As a goalie, this makes me feel pretty good about the position I play. Of course I feel for Crisp, who was thrown to the wolves (or in this case the Ice Dogs). He's never played goalie in ice hockey at a high level and had only played goalie in ball hockey. But, his feelings aside, it demonstrates to the hockey world that goaltenders hold a unique ability. It shows that the thing that teams often take for granted is very important.
Crisp fared pretty well in the position he was forced to assume just 1 minute 45 seconds into the game. 33 saves on 46 shots for a forward is amazing. I am wondering, though, why the Otters didn't call up a goalie from Junior B or something like that, someone who has experience between the pipes and can handle the calibre of play that the OHL has to offer. They had time, their backup was injured earlier in the week, and many goalies would jump at the chance for the call-up. It's an odd decision but it definitely made for an intriguing story.
Goalies work just as hard as their teammates when it comes to their game and then they get little of the credit in wins, and much of the blame in losses. What this shows is that the goalie plays a giant part in the outcome of games and that teams should support their goalies a bit more. Maybe the next time your team's goalie has a bad game, think about if you could do any better.
But, I have to give it up to Crisp. On an Otters team that is last in the league and has a very high GAA to begin with, he kept it at a respectable score given that Niagara put up 10 the night before against Belleville (who had an actual goalie in net). All while playing in skates that weren't even big enough for him.
Let that be a lesson to all you forwards and defensemen out there, be nice to your goalie, or you might have to take his spot.
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