While watching Brian Gibbons’ incredibly unlikely goal, you’d be forgiven for thinking you were watching a video game.
Any hockey fan (or video game fan) can relate: You’re playing with a friend who’s new to video games, so you turn the difficulty down to accommodate them.
Then you watch as they get the puck, and skate it over the blue line. Then the skate back. Then over the blue line again. Then they try a nifty dangle – all while you’re shouting for them to take the shot.
And when they do – and score – you knowingly tell them “that would never happen in real life.”
Real life: meet Brian Gibbons.
A forward for the American Hockey League’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (the AHL affiliate for the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins), Gibbons suddenly found himself in the middle of a video game during game 7 of the AHL’s Eastern Conference Semi-Final.
With his team leading 3-0 over the Providence Bruins on Wednesday night, Gibbons took control of the puck after a face off at centre ice.
What followed was an absolutely remarkable goal, as the Massachusetts native skated all over the ice, deking defenders while crossing back and forth over the blue line.
Without passing the puck, but with plenty of nifty stick handling, Gibbons somehow managed to skirt nearly the entire Bruins team, drive on net, and put the puck past goalie Niklas Svedberg with a backhand shot.
Gibbons’ outstanding goal helped lead the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to a 5-4 win over Providence to advance to the AHL Eastern Conference Final.
Comments