Retired goaltender and current goaltender coach Arturs Irbe suited up as the emergency backup goaltender for the Buffalo Sabres after starter Michal Neuvirth fell with injury.
Arturs Irbe hasn’t played in an NHL game in almost ten years, but that didn’t stop the Buffalo Sabres from suiting him up when they played against the Sharks amid a devastating snowstorm in Western New York that rendered the team unable to find a currently active backup once starting goalie Michal Neuvirth went down with a lower-body injury.
More from Buffalo Sabres
- NHL Rumors: Latest on Hart, Hellebuyck, Gibson trade possibilities
- NHL Mock Draft: Connor Bedard No. 1, but who’s next?
- NHL rumors: Calgary in Flames, Kings, Flyers set for big deals, Hall to Chicago
- Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2023 revealed: Welcome to immortality!
- Hockey Hall of Fame Election: Who is eligible and how to watch
“We started scrambling, looking for options and it’s a snow day, No. 1. And No. 2, it’s Independence Day for Latvia, for our tiny country today,” Irbe said after the game, per the Sabres’ website. “Ted said, “Arch, why don’t you be our security net just in case?’
“I said, ‘Ted, I haven’t donned a uniform in seven years.’
“He said, ‘It’s doesn’t matter. Now you will.’
“I went about my business, started second period and thought I’m just going to be on standby.”
Unfortunately, the Sabres couldn’t find an old dented helmet, which was Irbe’s specialty in his playing days. As a starter in the 1990s and early 2000s for the San Jose Sharks and Carolina Hurricanes, the Latvian goaltender’s wild style was appreciated by NHL fans from all corners of the globe during his prime. No doubt Irbe would have received a loud ovation had he taken to the ice after signing a tryout contract to serve as the Sabres’ backup.
“If I would go in, I would have fun, I know that. Once a goalie, always a goalie,” Irbe said.
“I was thinking about what I would do, how I would approach it if I would have to go in, sure. Visualizing, that’s part of the game. I never thought I would don equipment and now I’m starting to have some pull. You know what they say, be careful what you wish for, you might get it.”
More from FanSided
- NFL rumors: Aaron Rodgers sets Jets up for Super Bowl run with new contract
- MLB Trade Grades: Dodgers land Amed Rosario from Guardians
- Colorado gives Pac-12 a possible death knell with move to Big 12
- NFL rumors: Dalvin Cook suitor maintaining very ‘real’ interest
- Braves get dose of bad news on Max Fried as ace nears return