Can't-Miss Video: AHL Goalie Fight
Even though we here at Home Ice are proud, old-school neanderthals when it comes to fighting, we don't stop down for any old tussle. Let's face it. Too many of them these days are glorified wrasslin' matches, or are interrupted too soon by the officials.
But a goalie fight is always worth our time. It's a rare spectacle provoked by team honor and loyalty. And while most are as eventful as those intermission inflatable sumo gags, every now and then we get a beauty.
And this is one of those beauties.
It happened last night, during AHL action between Syracuse and St. John's, with Tampa Bay prospect Dustin Tokarski squaring off against Winnipeg hopeful Eddie Pasquale.
Tokarski, a Memorial Cup winner with Spokane who went on to lead Canada to gold at the 2009 World Juniors, had never been in a fight before. But with his team trailing 3-2 and five of his teammates involved in a line brawl, he invited Pasquale to center ice ... and promptly drank his milkshake.
Both got tossed for their transgressions, but Tokarski watched proudly as his teammates stormed back with four straight goals to seize a 6-3 win.
"I think I did good. I’d like to think (it was a spark). I’m just glad it helped us in the end get two points," Tokarski told Syracuse.com.
"It’s about game-changers," Syracuse forward Kyle Wilson said. "You never know where it’s going to come from. It kind of lit a fire under us."
Check the spark for yourself here: