David Ayres

For other people with the name, see David Ayres (disambiguation).

David Ayres
David Ayres playing for the Richmond Hill Coyotes of the Ontario Super Hockey League.
Born (1977-08-12) August 12, 1977
Whitby, Ontario, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 201 lb (91 kg; 14 st 5 lb)
Position Goaltender
Caught Left
Played for Carolina Hurricanes
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2014–2015
2020

David Ayres (/ɛərz/; born August 12, 1977) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender and former head coach of the Port Perry Lumberjacks of the Provincial Junior Hockey League.

While working as a building operator and Zamboni driver for the Toronto Marlies, Ayres became the Carolina Hurricanes' emergency backup goaltender (EBUG) during a 2020 game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, which the Hurricanes won. Ayres is the only EBUG in NHL history to enter a game as a substitute and be credited with a win. Ayres is also the oldest NHL goaltender to win his regular-season debut, at age 42.

Early and personal life

Ayres is a native of Whitby, Ontario and played youth ice hockey and attended hockey camps in the town. His late father, Bob, and his brother, Chris, were also goaltenders.[1] He became ill and required a kidney transplant (donated by his mother, Mary) in 2004.[2] In 2017, Ayres married his wife, Sarah. In 2022, Sarah announced that they had separated and filed for divorce.

Ayres worked as a building operator at Ricoh Coliseum (now Coca-Cola Coliseum) in Toronto, which is the home arena for the Toronto Marlies, the American Hockey League farm team of the Toronto Maple Leafs. As his job responsibilities occasionally included maintenance and operation of an ice resurfacer, he was referenced as a Zamboni driver in news articles about his NHL debut.[3] The Marlies' equipment man learned that Ayres was a goalie and coach, so head coach Sheldon Keefe began playing him as a goaltender at practice when an extra man was needed,[4] as did the Maple Leafs.[5]

Hockey career

Ayres played eight games with the Norwood Vipers of the Allan Cup Hockey League in 2014. As a goaltender, he allowed 58 goals, had a .777 save percentage and posted an 0–8 record.[2] Ayres has served as a backup to both the Toronto Marlies and Charlotte Checkers in the American Hockey League, the primary affiliates of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes, respectively.[1]

NHL appearance

On February 22, 2020, both of the Carolina Hurricanes' goaltenders, James Reimer and Petr Mrázek, were injured during a game against the Maple Leafs. Ayres entered the game during the second period as the emergency backup goaltender after signing a one-game contract with the NHL.[6] Donning Kasimir Kaskisuo's old Toronto Marlies helmet and pads[7] and wearing a Maple Leafs T-shirt under his equipment,[8] he entered the game at 8:41 left in the second period with a 3–1 lead.[9] He allowed goals on the first two shots that he faced before stopping the next eight shots on goal, along with recording one shot on goal, to help seal a 6–3 win for Carolina.[10] He became the first emergency backup to enter a game in the NHL since Scott Foster had done so in 2018.[2] The Hurricanes celebrated by spraying water on Ayres after the game. He became the oldest goaltender (at 42 years, 194 days) to win his NHL regular-season debut, breaking a record that had been held by Hugh Lehman since 1927, and his game-used goalie stick was sent to the Hockey Hall of Fame.[11][12]

Ayres was named first star of the game and kept his game-worn jersey and game puck.[6] Had Ayres signed a professional tryout agreement, he would have been paid $500 for the game,[13] but under the terms of his contract, he was not paid.[3] Reimer gave him an autographed goalie stick, and Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina's coach, gave him an autographed bottle of wine.[14] Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho stated that teammates had pooled a small sum of money for Ayres.[15] Ontario premier Doug Ford phoned Ayres to congratulate him.[16]

Following the game, the Hurricanes announced that they would sell T-shirts with Ayres' name and jersey number 90, with royalties paid to Ayres and a portion of the proceeds donated to a kidney foundation.[17]

Ayres was invited to sound the siren at the start of the Hurricanes' home game on February 25. While in North Carolina, governor Roy Cooper declared Ayres, a Canadian citizen, an honorary citizen of North Carolina,[18] and Raleigh honoured him by naming February 25, 2020 David Ayres Day in the city.[19]

Post-hockey career

On October 5, 2021, it was announced that Ayres had joined the CBD company CaniBrands as a brand ambassador.[20]

On October 26, 2021, the Carolina Hurricanes announced that James Corden's Fulwell 73 production company would create a film based on Ayres’ story that would become a Disney feature film. It was also expected that Ayres would play himself in several scenes,[21] but the film was not produced when the rights to the story expired.

Ayres made his coaching debut as head coach of the SPHL’s Vermilion County Bobcats on April 7, 2022 against the Evansville Thunderbolts at the Ford Center,[22] but was replaced by season's end.

On August 12, 2022, the Port Perry Lumberjacks announced Ayres as their head coach for the 2022–23 season. After posting a 10–28–4 record and being swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Uxbridge Bruins, he was not invited to return for the 2023–24 season.

Career statistics

Regular season

Regular season
Season Team League GP W L OTL TOI SA GA SO GAA SV%
2014–15 Norwood Vipers ACH 8 0 8 0 — 260 58 0 8.88 .777
2019–20 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 1 1 0 0 28:41 10 2 0 4.18 .800
NHL totals 1 1 0 0 28:41 10 2 0 4.18 .800

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Ketko, Thomas (February 22, 2020). "Player of Interest: Who is Hurricanes emergency goalie David Ayres?". Sportsnet.ca. Archived from the original on February 23, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Kaplan, Emily (February 22, 2020). "Zamboni driver, 42, stars as emergency goalie for Hurricanes". ESPN. Archived from the original on February 23, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Gay, Jason (February 24, 2020). "He went to a hockey game expecting dinner. He wound up getting the win". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  4. ^ Hornby, Lance (February 23, 2020). "'WHAT A MEMORY FOR HIM': David Ayres, 42-year-old Zamboni driver. wins hearts in defeat of Leafs". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on February 27, 2020. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  5. ^ "Hurricanes beat Maple Leafs with help of emergency backup Dave Ayres". Sportsnet. February 22, 2020. Archived from the original on April 29, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Jarden, Sam (February 22, 2020). "Who is David Ayres? Everything you need to know about the EBUG that helped beat the Maple Leafs". Sporting News. Archived from the original on February 23, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
  7. ^ Hascup, Jimmy. "Meet David Ayres, the Hurricanes' emergency goalie. He is a Zamboni driver who will practice with Maple Leafs". USA Today. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  8. ^ Fox, Luke [@lukefoxjukebox] (February 22, 2020). "Dave Ayres was wearing a Leafs T-shirt under his Hurricanes uniform" (Tweet). Retrieved February 25, 2020 – via Twitter.
  9. ^ "Carolina Hurricanes – Toronto Maple Leafs – February 22nd, 2020". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on September 11, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  10. ^ Clipperton, Joshua (February 22, 2020). "Emergency backup goalie David Ayres steals show in Canes' win over Leafs". CBC Sports. Archived from the original on September 12, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
  11. ^ NHL Public Relations [@PR_NHL] (February 22, 2020). "David Ayres (42 years, 194 days) became the oldest goaltender in NHL history to win his regular-season debut" (Tweet). Retrieved February 23, 2020 – via Twitter.
  12. ^ "A day in his honour, stick in the Hall of Fame, booked on The Today Show. It's good to be David Ayres". The Star. February 23, 2020. Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  13. ^ Fernandez, Gabriel (February 24, 2020). "Emergency goalie David Ayres helps Hurricanes defeat Maple Leafs in wild NHL debut". CBS Sports. Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  14. ^ "Ayres on unlikely NHL debut : 'Absolutely I was nervous!'". The Sports Network. February 22, 2020. Archived from the original on February 23, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
  15. ^ "Hurricanes players grab money out of their own pockets to thank emergency goalie David Ayers". February 24, 2020. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  16. ^ Gilson, Patrick (February 28, 2020). "David Ayres Is Such A Big Deal Now That He's Letting Doug Ford's Calls Go To Voicemail". Narcity Media Inc. Narcity Media. Archived from the original on October 25, 2021. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  17. ^ Carolina Hurricanes [@Canes] (February 22, 2020). "Dave will be getting royalties, but we are also working with him to identify a kidney foundation that will receive a portion of the proceeds" (Tweet). Retrieved February 23, 2020 – via Twitter.
  18. ^ Porter, Ford (February 25, 2020). "Governor Roy Cooper Proclaims Emergency Goalie David Ayres as an Honorary North Carolinian" (Press release). North Carolina Office of the Governor. Archived from the original on February 26, 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
  19. ^ Baldwin, Mary-Ann [@maryannbaldwin] (February 23, 2020). "The City will be honoring him with a formal proclamation, naming Tuesday 'DAVID AYRES DAY' in Raleigh. I'm sorry I can't be there to present it but I'm thrilled that @Canes fans will have the opportunity to share this joy. #livingthedream" (Tweet). Retrieved February 26, 2020 – via Twitter.
  20. ^ "Hockey Goaltender David Ayres Joins CaniBrands As a Brand Ambassador". prnewswire.com. October 5, 2021. Archived from the original on March 28, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  21. ^ Ruff, Walt (October 26, 2021). "Saves in the Making: Catching up with David Ayres". NHL.com/Hurricanes.com.
  22. ^ "Ex-Zamboni driver David Ayres that beat the Leafs lands pro hockey coaching gig". dailyhive.com. April 6, 2022. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.