From the national bestselling author of One Night Only come 39 new stories about what a big-league goal can mean to an NHLer: including interviews with Billy Smith, Chris Mason, Damian Rhodes, Christian Thomas, and Slap Shot's Dave Hanson.
This follow-up to Reid's national bestseller One Night Only: Conversations with the NHL's One-Game Wonders unearths the blood, sweat, tears, and laughs of the journey to and from a single big-league goal. If you've ever picked up a hockey stick, chances are you've dreamed of scoring in the National Hockey League. Ken Reid interviews and profiles 39 men who did just that: they bulged the twine in the best hockey league in the world… but only once. From minor league call-ups to season-long mainstays and even a Hall of Famer, One to Remember answers all the questions...
What did that one tally mean? Was it enough to satisfy a lifelong ambition, or was it just the smallest taste of success? Is the achievement still cherished years later? Or is it bittersweet, a distant reminder of what could have been? Thirty-nine stories of hockey players who only scored one goal in their entire NHL career. From guys nobody has heard of togoalies who managed to get one in the net, Ken Reid interviews these NHLers and finds out what that single point meant in the grand scheme of their lives.
The first man to walk on the moon? An easy question, no? The answer of course is Neil Armstrong. Now name the second. I bet you had to guess for a second, if you got the answer right at all. When you're the first man or woman to accomplish a significant feat, your name will live on forever. And that brings us to Billy Smith, the first goaltender to ever score a goal in the National Hockey League, "It's in the record books," says the Hockey Hall of Famer. "So even with Hexxy (Ron Hextall) scoring the second one, it's kind of forgotten. It's always who scored the first. So in that way, the goal means something."
Billy Smith didn't try to score a goal against the Colorado Rockies on November 28th, 1979. His very own perfect storm came 4:50 into the third period. The Islanders were trailing the lowly Colorado Rockies 4-3. Smith didn't even get the start that night. He took over for Chico Resch after he gave up 17 goals on 21 shots. There was a delayed penalty call on the Islanders Mike Kaszycki. The Rockies, however, had possession of the puck. Their tender Bill McKenzie headed to the bench for an extra attacker. The puck worked its way to Rob Ramage, who let a shot go from the right side. Smith made the save. The puck quickly made its way back to Ramage in the right corner: "He grabbed it and fired the puck back to the point but there was nobody there. It went all the way down the ice and into the net." Right away Billy Smith knew he scored. "I knew I was the last guy to touch the puck but they gave the goal to one of my teammates." Smith didn't make a big deal out of it because… frankly, it didn't seem like much of a big deal at the time. "It's more of a big deal now. I mean, it was pretty neat. Back then it was like, well, we played the game, we lost, so really I wasn't that interested."
After the game the goal was eventually rewarded to Smith. When you watch the video of the goal it is blatantly obvious that he was the last Islander to touch the puck. So give the NHL credit, they were quick to right their wrong. But it is kind of strange that none of Billy's teammates picked up on the fact that the goal was his. The 7112 fans in attendance didn't seem to notice either.
