It’s been a rough go for the fan base of the Toronto Maple Leafs for, oh, half a century, but there aren’t many regular season moments in recent history that cause more mental anguish than the infamous David Ayres night.
Ayres, who was working as a maintenance worker and Zamboni driver with the Toronto Marlies at the time, achieved immediate legacy when he entered an NHL game as an Emergency Back-Up Goaltender in February of 2020. Ayres played nearly half the game, allowing two goals on 10 shots and achieving the official win on the night. In doing so, he set a number of odd records including the oldest goaltender to win his regular season debut at 42 years old.
Ask any Leafs fan about the night and you may see any trace of happiness disappear from their eye.
As for Ayres, he became an instant star for the Hurricanes. He’s been featured at a number of Canes games, and he went on a media tour that would exhaust even the most resilient people. When the Toronto Maple Leafs visited Raleigh for the first time since the iconic night, you KNEW the Canes would be calling back the Ayres game!
While Ayres is still a Leafs fan (he was wearing a t-shirt with a Leafs logo the night he entered the crease) he’ll always have love in Carolina. As for fans, they seemed to appreciate the entertaining move from the Canes.
(H/T Mark Masters)
