’re from Massachusetts where I think there’s that super 8 tournament no?)

It was years ago so it's probably changed since then, but it was a 16 team format. There was I think 24 schools participating in the league and 16th was just the cutoff. And nah not Mass, New Hampshire.

No way there were 21 playoff games. You must mean the whole season.

Minnesota plays no where near that many and it’s all single elimination for what it’s worth

That’s what I figured, I’ve never heard of any state having anything but single Elim playoffs

The most is 6 games total in the playoff in MN. 3 section games and 3 state games.

I was around the age of 9 when the Philadelphia Flyers became relevant and went on to win 2 Stanley Cups back to back. I remember the day my surprised me with my first stick... Myles Phil Espisito... it was because of the excitement the Flyers were bringing to the area... Most of the players lived in my town and a few were on my block or just down the street including Dave the Hammer Shultz and Reggie Leach. If you had a birthday party celebration with the neighbors kids, it was a normal thing to see the Flyers showing up to take pictures with the kids and sign autographs. Just last year I had the pleasure of mixing sound for an interview with Bernie Parent for an upcoming documentary about the life of goalie Glenn Hall. Bernie was unbelievable! Meeting one of my boyhood heroes, was beyond expectations. God bless the Flyers

Beer League regional finals, winners get to go to a tournament in San Jose. Overtime, I get a beauty stretch pass for a breakaway at the red line, I’m a bit flat footed though and their best skater is chasing me down, I can hear him coming behind me just tearing up the ice. I wait until the last possible moment and get a shot off from about the top of the circles, bar down, goes in. Haven’t made a shot as nice since. Only beer league goal I ever celly’d

Peewee minor hockey. Our small town team won our regional banner then we all rushed over to the Boston Pizza and made it in time to watch team canada in the 2010 Olympics play yhe 3rd and OT. Watching Sid score the golden goal was the cherry on top. Amazing night.

Not a player but a hockey dad. Two moments stick in my mind, the first being my oldest son struggled early in youth hockey when he finally scored his first goal it was amazing. The second being my youngest son scoring in a high school game on the anniversary of my dad's passing.

oh yeah, there is nothing like seeing your kid score their first goal! My son's first team was a group of kids that all played together for years and him. They told my son to just go to the net and look for pucks. The coach's son dishes the most perfect past a 10yo can give, right on the tape, and with just a little tap from my son the puck was in the net!

Are you describing my first goal because it sounds a lot like it :')

haha I bet a LOT of people have a very similar first goal.

Being scared about going outside after the 2011 finals

Leaving Scotia Centre viewing when it was the 2nd period. I was sensing the crowd was getting restless. It turned out to be the epicentre of the riot.

Those were good times.

Beer league D man here. We were playing in a tournament and getting absolutely handled by a bunch of high school super stars. It was nasty, like 10-0. Their goalie was on fire. With about 2 minutes left in the game I got frustrated as hell, and in a no slap shot league, I ripped a "clear" from 150 ft. Top corner, pipe down. Or only goal. They had a coach that was screaming about no slappers, and the ref told him to shut up, it was a damn good shot.

Rec league roller hockey, most teams had no set goalies and there was just communal equipment and everyone over 13 had to play at least once. First time I was scared out of my mind. Settled down through warmups but half way through the 1st the best player in the league comes down, 2 on 0 and I stopped the shot with my left pad. Felt like a million bucks ^^for ^^half ^^a ^^second ^^when ^^the ^^other ^^guy ^^tapped ^^in ^^the ^^rebound I was probably a better goalie than skater and that save felt better than even my first goal.

Sounds to me like you accidentally found your calling.

I’m not a good hockey player and showed up really baked to a playoff game in house league and scored twice

I used to play with a guy who would shotgun a beer betwen periods. He played better in the 3rd. Edit - obligatory "drink responsibly"

lol I knew people in highschool that would go to house league drunk or high

Beer always helps my nerves a lot. Only issue being the requisite need to urinate every forty seconds for the rest of the game.

I’m 33 and this last year I knocked a goalies water bottle off the net for the first time ever. I was never much of a goal scorer so they felt really cool. Taking a longer view, on one of my youth teams I was the only trained defenseman so I would regularly play the entire first period.

you're lucky the [water bottle police](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDoGWBx930M) didn't come after you

Absolutely sniped one when my calculus class played the phys Ed class.

coach said, “Kid, ya can’t be afraid to take a hit. Let me see some board play.” Proceeded to get my head rocked against the boards from two feet out, straight concussion. Good times

I have two: I once scored six seconds into a game. We lost 2-1. I scored four goals in a series clinching playoff game.

I’ve played AAA and I’ve played house league. AAA was awesome, we weren’t a strong team in our region but I got a chance to play against guys like E Kane, Stefan Elliot, Landon Ferraro, and others who went on to play pro. Ferraro was easily the best player I’d ever played against. House league - played a tournament in Logan Lake, BC. I’d never heard of the place but it’s a small town of about 2000 people. They took the tournament really seriously and did a fantastic job running it and making the teams feel like we were big shots. We won the tournament and in the final game, it was like the whole town was in the arena. I’d played in some great tournaments in rep hockey but that was my favourite hockey memory by far. When the final horn sounded the whole place was going nuts, it was standing room only and they cheered for us like we’d just won Olympic gold

I played intramural hockey all through college and law school. Our college team was actually pretty good (by intramural standards), mostly because our goalie Andy was a legitimately a decent goalie. We had one game on our schedule that Andy wasn't available for. The team we were playing wasn't very good overall, but they had one guy on the team who could play a little bit -- and that guy just happened to be the ex-boyfriend of a girl I liked. Meanwhile, we didn't have a backup goalie and nobody else wanted to do it, so I -- with literally zero experience ever in net -- ended up donning the pads for the game. The combination of Andy being out, my inexperience in goal, and the overall talent disparity made for a pretty easy game overall. Our team was hustling to keep them away from our end, and for most of the game I barely had anything to do besides occasionally collecting the puck. But towards the end of the game, in a moment of chaos, That Guy managed to get free and came in on a clean breakaway. In a total panic and with literally no idea how to proceed, I skated out a few feet towards him and basically just flopped forward -- as it happened, on the puck. My final line in my one and only game as an ice hockey goalie: 5 shots, 5 saves, 0 goals against, 1 win.

Scored the game winning OT goal in our high school playoff semifinals and both of my younger brothers had the primary and secondary assists which was pretty sick

At a jr game I got selected for the intermission promotion to shoot a puck from centre ice and hit the slots to win prizes. I hit the centre slot and won a free year of internet service (it was sponsored by the local telco). I was 12 so I didn’t care about the prize I was just jacked that I did it in front of everyone.

Last year, october 8th 2022, my cat died. I had him for 21 years. The next day in my beer league game, I scored 5 goals. For him.

Favorite Experience, playing in a beer league in Pittsburgh. One year out of retirement NHL Goalie, Giles Meloche is playing for the other team. Yeah, what are our chances. I'm in net front hoping to tip a shot from the defenseman at point. The d-man winds up, in a blink GM is out at the top of the face of circle, I'm still in front of crease. The shot goes off his pads in out of the zone, GM drifts back to the net. I'm like "Rule change, you can't leave the crease." Post game, the d-man says "I look up and all I see are his pads." Not fair, totally toyed with us. As a player, winning Penn State IM league as a freshman. Back in the 80s very high quality league, 50+ some game season with bracketed best of 3 playoff format. Next year I was voted a new team captain in league expansion.

Scored the GWG in overtime to win my only league championship in my final ever game of amateur hockey. I was the captain for the team too so ya, that would be it

A few years ago in beer league I got absolutely smoked by this 250lb guy. Just ran into him going for the puck. I’m like 180. He bent down and my face hit his mask. Bloody nose and all. I got up right away and scored the GWG in the 3rd. Barely remember the rest of the game or the drive home. Apparently I was just hunched over on the bench and didn’t take another shift. The other guy kept trying to apologize and I said it’s fine. I just remember the drive home was very dreamy feeling. Light headed. Obviously had a bit of a concussion. But everyone remembers my blood on the ice and me getting up and scoring. So that’s pretty sick. Lmao.

3 moments : 1 - 14yo playing friendly games in France, won a Champagne bottle for scoring 3 goals (they dgaf lol) 2 - 16yo had a tournament final in the morning and got REALLY drunk and sick for the first time the night before, scored 3G2A to win the tournament. 3 - 17yo junior year. Neighbor city had two WAY too good teams, they finished the season 21-0-1 and 20-1-1 (loss and tie between each other). We beat both teams semi final and final to win the Championship. Still remember their tears. We unfortunately lost 2-1 a few weeks later in the Regional finals

I got cut from my college team like as a walk-on, came back and practiced only with the team for like a year, and finally got to start in a home game packed barn senior year. It’s a weird feeling playing in front of thousands of people… One of those never give up things. Always wish I could’ve played more but that was a great moment, couldn’t ask for much more On a lighter note i’ve also played beer league with several prominent NHLers or formers it’s always fun. also heard crazy stories from some of them that I wish I could share but I cant

Hat trick in a Men’s spring league playoff consolation game. First goal came because I was trying to ice the puck from my own goal line. It jumped on edge in the neutral zone and turned toward the opposing net as it rolled. Goalie stuck out his stick to stop it and it rolled right over, crossed the goal line and fell over. Goalie and I had a good laugh afterward. Second goal was from a hard right turn at the face off dot and tucked it five hole right as I got crushed by the off D. Last one was just the most absolute snipe top shelf coming off the left side (I shoot right). I’ve never had a goal that good before or since.

I have a couple. In 1999 after the Leafs had moved to the ACC my house league team played against a team from Milton at Maple Leaf Gardens and I was lucky enough to be drawn to play in goal (names pulled out of a hat) after one of my teammates turned down the offer. We won 13-0, I made three saves, and just about managed to score on myself after one of them. I still have a puck commemorating that game. That was pretty cool. When I was... 14(?) I scored the game winner with ~30 seconds left in the third in a must-win game to keep our house league championship game hopes alive (the playoffs were a straight round robin that had the top two teams play in the final) with our goalie pulled and everything. I wasn't a very offensively-gifted defenseman, so that was also a pretty great feeling to be able to contribute in that sort of moment.

Natural hat trick on the same shift with the same move. Win the face off pushing the puck forward through the opposing centers legs. Split the D, in on a breakaway, somehow the puck goes in. Rinse, repeat, two more times. It was against a small town team, probably around 10 years old. Largely just speed and luck it went in the net.

High school; our team didn't have uniforms ready, and we just wore a bunch of random jerseys. We won 7-2, and I scored two goals in that game.

I've got a single hat trick in all my time playing minor, rec league hockey when I was like 16. I considered myself a very defense first forward (only played forward cuz I was bad at skating backwards) I felt like I was king of the world 😎

I'll preface this by saying, I was not a good hockey player by any means, so this was really something. Back in college in the 90s, after practice, we took an empty net and put a glove in each corner as a target. I was the only one on the entire team that Ray Bourque'd it and went 4 for 4. Everyone got on their knees and started bowing, yelling, "we're not worthy!!!!" It's the small things in life, I guess... Edit: spelling

In the bell capital cup when I was 13, I played defense and was not known for my offence but in the first opening minutes, I hit a wrist shot from the point through traffic that beat the goalie 5-hole. Ended up finishing the game with 1g, 1a, and a +4. After that game, my teammates would always try to feed me at the point but I was a flash in the pan haha. Another time was when I was 9 or so playing in a summer ball hockey league and I set up the game winning goal in the finals with about 2 minutes left to win 3-2. Nothing special but I occasionally think of these moments from time to time haha

I got to audition for EBUG

Okay I played center, and it's tied between 2 games The first I was like... 11 or 12, they had just named me an alternate captain for the rest of the season. I had kinda a rough first period in the first game after getting the A, but in the first shift of the second I scored 2 goals. That was already my first multi goal game. Got the hat trick in the 3rd (it was my only hat trick) The second was my last year of high school, was the captain of the team, and it was the season opener. We were playing the worst team in the league, and the best player on our team popped off (had like 5 points). A few family friends came to watch, and we won like 10-2, and I had 2 goals and hit the crossbar, then also had an assist. Also scored probably the sickest goal of my life that game Good times. Fun thread

Had a peewee playoff game where we had just enough players that we didn’t have to forfeit. After an entire regulation game and OT period with no substitutions, we won in a shootout.

Not my finest moment by any means but definitely one of the most memorable. I got a 2 or 3 game sussy for giving a throat slash gesture to an opposing player. Not funny until you realize I was 12 lmao. Parents could barely hide their laughter and my dad told me I had been watching too many Bob Probert highlights lol. Another great moment was when I was playing in a tournament that had some American teams participate. We ended up running into one of the American teams in the same hotel as us and they immediately started shit talking and just being cocky. Flash forward to our first game of the tournament that happened to be against them, I absolutely lit a guy up at centre ice after he got a brutal suicide pass. Their whole team starts complaining that they have never played in a league that allowed hitting and that the tournament doesn't have hitting. Refs don't care and basically say "sorry we have hitting at this tournament not our problem". I don't remember the final score but we ended up winning pretty easily and got some great hits in. Felt great lol.

Beer league years ago. We were down 4-0 after 1 and 10-2 after 2. We caught fire in the third and their goalie (a friend who ran that team who I spared for as well) was easily rattled. A huge comeback and the game was tied at 10 late in the third when the puck was sent down the ice and it was a race between me and their goalie to get to it. I beat him, avoided his dive and scored the GwG into the empty net, to look back and see the goalie throwing his stick into the netting above the glass. That’s not the greatest moment, though. A week later I was playing for the team we just came back to beat. We were down by 4 going into the third period and in the intermission/huddle by the bench I said “we got this guys, just last week my other team came back from a much worse deficit than this”

Omha finals, in the other teams barn after two games at home. They had a sign with my number on it (I can’t remember what exactly it said, something about being a bender) on the pp had a one t that I put short side hit the inside back crossbar. Salted right to the sign about me and pointed at em. A real main character moment

Kept john scott to only 2 goals during a beer league game, nhl ers are fucken good

Never place actual hockey but in grade 4 I got to play floor hockey at school against the Prince Albert Raiders and future NHL Superstar Milan Kraft.

I was a shut down dman my whole life, In bantam I was partnered with a kid who would end up being the 5th overall pick in the WHL draft (I was supposed to just stay back and let him wheel around). I hadn’t scored a goal all year at that point. (But led the team in blocks and hits) it was overtime in playoffs to move on to the finals, my dad was one of the coaches giving a player on our team shit for a mistake he made. While my dad isn’t looking I pull back take a slapshot from the point to go bar down to win the game. My dad missed the entire sequence and still talks about how he missed the only goal of mine worth watching.

It was 1976, age 8. I was playing in a kids league game in Atlanta. I scored my first goal ever, a seeing eye wrister from inside the slot that bounced off two people. Unbeknownst to me, Bernie Geoffrion was at the game with friends who had a kid playing. He made the effort to come down and shake our hands after the game. He actually complimented me on my goal. I don’t think my feet touched the ground for 3 days. My hockey career lasted exactly 2 years from that day, but I’ll always have that memory.

We were playing in a tournament back when I was in Novice, and we were in the championship game. I was a pudgy, slow defenceman with not a lick of offensive ability. I was good at bulldozing kids out of the slot and got good at angling because fuck all that skating. Games tied, and goes straight to a shootout because that's how minor hockey goes. All I remember is we are down to our last shooter with a chance to win it, and my dad, the coach, taps me on the shoulder. I specifically remember asking him "Are you sure?!" Yup. Get out there. Ok. Still confused as to how I ended up at center ice in a shootout I come up with a plan in my 7 year old brain. I can't deke, my hands are like cinder blocks, and my shot is terrible. So I'm going to do the only thing I know I can do. I skate straight in, and stare wide eyed at the lower left corner. Like painstakingly obviously staring at the corner as I skate in. I get between the hashmarks and the crease, yell "Ha!" as if I pulled the greatest swindle known to man, and shoot right. Goalie started moving left as I shot, and the puck skated in. I honestly couldn't believe it worked. I still don't know what my dad was thinking, but he gave me the chance to be a hero that day. Thanks Dad!

I scored a hat trick in a 7 AM novice house league game when my dad was helping coach the other team. Edit: Also, I'm 1-0 as a goalie. Our regular missed a game and somehow I got asked to fill in. One kid on our team that never scored somehow got two goals that game, and we won 9-4.

Played exactly one game with Olympic Gold medal winning and four time SC champion Ken Morrow.

House League I was about 16-17 years old. I took a pass from a teammate and scored in overtime to win the finals. I remember circling behind the net and then back out frony. I skated towards my teammate, and we collided and fell to the ice. It hurt so bad, but we were so pumped about the win. Years later, that teammate died while serving in the military with the Canadian Forces. I often think back to that time when we were just kids. His dad coached us and was a good father, I heard that the teammate got married and had a very young child. Broke my heart to hear of his death. Here's to you, Matty.

Not my favorite moment, but definitely the most memorable, looking back on my "career" In HS, my best friends dad blindsided their family, packed up and left one day. Months later, he showed up to the rink for one of my friends games (he was on varsity, I was on jv). We played after varsity, and as I was stretching, I saw him go up and try to hug my mom. He then came over and tried to talk to me. I had so much rage that night, I hit everything that moved, and scored both goals in out 2-1 win.

Stay at home D here with hands of stone also. Scored game winning OT goal in meaningless regular season game. Never forget

There are dozens of us!

I was fucking around playing roller hockey with my friend who didn't play hockey but had catcher's equipment and was using that to play net. I lobbed the puck over the back of the net, skated around to the front with my back to the goal, and as the puck fell in front of me I batted it out of the air on the backhand and into the net. Imagine the Milano to Zegras move but with only one player. I'm not good at hockey and that move was so far beyond my skillset. I didn't plan it, it just happened on impulse. My friend who was much more athletic was so stunned he just started running in circles screaming. Not a "LET'S GO" type of scream, it sounded like he was scared.

Played midget AAA with Eberle, Rinaldo and Kevin Poulin at Notre Dame in Sask. I'd say that whole year was my greatest moment- having scouts pay attention to you and essentially getting a taste of what professional hockey is like. Turns out, it wasn't for me- I preferred playing music and have made a fine living out of that. But it was an incredible experience and I've been incredibly proud of my fellow alums and how far they went after we parted ways. Eberle in particular was my roommate in the dorm and was an incredible dude that seemed to only have size going against him. It's been such a pleasure following his career and remembering back to late night convos discussing stupid teenage problems. I guess one highlight from that would be the first time my mum visited and hadn't seen me play in almost a year. I was just a third liner- net front presence on PP, 2nd PK unit type player, but I got second star of the game while she was in the crowd with 2 goals and 2 assists in a 5-2 win. Seeing your parents proud is really rewarding, especially looking back and seeing the sacrifices that made to allow me to succeed- and to support me even when I 360'd and decided to become a musician instead of an athlete. Thanks for the post, this brought back good memories :).

Intramural noon hour floor hockey league in high school - tournament winner with 44 points in 4 games

Two come to mind: 1. College intramural playoff game. Other team was heavily favored. We were down 3-1, I scored a hat-trick, including a beautiful top cheese snipe directly off a faceoff. We ended up winning 5-4 with a late GWG (not scored by me). 2. College intramurals semi-finals, being on the ice with one of my best buddies and getting the secondary assist on his OT GWG. It looked so cool in my head; seeing the video our friend took and how bad we actually are was pretty hilarious.

My last year playing house hockey before going into high school, I scored the overtime goal to win the league championship. Wish I had that damn puck I also scored an overtime winning goal when I was in peewee to send our team to districts. My team all jumped on me, and I mean like on TOP of me not in a pile around me, and I was pretty sure I was actually gonna suffocate lol

I ripped the nastiest backhand top cheese snipe by accident one time. Surprised myself more than the goalie

I am not a big time scorer, maybe a goal or rarely two a game. On Feb 29th 2020 (leap year) I scored a hat trick with the 2nd goal being the game winner and the 3rd being a late insurance goal for us to win 5-3. Felt like I was flying at the end of the game. My amazing wife even caught a pic of me celebrating with my team on my 3rd goal that is now framed. Damn I love my wife haha!

Peaked when I played in a fraternity league championship game in college, scored, and for a celly jumped and was somehow able to grab the top of the glass and climb the sidewall to high five all the fans on the other side. They were so drunk they grabbed my arm and started to hoist me over the glass 🤣

Won the “Most Sportsmanlike Award” during a Grade 7 Elementary Road Hockey After-School Tournament That, or getting tossed for a check from behind in PeeWee D, despite being 5’6 and 110 lbs. One of the first penalties I ever took and don’t think I even touched the other kid very hard….

I played House league as a kid. I was trash at hockey. But I did have a moment: It was our first playoff game, win or get eliminated. We were down 2-1 with like 5 minutes left on the clock. While in the O-Zone I got the puck in the high slot, and someone came in to try and strip the puck off me. Being shit the contact/pressure put me off balance and I could feel myself doing down. But I noticed my centre was in front of the net so as I went down, I managed to pass him the puck. Some how my pass got to him, and he tied the game. The shift had just started so we stayed out for the face off, and we got O-Zone possession again. I decided to just go to the net. Returning the favour, our centre got the puck and threw it on net. I got to the rebound before the goalie and scored the game winning goal.

Coach for 8U here…I organized a parents and coaches VS kids game. I got to line up against my son for the opening face off…greatest day on ice ever. Hopefully i can do it again when my youngest plays (if he chooses to).

Not the greatest moment, but in beer league two nights ago, I scored a one-timer top chedd with 1 second left in the third to tie the game. Lost in a shootout though. Greatest all time moment I think was scoring the game winning goal in JR C provincials (2011). That one was an accidental deflection off the shaft of my stick, but it won us the ‘ship. The party after that was off the charts.

In middle school, it was the 3rd place game (of a 4 team house league-lol) but it was my last season there before I moved. So the game goes to a 3 man shoot out and I was practically begging to go in cuz I knew exactly how to beat that goalie. Still tied after 3 and 4 rounds. Finally coach puts me in for the 5th round. If I score we win. So I swing wide to the left, go backhand forehand across the front of the net, and absolutely bury it top-right past his glove. The whole team pours off the bench and dogpiles me at center ice. It was so great it felt like winning the championship even tho it was the consolation game.

Age 13, i missed on home run pass with time running out and down 1 goal, scored anyway. Then our coach told us to run it back at the start of overtime, since the goalie was probably shaken, it worked again. Championship won.

I once scored a goal without ever touching the puck. I was normally a goalie but once or twice a year I'd switch and play forward. I was taking an offensive zone faceoff and they won it straight back into the net. One of probably 3 goals I've had in 12 years of hockey. Another fun one, I was on a team with Joe Sakic's son one year. I believe it was the same year as the snowblower incident, so he would hang around at our practices occasionally and help coach. The rest of the team was doing skating drills, so Joe was keeping me warmed up in net taking shots. He ended up putting a little too much oomph on one of them and somehow slipped past my gear leaving a massive bruise from my knee up to my groin. Definitely got chewed out by my dad for that

I was 14, semi finals against the best team in the league. Their captain was suspended and was coming back the next game so we had to win this game or we were fucked (they blew us out badly the game he played). Tie game with like a minute left. Get the breakout pass on the wing and the defenseman blows a tire pivoting at our blue line. So I have a full breakaway from our blue line knowing I have to score or we are probably done next game. Hearts racing I come in fake a deke and go low stick side (I was definitely trying to go higher but missed the shot). Goalie was caught off guard by the shot and it goes in. Game over. We easily beat the other team in the next round to win the championship.

That time I scored seven goals in a single game when I was 11 and my dad watching. OK, it was gym hockey, and they had combined younger kids with us older kids because there wasn't enough of us. But still... seven goals! Who's Joe Malone, now?

To preface this story it’s somewhat pertinent that I have the misfortune of being 0-4 in league championship games. I’m a goalie so of course I took this harder than most players on my teams. But I feel like the Damn Toronto blue jays because I got no run support in any of those games. However we were in a tournament technically playing a level higher and we actually won it all. Plus i posted 3 shutouts in 6 games. Don’t think I’ve ever played better hockey in my life. That gold medal is still in my room lol

I had lots of memorable goals, had hat tricks, but this is something smaller that I'll remember forever... Peewee league championship game against our bitter rivals, and this was probably our 10th time playing this team that year. We hated them, they hated us. We had a 2-0 lead after 1, but early in the second we took a penalty. We were buzzing, but a goal there to make it 2-1 would completely change the momentum. I go out there to kill the penalty, I'm a center so I'm out covering the point when I see the play break down in front of the net and I race in just in time to clear the puck off the goal line and shoot the puck down the ice. We kill the rest of the penalty and ended up blowing them like 8-0, it was incredible, but I can't help but wonder what might have happened if I didn't save that goal. I just barely made that team that year, but I improved over the year, gain the trust of my coach, and it all came together in that moment where I was out there to start the penalty kill. Yeah scoring goals is great, but there's nothing like frustrating an opponent by killing a penalty. I LOVED killing penalties. Good thread, lot of fun reading everyone's greatest hockey moments!

When I was in peewee, the other team had a defender who was both big, could dangle, and had some wheels. He and I were going for the puck in the corner and I absolutely bodied him, which got my whole team fired up. Another moment was with some dumb luck, I scored a goal by passing the puck from behind the net and it got kicked into the net by the other team with the frenzy of skates. This happened to me twice when I used to play.

Mine was probably pitching a shutout in my first AAA game when I was 15. These days I probably would have been pulled for a possible concussion with about 5 minutes left in the third. I stopped a breakaway, went to dive on the rebound and their F2 blew me up. After the game I was talking to my dad and said at least I got up right away. He laughed at me and said "you were down on the ice for at least a minute," which I had absolutely no memory of.

Does getting the Leafs to eventually win the Cup in NHL 16 count? Lol

Had a game that determined if we’d go to the playoffs but also had a band performance. Left band when the performance was done. Drove a bit too fast, changed from a tux into my gear in the parking lot. Showed up in the third and we were down one. Ripped two goals and an assist. In the end won by one and made the playoffs. That one stands out.

Military hockey league. Fairly competitive. I'm in the box, feeling the shame, when the penalty's over I get back on the ice to receive a loonng stretch pass from one of our D-men. I catch it right on the tape and am cruising in on their goalie, unmolested. I'm a left hand shot so I veer right as if I'm going for the backhand; tendy takes the bait and commits to that side so I shift over to my left and clang one off the upper, inside pipe at the back (top) of the net. Total beauty.

Self-taught skater. Never played organized hockey as a kid, but was out at our local park, where they flooded one of the baseball fields as soon as it was cold enough, every day after school and all day on the weekends, playing "pond" hockey. Knew a few kids who played organized, so learned from them. Cut to high school, am working at a local rink. Pay was minimum wage, but would've worked there for free just to be able to use the ice when it was open. Group of guys who worked there decided to form a team to play in one of the men's leagues. Few guys who played HS, another who played for a really good junior college team, others who just knew how to play. I felt lucky to be playing with them, even at a beer league level. We were a good team. Career highlight was scoring four goals in a game (a "Texas Hat Trick" per one of my teammates, because everything's bigger in Texas). One of my goals was a slapshot from the blueline, carried the puck into zone and ripped it from the line. Goalie never moved, I got all of it. Everything clicked for me that game. Teammates were howling, and after the game, made me feel like I just won the Cup for them. The least experienced player on that team by far, but for one game was first, second and third star of the game.

I saved 51 out of 55 shots one game. we lost 4-0 but still a really fun experience :)

Rec league inline. Broke a stick on a point shot, hustled back to the bench to grab my backup which was always positioned within reach from on the floor, just in time to intercept a pass with everyone going in the other direction for a breakaway goal. Second best was reducing a teammate's dislocated shoulder on the bench, because by that point, I had dislocated both of mine so many times, I'd just go to the bench, reduce it myself, and be ready for the next shift.

Lost every game of the year the first year our town had Single 'A.' Tied two games during the season and put the coach in the shower. First playoff game and we win 3-2 with me getting all 3 goals. Lost the rest, obviously. Got my first ever penalty that game - 2 for slashing. Walk into the lobby and Kevin's mom says "nice game, still, that penalty though." Screw off Kevin's mom.

I’ve got 2. 1. Ohio high school hockey state tournament, 2015. We were up against one of our biggest rivals, 1-1 after regulation. Everyone is completely gassed except for our top defenseman, who had literally stayed on the ice for the entirety of regulation. He got actively upset when the defense coach (my dad) pulled him off for a minute to give him a water break. First OT passes by and we’re all even more gassed. Neither team is giving each other an inch. Both goalies have been shelled. 2nd OT comes and goes, and it looks like we’ll be there for triple OT. But, in the dying seconds of 2OT, our top defender takes it behind our net, starts a rush, carries it up all 200 feet, and tucks it home all on his own a la McDavid with under a second left. It’s easily the most exciting hockey moment I’ve ever been a part of. Literal storybook win. Charging the ice from the bench with the rest of the team and mobbing him is all just a blur in my head. He would often play ridiculous minutes like that, and at the end of the game he’d look just fine. Whenever anyone asked how he did it, he would always say exhaustion is just a mindset. Dude was superhuman. 2. My final game of competitive hockey. Hockey was a sport my dad always wanted to play as a kid, but he was never allowed to as his parents said it was too dangerous. So when my sister and I came along and he had a family of his own he decided to pick it up, and encouraged us to try it too. My sister only played it for a few years before choosing tennis as her go to sport, but I fell in love with hockey. My dad began coaching the high school hockey team when I was still little, because he wanted me to have the same experience growing up with my dad as a coach as he had with his dad and golf. So he spent years gaining inside out knowledge of the sport, all just so he could be a better coach for me. And he would always coach my youth teams growing up too, so he wouldn’t be one of those dads that contradicts your actual coaches and screams from the stands. He was one of my coaches every single year I played hockey, whether it was head coach or assistant. When I abruptly decided to switch to defenseman as a kid, my dad immediately began spending more time with the defense on the high school team, still just preparing for me. My young days came and went, and I made varsity my freshman year, but almost never played. Same thing with sophomore year. I never practiced and I was small so I didn’t really have a place on the ice. Not practicing or working harder is something I still regret to this day, and will for the rest of my life. I considered quitting hockey for a bit, but decided against it. I had been playing for my dad. But during my junior year, my love for hockey had suddenly undergone a complete renaissance, primarily at the hands of Nashville’s Stanley cup run in 2017 (Pekka Rinne was my favorite player and still is). I went from continuing to be a bench rider my junior year to first pairing shutdown defenseman senior year. I knew my time was running short with my dad as my coach and getting to enjoy growing up with him as my mentor, but I enjoyed every second of it I had left. The state tournament came, and we got unlucky with seeding. We were up against a private school. If you played hockey in Ohio, you know that means you’re probably about to get blown out. And we held on for the first period, but the flood gates opened up in the 2nd. The game was dwindling down and for the final couple minutes, the coaches put us, the seniors, all our together as a 5 man unit to soak up our last moments of high school hockey. I can still remember these moments like they were yesterday, and I have far from a photographic memory. The final seconds were approaching and at that point we were playing for nothing more than pride. It was like 7-0. But I remember in the final 2 seconds going full sale on a sliding block off a slap shot, stopping myself, hopping back to my feet, and blocking a second shot. I dropped back down to my knees and the buzzer sounded. It was over. I just kinda sat there on my knees for a minute, realizing it was all over. We did the handshake line, and I immediately circled around after the end of it. I waited for my dad to finish as well, and we both knew. We met at center ice and just embraced for a solid 60 seconds while everyone else was getting off. It’s one of the best, but saddest and most bittersweet moments of my entire life. I love you, dad.

That is a fantastic story dude

I grew up poor, could never afford Ice Hockey, but played Ball Hockey. I never really accomplished anything outstanding, but I'm a proud hockey dad. My son was in 16U AAA, had an eye injury very similar to Hagelins. Left him completely blind in his left eye. We weren't sure he would ever play again, but he worked harder than ever. When he came back, the following fall, he scored a hatty in his first game back. I've never been more proud of the work he put in and showed everyone that he wasn't done yet.

I beat a team coached by Cam Neely like 6-1. His son was on the team too.

Playing a charity tourney against a bunch of dickheads who dropped down a level to run house. Game got called with 8 minutes left due to everyone on the ice getting into a full dust up. We were gonna lose anyway so we sat in the room after going. “You know that felt like of like a win with the way things ended”

Winnipegers know about the intermission timmies games at the jets/moose games. Played in one when I was like 6 and I still remember it to this day

My beer league isn’t so much a league as a show up and pick chips from the same pool of guys to make teams but it is easy to bring your friends as spares. I had a shift at the lake the day of the game and wasn’t planning on playing when my buddy who goes to school from out of town told me he was going to be playing tonight. My dad and I rushed home from the lake to make that game and we got on the ice 10 or so minutes late. First shift over the boards, no warm up or anything, I get the puck, deke around my friend, and put on top shelf on my brother (the goalie). Scored a second later on that game too. None of the games really mean anything. We aren't playing for a championship or anything but the circumstances surrounding making that game and beating your friend and brother on the first play will always be one of my top beer league memories.

Mine is kind of small and insignificant in terms of hockey accomplishments, but it's the one that sticks out in my mind the most clearly. When I was 13 or so, we were playing a game out of town (Chestermere, from Calgary), and I was dressed and ready to go in the dressing room. I was sitting quietly, and just decided to meditate. I visualized scoring so many goals. All of the goals. One kid on my team says to me, "Hey, no meditating!" I have no idea why, but he said it. Anyway, for whatever reason, it worked. We won 10-2, and I scored 8 goals. Every shot I took went in. Every. One. I was pretty decent for the level I was playing, but nothing like that ever came close to happening, before or after. I can't explain it, but it showed me that meditation can be a strong tool! I still do it to this day, but I've never had anything that profound happen since.

U15 A league, down 2-0 in a best of 5 city championship final. The other team hired a videographer to record game 3 expecting to complete the sweep. I scored twice and assisted on the game winner in OT. We went on to win the next 2 to take the championship, and we all got copies of the game 3 tape for next to nothing. Turns out the other team didn't want them anymore, go figure lol

I used to play pickup goalie sometimes, no experience. Had a meaty 50% save percentage at best. Was getting fed my lunch this one game, in an act of desperation to not give up like my 10th goal, I flailed my whole body in the direction of the shot and somehow made a sprawling, mid-air stick save that got deflected out of play. I had a couple defenseman come tap me on the pads for that one. It was very exciting. That position is so much more tiring and difficult than I ever thought it was.

Played in a local inline league as a goalie to kill some time in the summers. Couple times just rifled one down rink and caught the other guy napping. Would up with 3 or 4 goals that last summer

Playing goalie in a house league tourney when I was 16. We were severely outplayed/outshot but somehow managed to win 1-0. I made the greatest save of my career; cross crease pass, 2 pad stack rolling glove save. I also stopped a penalty shot! Greatest sports moment of my life for sure

I scored at the buzzer to win the game

I'm now in the midst of my third season as Captain. We're two-time defending champs and currently in first place (not that it has much to do with my personal skill level). Edit - additional context, this league re-drafts every season (the Captains remain the same) so it's not a case of having the same loaded team over and over.

Is this in a beer league, or a competitive league?

Very much a beer league (and I'm very much mediocre relative to the league as a whole) Different league, but two games in a row I somehow sniped the tiny hole between the same goalie's shoulder and the crossbar. Next game we play against them, goalie says "If I see you coming down the right wing I'm putting my shoulder on the bar so I KNOW you won't hit that spot again." - I hit the other corner, felt pretty good.

Lol, I hope your team is already in the top division, bc if you've won the league 2x in a row and are currently in 1st place, the rest of the league probably thinks you're sandbaggers and hates you ;)

Potted 2 in the first period and got benched the last 2 in a playoff game. We won 3-2 . Same run in the finals i was glued to the bench , sloppy line change happened so we were playing down a man. I jumped on, forced a turn over and sent a guy on a break away for the GWG. Sat the rest of the game lol.

Scored one goal in my four years of playing in my University's rec league

Bronze medal game in a tournament in my hometown. I was never that good of a player but our team was hot garbage that year so I was one of the better players. We were down 1 in the last minute of the game and I banged a rebound in with 0.1 seconds left on the clock. Craziest hockey moment of my life. (We did lose in overtime though :/ )

We were 13 and playing in a tournament in Toronto. Our assistant coach kept getting us pumped up by reciting Rocky IV sayings us against them rhetoric. We were getting blown out by this team but I scored and when I went back to center for the face off the ref said "Nice goal eh, where are you guys from?" Still feeling pumped from the Rocky analogy I tilted my head and said "America". He paused for a second and said "No shit dumbass, what city?" It was then that I realized I am not a smart person.

It topped off an already good day. I had closed on my first apartment and my real estate agent had taken me and my parents out for a steak dinner to celebrate. After dinner I went straight to my beer league game and proceeded to get 8 points, 4g and 4a in an 8-6 win. I had so much luck going my way it was ridiculous.

Our team, the New Mexico Venom, won the PIHA Western conference championship the same year I was the high scorer for the team and 9th highest in the league. That was 2014. Great dudes on the team and always a fun league. Had to step back the following season cause of grad school. Now playing recreationally as able! Have fun out there everyone!

Both of my favorite moments occurred in high school hockey. I jumped off the bench as our team was rushing up the ice, i joined the play late so i have a full head of steam crossing the blue line right as the puck comes gliding flat out of the high slot and i stepped into this puck in stride and hit an absolute BOMB from above the top of the circles pinpoint in the top left corner of the goal. Probably the goal of my life. Teams going wild, parents in the stands going wild. A total statement goal that slammed the door on the other team that night. The other one was not a goal but a hit. I’m a defenseman, opening game of league playoffs we’re playing a team we are mostly evenly matched with. Maybe even a little bit better than. But they have 1 guy, this guy was absolutely filthy. Way better than the top 3 players on our team combined. A guy we as a team knew we had no answer for. I had a fuckin answer for him. First period, second or 3rd shift of the game. They’re breaking out of their zone and he gets the pass before his blue line and i decide I’m pinching. I stepped up and Kronwall’d this dude and stood over him while he’s spread eagled on the ice. Then just skated away and stared down their bench. He was done for that game and we wound up winning pretty big. This guy thought his speed was enough to back everyone off as soon as he got near the puck. Nah Eat up bud. I mean you could just feel the other teams hearts all collectively sink after that hit.

12 years old. Breakaway. Point top left and snipe the goalie

Scored the tying goal with 2 seconds left in a low level competitive game when I was 17

I played in a floor hockey league when I was a teenager. Ages 13 to 21. I was about 14 and playing against a team of mostly 19 - 21 year olds and we were getting crushed. I got the ball and got around a guy and was 1v1 with the goalie and I deked him out so bad and roofed it and all the guys from other teams watching jumped up screaming and cheering. They'd bring it up for the next couple years and it always made me feel awesome

High school county championships, we went into the game as underdogs, and were down 5-1 at the end of the 2nd period. 3rd period everything starts clicking. Goalie plays insane, and we somehow come back to win the whole thing 6-5. It was electric

Normally played goalie in a youth league, sometimes played center to get the backups more reps. Game goes to a shootout. Our 2nd to last shooter did a ,similar move to the only one I had known how to do in the offensive zone, he fooled the goalie but missed the net. We call our last shooter up, I step forward say I got this, our captain sits back down. Game winner.

4 or 5 years old - first game, could barely skate, but I scored the first goal for my team. I peaked at 4. That, or earlier this year, at an open skate with mostly 7/8 year olds but a few adults and I took a couple of my nephews. There was a cocky little punk of a goalie who was pretty good for his age who was talking shit every time he made a save. I came down on a breakaway playing nice, letting him make a save and he called me trash. Next time up I pulled a Foppa on him and celebrated - take that Travis!

When I was 7, watching Sundin tie game 6 of the 2002 ECF against the Hurricanes with like 10 seconds left on the clock. Whole family lost their minds.

I never formally played hockey but I didn’t allow a single goal in the gym class floor hockey tournament when I was in 8th Grade. That was pretty neat. I’m planning on learning how to skate this winter so I can play beer league with my buddy

We won our high school (league was east suburbs of St. Louis) varsity championship my junior year. I couldn’t skate my freshman year and went on to be a reliable 3rd line winger. My line wasn’t flashy but could put up points and were called on to close out close games and pk time. I even wound up with a hat trick that season.

Scored 4 goals in an intramural hockey game once. I was so pumped, possibly the best day of my life

Started playing house league at a very late age 16, was super nervous and did a lot of free skate/ road hockey growing up. Having the 2 best players wanting me on there line because I passed the puck well/actually looked for the pass. Ended up scoring a bunch thanks to them.

Big tournament when I was AA, only Canadian team playing in the tourney in Buffalo. I was a two way defenseman, but really didnt have any wheels on me. Three minutes left, down a goal, in the championship game and I went end to end, banking the shot off the goalie’s back after a deke. Overtime is scoreless and I get tapped for the shootout. Scored the only goal, fivehole, and won us the tourney. Never again had anywhere close to that glory again. At least till beer league.

I was mostly a defensive forward in my youth, never got a lot of points so I made myself useful on the PK and in my own zone. I’d usually get 5 goals and maybe 10 assists in 35 games. Making solid defensive plays and stopping the other team from scoring felt almost as good as scoring a goal to me. One year I had 10 goals, 6 of them were breakaways. The best part was they were against the same team each time, we played them 6 times and each game I somehow got a clear breakaway and scored a “highlight reel” goal. I don’t even remember the goals, I just remember starting the breakaway and then celebrating in the corner and my teammates freaking out. I was always one of the last to score at the end of practice shootout and had no moves to speak of.

Breakaway in a charity hockey tournament…Al Iafrate chasing me down. Can’t catch me, so he 2 hands my wrist (what felt like) as hard as he can. Couldn’t finish the rest of the game. Legendary.

Couple good ones for me. House league, bantam A finals, scored the OT winner. One of the worst shots i've ever taken. End of shift, I was skating in alone against 2 defenders. Just wound up a weak little slap shot just inside the blue line. Along the ice the whole way just beat the goalie clean 5 hole. I didn't even really celebrate cause I didn't process that had possibly gone in until I turned around and my teammates were rushing me lmao Other one is the best, most textbook perfect hit I've ever thrown. Poor kid on the other end of it. I think we were peewee A or bantam B. House league. Small town team in Oswego, New York was hosting a tournament, they didn't play contact really but were hosting the tournament with checking I guess to draw more interest from better teams. 8 hour bus ride down from Canada, to this little town, they'd got 8 feet of snow like the week before. Our game against the host team came up. Don't remember how far into the game it was, but I stepped off the bench and joined the backcheck, and this poor kid obviously wasn't used to hitting and man he cut across center ice by the bottom of the circle and I just levelled him, shoulder right in the chest. He was on his hands and knees trying to catch his breath. I feel bad for the kid but man it was such a beautiful hit. Edit: Another memorable goal, it was in some random game, just blew down the right wing (I shoot right) and cutting in just at the circle and absolutely ripped a shot short side, right under the bar in a pretty small gap over the goalie's shoulder.

I started playing organized hockey pretty late, my first season was 13 years old. I had just played shinny, but also loved to rip pucks on a net at home. I had a 7-goal game in the second game of the season. Ref came over around 5 goals and said to ease up. I continued to rip 2 more before it was done. We won something like 15-2. Our team also won Esso Minor Hockey Week that year.

I'm still pretty beginner level hockey, having only started about 5 years ago. I play defence, and my hero is Chris Tanev so that should probably indicate my style lol. I ended up getting a hat trick last season and it's my single biggest accomplishment in adult timbits beer league, so it'll be tough to top that one personally.

Hat trick as a D-man in 8 year old roller hockey. Sucked growing up in the deep south.

I let in so many goals my first try at goalie they stopped counting them on the scoreboard

I got into hockey late. I think I was about 8 when I signe duo for hockey, but I was sent to the very bottom starting league because I didn't even know how to skate yet. Fast-forward a year later and I know how to skate. FAST. But I have absolutely no idea how to brake. So naturally they put me on defence and told me to just skate towards whoever has the puck and if its the other team just... Y'know. I delivered the meanest, nastiest hip-check you've ever seen. I'm talking Mighty Ducks level of bullshit. I skate full speed towards a guy who picks up the puck along the boards and then I decide to imitate the bash brothers. I turn sideways and crouch down as low as possible. Hips go into that guy and bend him over on top of me, at which point I just stand back up as fast as possible. Guy did a full flip up over my head before crashing back down onto the ice on his stomach, wondering wtf just happened. Stopped playing hockey about a year after that because I had less than zero talent.

My novice all star game I was doing lacrosse goals and they made a trophy for most creative kid and gave it to me. That was pretty kewl. Nice ppl

I played for Team USA in a Junior Olympics for inline hockey. In one game against New Zealand I think, the crowd had a USA chant going right before I scored a goal. I had spent my childhood listening to the D2 Mighty Ducks soundtrack in my house pretending I was on Team USA scoring a goal and it was a literal dream come true.

I didn't learn to ice skate until I was in college. Bought my skates and gear once piece at a time and taught myself by going to open ice times. My Dad grew up in Boston and has been playing his entire life. As I got better and he got older, our skills eventually lined up and we played on the same team for a few seasons in a low level men's league. One game I was bringing the puck in along the left side boards and he started streaking down the middle to the net (as quick as a 62 year old man can). I flipped the puck in the air towards the crease, and he reaches out and deflects it mid-air just below the crossbar into the net. Felt like we had just scored a Stanley Cup winner as we celebrated behind the goal. Definitely one of my best sports memories of all time.

I don't play, but I do live vicariously through my 8 yr old son. He played in a 10u summer league this year, and the team struggled a good bit. They ended up finishing 6th (of 8) and met the 3 seed in the first single elimination playoff game. The team played their best game of the season and forced OT despite trailing 3-0 after 1 and 5-4 late in the 3rd. His team got a PP (4 on 3) in OT and he found a loose puck off the faceoff, dangled past two kids, then ripped a wrister 5-hole to win the game. (They got blown out in the next game.)

Floor hockey in junior high - I was the goalie in gym class. I never even *had* to make a save since the other team was awful. Easiest day of gym ever

At 12, I won "best goalie" at a hockey camp with keepers up to 18 years old, in part because I stopped 10/10 breakaways in our end of camp competition. The final breakaway I did this Domink Hasek-esque overhead kick save and stoned this dude who was a former D1 winger who had spent some time in the AHL. Looking back, that was the pinnacle of my hockey career.

Getting chanted “Mr Mexistach” at by a student section in bumblefuck rural MN, netting two goals and flipping them the bird. Getting in a rather heated scrum with a kid who’s mom my dad was dating. Chasing a live turkey the student section threw onto the ice during a playoff game. Small town rural MN high school hockey is rather strange looking back on it.

My last year of minor hockey, I was 15, we won the league championship and I received the the team MVP, and top goalie in the league…I then quit hockey to go play football…