Ryan Reaves Almost Puked On The Bench Thanks To Some Wildly Potent Smelling Salts

Getty Image

If you keep close tabs on the NHL, you probably know there aren’t many people in the league who have what it takes to go toe-to-toe with Ryan Reaves.

The winger is a bit of a journeyman who’s played for five different teams since making his debut with the Blues in 2010 five years after he was scooped up by St. Louis in the NHL Entry Draft.

Reaves is one of the last of the dying breed of enforcers who’ve slowly but surely seen that role fall out of favor thanks in no small part to the long-term repercussions of fighting that have become increasingly difficult to ignore (especially when coupled with evidence that suggests that particular style of frontier justice doesn’t really do much to discourage dirty play).

While the consummate tough guy may usually not have to worry about other players getting the upper hand, he may have finally met his match in the form of an inanimate object that seemed to get the best of him thanks to what transpired when the Wild faced off against the Blackhawks over the weekend.

If you’re a sports fan (or have seen The Parent Trap), then you’re likely familiar with the smelling salts many athletes use when they’re looking for a quick pick-me-up in the middle of the action (the “salts” in question are typically ammonium carbonate, which serves as a stimulant that perks you up when you take a whiff).

On Saturday, Reaves asked an athletic trainer to break out the smelling salts on the bench shortly after he tallied his fifth goal of the season.

He didn’t seem to be impressed by the potency of the first container that was handed to him, but it’s safe to say the second one he sniffed definitely made up for what the first one was lacking based on his reaction.

According to Wild beat writer Michael Russo, Reaves said he almost vomited twice and was nursing a headache after the game thanks to his ill-fated encounter with the smelling salts.

That’s honestly impressive.