He shoots, he scores! AJHL goalie scores rare goalie goal
History was made, sort of, in the Alberta Junior Hockey League Tuesday night when Spruce Grove Saints goaltender Tristan Martin scored an empty-net goal.
With the Saints leading 5-3, their opponent, the Grande Prairie Storm, pulled their goaltender for an extra attacker.
With 50 seconds left in the third period, the puck was sent behind the Saints' net where Martin stopped it, then turned and lofted it down the ice into the empty net.
Martin's Spruce Grove teammates rushed over to congratulate him on the rare feat and what was his first goal.
“It was my first-ever crack at it in a game … so it was pretty cool,” Martin told CTV News on Wednesday.
Martin said he didn’t hesitate to try to score when he grabbed the puck behind the net.
“I was going for it. Then I got scared when the d-man jumped high at the blueline there and it just missed his glove but then it started curving back in towards the net. Then I was like, 'Oh no, it’s going in.'”
The AJHL told CTV News it believes it's the first time a goalie has shot the puck down the length of the ice to score a goal in the league's 58-year history.
However, AJHL Vice President Charla Flett added that Martin is not the first goalie to be credited with a goal.
Sherwood Park Crusaders goalie Jake Morrissey in February 2017 when he was the last player on his team to touch the puck when he made a save, before a Camrose Kodiaks defender accidentally passed it into his own empty net.
Fort McMurray Oil Barons netminder Jimmy Bernier was credited with two goals during the 2005/06 season, but the team chalks that up to a clerical error.
And, Olds Grizzlys goalie Glen Furgason was also credited with a goal way back in 1985/86.
Martin, 19, hales from St. Vincent, Alta. He has only been with the Spruce Grove Saints since a Dec. 2 trade with the Grizzlys.
After the 6-3 victory, the Saints sit in first place in the AJHL North Division with a 34-7-4 record. They continue a road trip in Whitecourt Wednesday night against the Wolverines.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Prince William and Kate release photo of daughter Charlotte to mark ninth birthday
Prince William and his wife Kate released a picture of their daughter Charlotte to mark the princess's ninth birthday on Thursday.
Doctors concerned about potential spread of bird flu in Canada
H5N1 or avian flu has been detected at dozens of US dairy farms and Canadian experts are urging surveillance on our side of the border too.
This Canadian restaurant just lowered its prices. Here's how it did it
A Canadian restaurant lowered its prices this week, and though news of price tags dropping rather than climbing sounds unusual, the business strategy in this case is not, according to experts in the field.
Man involved in Dartmouth, N.S., emergency alert earlier this week turns himself in
A 49-year-old man has been charged in connection with an alleged assault that happened earlier this week in Dartmouth, N.S.
Concerns about Plexiglas prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall Plexiglas barriers.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Goring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Imagine living in a 4-foot body that doesn't develop chronic diseases
Nathaly Paola Castro Torres has a rare disorder called Laron syndrome that is caused by a genetic mutation. It stunts her growth but also provides a hidden silver lining: Her body is protected from chronic diseases such as cancer that often take life away long before old age.
'Oh, there you go': Tyler Black, son of veteran broadcaster Rod Black, has memorable Major League Baseball debut
Canadian baseball player Tyler Black made a major splash in his first-ever big league game for the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night.
Groundbreaking American guitarist Duane Eddy dies age 86
Guitarist Duane Eddy, best known for twangy riffs on hits such as 'Rebel Rouser' and 'Cannonball,' has died at the age of 86.