News
Viral
Sports
NHL
Maple Leafs

Sarah Ayres’s tweets as her husband David played and won his first NHL game were f%$king hilarious

Feb 24, 2020
Sarah Ayres David Ayres||

Sarah Ayres is a spitfire. She’s blogged for us a couple of times and everything she writes is 100% honest, smart and funny.
I lost a ‘Teacher strike’ argument to her on twitter the other day (sort of) and she didn’t back down. She’s really fucking cool like that.
Her first blog for us was a killer. She explained ‘her and what life is like being married to an EBUG in the NHL (Emergency Backup Goalie). It’s a great read…

https://crier.co/news/hi-im-sarah-ayres-new-blogger-here-at-deanblundell-com-get-to-know-me/

Last night Sarah was in the stands as she often is while David waited to probably not dress or even get into a game.  He gets paid for it as a designated Emergency backup in the NHL and here’s how it broke down from Sarah’s end.


Now Dave has to prep for the game and get some emergency cresting. Now consider this; Sarah now knows Petr Mrazek is the only person between Dave and appearing in his first NHL game at the age of 42.
He’s a practice goalie, beer league pro, operations manager and a Zamboni driver.
Dave loves the game of hockey so profoundly, he drives 3-4 hours a day to play hockey and be around the game he loves and do it for a living. He’s played in Allan Cups and some semi-pro hockey but has never been on an NHL radar, let alone played in the NHL.
To this point in Dave’s life, his crowning hockey achievement was playing shinny in the Leafs outdoor practice this year. Sarah pinned it to her profile, bursting with pride.


Then the unthinkable happens a little over halfway through the 2nd period last night with the Leafs down 4-1 to the Canes, Petr Mrazek (in for Riemer) does the dumbest thing he could have possibly done with no goalie on the bench. Charges the puck smashing headfirst into the Leafs Kyle Clifford and immediately goes into concussion protocol.

That’s when I hit Sarah with a tweet…

Then Sarah hit us with a tweet…


Then, David Ayres, professional rink rat, beloved Marlies/Leafs practice goalie, comes rumbling down the hallway decked out in a Canes jersey about to see his lifelong dream become a reality on a nationally televised game, at home with his wife and kids looking on.


Over the next period and a half, Ayres stopped 6 of 8 finishing the game with a win, and a (career) save percentage of .800 and GAA of 4.18. In those 29 minutes, David Ayres played the game he loved to the best of his ability on the grandest stage in front of the people he loved the most.  In the process, he becomes the oldest goalie in NHL history to win in his debut – a record.

Isn’t that the precise definition of a ‘Dream Come True’?  Watch and tell me otherwise.

(Dave’s reaction to the first goal is brilliant.  He’s telling a full-fledged NHLr he was screened.  I love it.)

After the first goal on the first shot, Ayres settled in even venturing out to beat Zach Hymen to a loose puck, playing it behind the net like a Sober version of Eddie Belfour circa 1996.

 


With that save, David Ayres backstopped the visiting Carolina Hurricanes to a win in a tight playoff race being named 1st star in the process.

This would be Rudy only if Rudy were 42.  This is Miracle On Ice with a happier, much more far fetched ending.  A man who never did, and always wanted to, finally got to.


He didn’t ask to play in an NHL game.  He, like all of us, have never tried out for an NHL team.

David Ayres spent his life playing hockey, teaching people how to play hockey, and preparing pro’s to play hockey at the professional level.

Yesterday it was his turn.

All the hockey God’s chose to reward David and Sarah with a night that has never happened before and may never happen again in the 100 plus years of this storied league.

David and Sarah Ayres are the best hockey story since John Scott’s NHL All-Star Season, and it truly couldn’t have happened to a more genuine wife/hubby combo.  I put wife first because that’s what Sarah would make me do.

She also probably bagged his lunch before he left for work this morning, where he was back in net, making sure the Maple Leafs were ready to go after losing to him last night.

Sarah might like hockey more than David, and that’s the best part about last night now that I’ve had 24 hours to dissect what happened.

Last night was a gift to the Ayres family, who defines what it means to be Canadian and LOVE the game.

And Sarah shared that with us all through her perspective, which will last forever.


And they seriously love each other btw.

Sarah is an absolute animal.  She blares classic rock, loves her family and hockey and has ZERO problem taking people to the woodshed.  She’s the heartbeat of that family and Dave will be the first to tell you that.


That Teacher strike argument I ‘Lost’ to her last week? Sarah made sure I knew how unhappy she was with my take that teachers make a lot and don’t work enough (in some cases).


We disagree, but I wouldn’t push it with her out of respect. I don’t want to end up on the business end of her tweet.
Neither do you.

 

D

Dean Blundell

Dean Blundell is a Canadian radio personality. Best known as a longtime morning host on CFNY-FM (The Edge) in Toronto, Ontario. In 2015 he was named the new morning host on sports radio station CJCL (Sportsnet 590 The Fan). Dean started his career in radio in 2001 and for nearly 20 years been entertaining the radio audience. Dean’s newest venture is the launch of his site and podcast which is gaining tremendous momentum across North America.

Subscribe Now!

Which newsletters would you like to receive?

Yes! By providing my email address, I agree to receive communications from Crier Media (this can be changed at any time). Please take a look at the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for more details.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Related stories