NHLVideoWeird But True

The Minnesota Wild’s Emergency Goalie Is A 51-Year-Old Local Small Business Owner

The Minnesota Wild were in need of an emergency backup goalie last night, so the team did what it normally does in those situations: it gave Paul Deutsch a call. Deutsch has filled in for the Wild several times in the past, though generally at practices. So he seemed like a natural fit to put in some time during warmups, then almost certainly be done for the night as freshly-recalled-from-the-minors goalie Matt Hackett arrived to be with the team.

Upon inspection, though, Deutsch is maybe the most unlikely person ever to actually suit up for an NHL team. For one thing, he’s 51 years old. Getting any NHL action of any kind in your 50s? That’s practically Gordie Howe territory (though of course Howe actually played in games at that age).

Howe, though, was one of the finest players ever to play the game. What kind of pro hockey experience does Deutsch have to draw on? Well…none at all, actually. And that’s how it had to be – interestingly, according to Wild.com, “[P]er League rules, the Wild was forbidden from signing a goalie with professional experience.” So instead, there was a guy who runs a local screen printing and embroidery business and took up amateur goaltending in his 30s, helping an NHL team get ready for a game:

This is a triumph for pretty much everyone who dreams of some wild circumstance forcing them into action for a pro sports team. Sure, you have to know the right people (Deutsch is “a good friend of former [Wild] assistant Mike Ramsey“), but it can – and does – happen. Here’s a little more from Deutsch himself, illustrating just how crazy this scenario is.

Videos by CJ Fogler.