NHL outdoor game sees its 1st goalie fight between Vasilevskiy, Swayman

Tampa, Florida — The tampa bay lightning The first goaltender fight in an NHL outdoor game was credited for helping. Start your historic Stadium Series comeback victory Above boston bruins On Sunday.

With 8:59 left in the second period, the Bruins were up 5-2, with the Lightning ahead. Brandon Hagel Tried to pass the puck under the Bruins goalie jeremy swayman After saving. Swayman then jumped on Hagel next to his crease, leading to a scramble between the teams while the Lightning were on the power play. tampa bay goalie Andrei Vasilevsky Skated from his crease to the opposite blue line during the chaos.

“I just saw that Sway was moving the blocker [Hagel] A little bit, so it was just a reaction to go to the red line and challenge him. He accepted,” Vasilevskiy said.

Swayman looked at the Tampa Bay goalie, dropped his stick and skated to meet Vasilevskiy as the two centers tangled near the ice. Swayman took off his gloves and mask and signaled to Vasilevskiy to remember to take off his mask before fists flew.

“I didn’t want to hit his helmet, so I’m glad we didn’t do that,” Swayman said.

The Lightning goaltender nicknamed “The Big Cat” grabbed Swayman by the collar and began throwing lefties. The Boston goaltender was not able to get much offense before Vasilevskiy knocked him to the ice.

Did Swayman know Vasilevskiy was a lefty before their fight?

“No,” the Bruins goalie said briefly, laughing. “Glad we both got our chance against each other for the first time. A really worthy opponent.”

Vasilevskiy patted him on the back and then patted the back of Swayman’s head in appreciation of the moment, causing him to smile widely amid the roar of fans inside Raymond James Stadium.

Vasilevskiy said, “When we both fell, we said nice words to each other. It was great. It’s one of the biggest moments for me, because I’ve never fought in the NHL.” “Thank you very much to him. He was great in the net throughout the game and also great in the fight.”

Swayman was also appreciative.

“He wanted to win, which is good. So did I. So it’s a game of respecting the game,” he said. “I’m fighting the biggest, toughest goalie in the league. It wouldn’t be my first choice, but glad we got the first goal. Will probably retire after that.”

The crowd of approximately 65,000 fans stood and cheered during the clash, and again when the referee announced that both goalkeepers had received a five-minute major for fighting. Players on both benches were also on their feet and hitting their sticks on the boards in appreciation and respect for their netminders.

“He was throwing left. I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ I didn’t want to be the other guy,” Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov Said. “I was very happy. I was very excited. I think the bench felt it. Everybody in the building felt it. Since that fight, the game had changed. I think Vasey had to do it. He had to wake us up.”

The Lightning scored twice on a 5-on-3 power play over the next 5:12, cutting the Bruins’ lead to 5–4 heading into the third period. Kucherov scored in the third period and the Lightning eventually tied the score. Won 6-5 in shootout.

Tampa Bay’s rally from four goals down to win is the largest comeback win in franchise history and the largest in an NHL outdoor game.

Lightning coach John Cooper said he could feel the momentum starting to shift before the fight, but the goalie throwdown was the emotional high the Lightning needed at that moment.

“I was like, ‘Thank God something positive was going to happen in our game,'” he said. “I give Boston a lot of credit. They took it to us and we weren’t ready for it. The guys were angry.”

Hagel said he thought the fight was “a big turning point in the sport”.

So did Kucherov, who was confident that his goalkeeper would win the fight.

“I knew he would beat Swayman right away,” Kucherov said. “Now we call him ‘White Tyson’.”