Eric Canha-Imagn Images
It’s been more than five years since we’ve been treated to a goalie fight in the NHL, but it looked like the drought was going to end when Jeremy Swayman challenged Darcy Kuemper during Sunday night’s game between the Bruins and the Kings. Unfortunately, the refs once again intervened before the two got the chance to trade hands.
It’s not that rare to see a fight break out between players during an NHL game, but it is very rare to see one that features two goaltenders going at it; according to the Associated Press, there have only been 43 instances of goalie-on-goalie crime since 1954.
The most recent one transpired during the “Battle of Alberta” that unfolded when the Oilers and the Flames faced off on February 1, 2020 courtesy of Calgary’s Cam Talbot and Edmonton’s Mike Smith, which saw the latter firmly get the upper hand on his opponent during an incredibly spirited tilt.
That’s not to say there haven’t been goalies who’ve been willing to fight since then.
We were treated to a fantastic mic’d-up moment when Marc-Andre Fleury pleaded his case to the refs who refused to let him fight Jordan Binnington in 2023, and Bruins netminder Jeremy Swayman offered up an invitation Toronto’s Joseph Woll declined when the two teams met last season.
Swayman still hasn’t checked the goalie fight box since making his NHL debut in 2021, but it sure looked like he was going to when the Bruins faced off against the Kings in Los Angeles on Sunday night.
Things got heated with a little less than six minutes to go in the second period of the contest after Kings goalie Darcy Kumeper ripped the helmet off of Marat Khusnutdinov’s head after the Bruins center collided with him in front of the net, and both men were hit with a penalty.
However, the refs ultimately handed out two more when Swayman skated to center ice while making it clear he wanted Kuemper to join him, and both men dropped the gloves before the officials swooped in to prevent them from fighting (they were both given a minor penalty for leaving the crease).
It’s not entirely clear why the zebras refused to let two seemingly willing combatants go at it, although it does seem like the NHL has instructed them to immediately intervene if any player takes their helmet off before a fight.
As a result, it might be a long time until we get another goalie fight when you consider guys at that position heavily rely on their hands to make a living and probably aren’t chomping at the bit to punch someone who still has their cage on (although it seems like Swayman was prepared to do exactly that).
What a shame.