Ranking every NHL goalie goal ever scored in way too much detail
These goalies are out of control.
You already know about Alex Nedeljkovics record-breaking Friday night , as he became the first goaltender in the NHL to record a goal and an assist in the same game.
But that goal doubled down on the history by also making the 2024-25 season the first to ever feature multiple goalie goals.
Advertisement In fact, weve now had four goalie goals in less than two years, with Linus Ullmark in February of 2023 and Tristan Jarry in November of that same year.
And yes, Jarry and Nedeljkovic both pulling it off means the Penguins go in the books as the first team to have two different goalies score goals.
Thats a lot of history.
And it probably makes this a good time to regroup, with a way-too-in-depth ranking of every goalie goal the NHL has ever seen.
To be clear, for our purposes today, a goalie goal is when they shoot the puck the length of the ice into the net.
Were not counting all the times that a goalie has been credited with a goal after being the last player to touch the puck before a team scores on itself.
Those moments are neat too, but theyre more statistical quirks than they are actual achievements.
So with apologies to legendary offensive names such as Damian Rhodes, Chris Mason and Mika Noronen, were looking for shooters today.
Please dont come to my house and hack my ankles, Billy Smith.
As it turns out, we have an even dozen to choose from.
Well rank them from worst to best, factoring in crucial criteria such as the circumstances and the degree of difficulty, as well as important factors like the crowd, the call and the celebration.
Lets do this.
12.
Chris Osgood, March 6, 1996 Situation: This one comes with 10 seconds left in a game between a record-breaking Red Wings juggernaut and a Whalers team that was, uh, not that.
But its also the first goalie goal in almost seven years, and the first that wasnt scored by Ron Hextall, so theres a neat Oh right, thats a thing youre allowed to do factor.
7/10 .
Style: Nothing too fancy, but the way Osgood manages to knock down and control the puck with his extended stick is pretty impressive.
After that, its just about the shot, and he pretty much drills it.
7/10 .
Call: We dont have the whole clip, but what we can hear is fine right up until something thats only happened three times in history is met with a You dont see that too often.
4/10 .
Advertisement Reaction: The crowd gives it a decent reaction.
Its missing the Oh wait, is he going to try it? buzz that really elevates a goalie goal, but thats understandable given nobody who wasnt Hextall was expected to try this.
6/10 .
Celebration: We dont see much of it in this clip, but whats there seems fairly innocuous.
I do like that quick shot of guys on the bench laughing at what theyve just witnessed.
5/10 .
Bonus points: Osgood really cluttered up the scoresheet, adding a second-period slashing penalty to his nights work.
Somewhat amazingly, neither of Hextalls games below included a penalty.
+ 1 .
Total score: Its our lowest-rated goalie goal, but still gets a decent score.
Why? Because all goalie goals are awesome.
30/50 .
11.
Evgeni Nabokov, March 10, 2002 Situation: Pretty typical, with one exception Vancouvers Jarkko Ruutu is serving an elbowing major, meaning this is the first power-play goalie goal ever scored.
7/10 .
Style: Its a class catch-and-release, with a twist.
Defenseman Brad Stuart initially looks like hes going to take the puck, before realizing whats happening and leaving it.
That throws Nabokov off his rhythm but adds a nice bit of stop-and-start urgency to the proceedings.
6/10 .
Call: Its a fun 0-to-60 sort of call, as a boring late-game scenario suddenly becomes the highlight of the season.
What it lacks in preamble, it makes up for in the scoooores.
6/10 .
Reaction: Its a road goal, but the Vancouver crowd delivers an excellent oh crap, is this happening? reaction as the puck heads down the ice.
They cap it off with a nice pop for the actual goal, too.
7/10 .
Celebration: Somewhat mild under the circumstances, although still fun because the early 2000s Sharks were a classic Wait, they had that guy? team.
Look, theres Vincent Damphousse and Niklas Sundstrom.
Oh right, Darryl Sutter was the coach.
Whos that guy who looks like Adam Graves? This may only be fun for me.
5/10 .
Advertisement Bonus points: For making Sutter smile for the only time in his life.
+ 1 .
Total score: It feels like this one has largely been forgotten, but its a solid snipe.
32/50 .
10.
Tristan Jarry, November 30, 2023 Situation: Nothing all that remarkable, although it was the first goalie goal scored with over a minute to go since the 1980s.
5/10 .
Style: Smooth.
The puck is basically on and off his stick immediately, which makes this look easier than it really was.
He gets some serious distance on it too.
7/10 .
Call: Not bad at all, with a solid you have witnessed history drop.
7/10 .
Reaction: Its a road game, but there are enough Penguins fans in Tampa to give it a worthy response.
7/10 .
Celebration: It starts off pretty standard, right up until Jarry starts vibrating.
The highlight here, though, is backup goalie Alex Nedeljkovic trying to wave Jarry over for the bench celebration, which he declines.
I love it when the scriptwriters slip in some subtle foreshadowing.
6/10 .
Bonus points: The goal capped off a big night for Jarry, whod been struggling .
I will not be checking on how things turned out for him in Pittsburgh after this.
+ 1 .
Total score: This one probably suffers a bit from being the second goalie goal in the same calendar year, but it was a solid entry in the genre.
33/50 .
9.
Pekka Rinne, January 9, 2020 Situation: Its a midseason game between two .500-ish teams, and the game situation is pretty much the standard: Late enough in a two-goal game that the risk is minimal.
At least it had been seven years since wed last seen a goalie goal.
5/10 .
Style: Its not flashy, but this is a goalie who knows what he wants to do.
He gets out quickly to stop the puck, theres only a small moment of hesitation while he gathers himself, and then its pretty much a dead-center shot.
7/10 .
Call: The actual call is fine, but its the analyst who really makes it, transitioning from laughter to an oh my god.
8/10 .
Advertisement Reaction: The game is in Chicago, and this might be the quietest crowd reaction to a goalie goal that weve ever had.
Normally that would be bad, but luckily the celebration happens right in front of a bunch of sad-looking Hawks fans, and its pretty hilarious.
Redbeard on the right decides to pretend its not happening, while ballcap on the left looks like hes just been traumatized for life.
6/10 .
Celebration: Rinne would admit that he wasnt really sure what to do , but his teammates picked up the slack with some genuine excitement.
Note how you can see them telling him to do the bench fly-by, but he declines.
6/10 .
Bonus points: Im giving Rinne two extra points because hes one of those goalies whod been trying to score for a while and wasnt shy about it.
+ 2 .
Total score: Give him credit, Rinne is the guy who kicked off the new era of goalies scoring every year or so.
34/50 .
8.
Filip Gustavsson , October 15, 2024 Situation: The season was just four games old when Gustavsson decided to spice it up.
This is also the second time a goalie has shot and scored on the power play.
6/10 .
Style: Hes helped out by Pavel Buchnevich , who fires a chest-high gimme to set up the catch-and-release.
With only one Blue even near him, he has about as unobstructed a shot as you can get.
7/10 .
Call: Its not bad, and note how the goaaal call actually starts a fraction of a second before the puck hits the net.
6/10 .
Reaction: The crowd is a little muted, but we do get a shot of a sad Jordan Binnington , which has to count for something.
6/10 .
Celebration: Its the typical group hug, made better by the momentum pushing everyone off into the corner.
Gustavsson follows that with the bench fly-by, which includes a shot of Marc-Andre Fleury smiling so broadly that you can barely tell how much its killing him that hes still never done this.
(Although this one apparently was his idea .) 8/10 .
Advertisement Bonus points: For Gustavsson reportedly dropping postgame quotes about wanting to attend power-play meetings.
+ 2 .
Total score: Seriously, if Fleury still doesnt have his goalie goal by March, the Wild need to start making him the net-front guy on the power play.
35/50 .
7.
Jose Theodore, January 2, 2001 Situation: Its two very bad teams playing each other in early January.
But the more important piece of this scenario is that Montreal is up 2-0 at the time, meaning Theodore becomes the first goalie to shoot and score while also recording a shutout.
7/10 .
Style: He does it on the backhand.
I still cant get my head around this.
Im not sure Connor McDavid could put a backhand in from behind his own goal line.
10/10 .
Call: There are a few versions of this one floating around online, including this one .
The calls are all fine.
6/10 .
Reaction: Its just OK, but considering this is an Islanders home game in 2001 and theyre already behind by two goals in the final minute, theres probably like 3,000 people left in the building.
5/10 .
Celebration: Its strong, as Theodore skates out to find his teammates rather than making them come to him.
7/10 .
Bonus points: In addition to being completely ridiculous, the backhand means that this is the slowest developing goalie goal were likely to ever see.
+ 1 .
Total score: This is a better score than I expected for a goal thats been largely forgotten, so much so that there isnt even a normal broadcast rip on YouTube.
Still ...
a backhand! 36/50 .
6.
Ron Hextall, April 11, 1989 Situation: Its the first playoff goalie goal in history.
It was also the first short-handed goalie goal, as the Flyers were down a man.
(Fun trivia: The guy in the penalty box is Jakob Chychrun s dad, Jeff.) 8/10 .
Style: Dont miss the foreshadowing of Jay Wells passing it back to Hextall like hes a defenseman playing the point on the power play.
Yeah, he was a pretty decent puck-handler.
He shows it by corralling a shoot-in and using his momentum to carry him right around the net and into the shot.
Wait, does that count as a wraparound? 7/10 .
Advertisement Call: Maybe my favorite goalie call ever, because Doc Emrick realizes whats about to happen and explains the situation perfectly just seconds before it all plays out.
Most of these calls are fun because of the shock, but this one works because the viewer has been tipped off about what could happen.
And then it does.
9/10 .
Reaction: Its decent, but given that the game is in Washington and Caps fans just watched their team lose a crucial Game 5, you can understand that they werent super-amped for the whole thing.
5/10 .
Celebration: Hextall is the only two-time scorer, meaning hes the only goalie who can reasonably be expected to act like hes been there before.
He pretty much does, going for the classic arms-up pose.
The real star here is teammate Pelle Eklund, who starts the celebration early in a great moment captured by a near-perfect shot from behind the net that starts at 1:22 of the clip above.
7/10 .
Bonus points: A goalie scoring a goal and winning a playoff game with an .853 save percentage is pretty much the most late-80s thing ever.
+ 1 .
Total score: Would it shock you to know that this is the only time in history a goalie has scored his teams eighth goal? Im guessing it would not.
37/50 .
5.
Linus Ullmark, February 25, 2023 Situation: This was just the second goalie goal, after Osgoods, that came with a team only up by a single goal.
What can you say, the Bruins were setting regular season records and were apparently bored, so they decided they could torment the Canucks in Vancouver one more time, as a treat.
7/10 .
Style: I love the way Ullmark just casually skates out to the puck like its a nothing play, then instantly switches to sniper mode.
Its very possible that it only occurred to him to shoot at the last second, but I prefer to think that this was the hockey equivalent of an NFL quarterback lulling the defense to sleep with a fake spike.
8/10 .
Advertisement Call: Oh hey, its our old pal Jack Edwards! 0/10 .
Reaction: The crowd isnt bad for a road goal, but the real stars here are the actual Canucks.
When they realize whats happening, three of them launch themselves at Ullmark like hes a point guard taking a three.
We also get Quinn Hughes obliterating the puck in disgust, which is the correct reaction to getting scored on by a goaltender.
7/10 .
Celebration: Ullmark becomes the first NHL goalie to do the bench fly-by.
Im old enough to think that having every single goal these days celebrated this way is kind of lame, but a goaltender? Well allow it.
They should have sent Jeremy Swayman out for the hug, though.
8/10 .
(By the way, I just kidding about giving Edwards call a zero, were marking it down as a solid seven.) Bonus points: Ullmark became the first goalie to score a goal in a season in which he won the Vezina, which is kind of just showing off.
+ 1 .
Total score: This one comes in higher than I expected, but it was a lot more fun than I remember it.
38/50 .
4.
Alex Nedeljkovic, January 17, 2025 Situation: This is the earliest goalie goal on record, coming with almost three minutes still left.
Its also against the Buffalo Sabres , which just feels mean.
5/10 .
Style: He doesnt have a lot of time, and even has to absorb a hit to make the play.
7/10 .
Call: I like how you can hear the excitement creeping into his voice even as Nedeljkovic is still coming around from behind the net.
7/10 .
Reaction: The Buffalo crowd gives it a loud cheer, partly because the building seems to be half Penguins fans.
8/10 .
Celebration: Hes already halfway to the bench when the puck goes in, and goes butt-first into his teammates.
Perfection, no notes.
10/10 .
Bonus points: For the fact that hes pretty much made this his thing .
+ 2 .
Total score: This was a great one.
We should all be making this Sidney Crosby face right now.
39/50 .
Advertisement 3.
Mike Smith, October 19, 2013 Situation: This one comes just a couple of weeks into the season, but thats not the timing that matters.
Instead, this ones best feature is that its a legitimate buzzer beater.
In fact, with how long a goalie goal takes to develop, you could argue that this is one of the most suspenseful will it make it in time moments in NHL history.
10/10 .
Style: Given how little time he had, Smiths catch-and-release here is pretty fantastic.
8/10 .
Call: Some genuine excitement, mixed with confusion over whether the goal will count.
The shes in boys on the definitive replay really seals it.
7/10 .
Reaction: Its a (weirdly rare) goalie goal by the home team, so you know the crowds going to be into it.
Thats especially true here since the goal also ends the game and they can celebrate a win at the same time.
Kudos to the goal-horn guy, who really leans into the moment, and may in fact still be wailing on that button 11 years later.
8/10 .
Celebration: We dont actually get a great look at Smiths reaction, which is too bad because hed been trying to score forever.
Still, the game-ending nature of the play means that the entire team gets to join the pile, which is cool.
6/10 .
Bonus points: For Smiths reputation as the leagues best puck-shooting goalie, one hed reinforce a few years later at the All-Star game .
+ 1 .
Total score: It had been 12 years since a goalie had shot and scored, and Smith made us wait until the very last second.
40/50 .
2.
Martin Brodeur, April 17, 1997 Situation: This is the second (and to this date, only other) playoff goalie goal.
It comes in Game 1 of their first-round series with Montreal.
8/10 .
Style: Hes clearly thinking goal all the way, as he corrals a puck going around the net.
He almost loses it but recovers in time to get the shot off.
Going down to one knee is also a classic goal-scorers move.
8/10 .
Call: If theres a heaven for goalie goals, Doc Emrick is the one doing all the calls.
8/10 .
Advertisement Reaction: The home crowd goes nuts, although theyre a little bit distracted by a skirmish that breaks out after the goal.
Thats OK, though, because it leads to ...
7/10 .
Celebration: ...
Brodeur is left all alone by his teammates in the immediate aftermath, which turns out to be hilarious because he has no idea what to do.
He ends up doing a little dance that has been described as a toddler looking like he has to piddle, then backing into his net while still being unable to contain his excitement.
Im not sure Ive ever been as happy in my life as Brodeur is at this exact moment.
9/10 .
Bonus points: For this goal coming with 45 seconds left, leaving enough time for the two teams to squeeze in a line brawl .
+ 2 .
Total score: Brodeur was credited with two other goals, although both were the fake last to touch it kind.
Still, he certainly made the most of his one experience with the real thing.
42/50 .
1.
Ron Hextall, December 8, 1987 Situation: Its 4-2 late in the third period, which in theory would be a good time to go for a goalie goal if such a thing existed, which back in 1987 it did not.
7/10 .
Style: Nothing too ridiculous, but lets appreciate the snipers leg kick.
8/10 .
Call: Considering that most of us had never seen it before, he pretty much nails it.
Personally, I prefer the here he goes, bidding for one call , but theyre both good.
8/10 .
Reaction: The crowd is a highlight here.
While its true that nobody had ever done this before, Hextall had been thinking about it for a while, and it felt like a matter of when instead of if.
In fact, while we dont see it in this clip, hed just made a half-hearted attempt a few seconds earlier, which is why you can hear the Philadelphia fans start to buzz when the puck finds its way to him with some space before he even winds up.
9/10 .
Advertisement Celebration: In a move absolutely fitting of a historic first, the entire Flyers bench comes on the ice to celebrate even though theres still a minute left.
And yes, they got a penalty for it.
Its only two minutes, which is less than that eras team usually got for emptying the bench.
8/10 .
Bonus points: For Hextalls postgame press conference, which he began with Before you guys say anything, I was aiming for that corner.
+ 3 .
Total score: Too predictable? Maybe, but only because Hextalls first goal set a bar so high that multiple generations of goalies are still trying to reach it.
43/50 .
(Top photo of Alex Nedeljkovic celebrating with teammates after scoring a goal: Bill Wippert / NHLI via Getty Images).
This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article:
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6076181/2025/01/22/nhl-every-goalie-goal-alex-nedeljkovic/