An Emotional Milestone for Noesen

Any hockey player will tell you scoring their first NHL goal is a moment they'll never forgot the rest of their lives, but for Stefan Noesen this one meant something even bigger.

Playing Wednesday night in just his third NHL game, Noesen buried a one-timer from the slot in the second period of Anaheim's eventual 6-5 shootout victory over the visiting Hurricanes, raising both fists to the rafters and breaking out in a beaming ear-to-ear grin.

"I saw the red light and threw my hands up," said the 23-year-old winger. "It was all the emotion from two long years coming at me all at once."
Those two years were more than any athlete should be asked to endure as Noesen (pronounced NAY-suhn) battled through not one, but two devastating injuries that each kept him off the ice for extended periods of time. First was the torn ACL, MCL and meniscus suffered soon after being acquired by the Ducks in 2013, and a year later there was the partially torn Achilles that put him on the shelf for most of the 2014-15 campaign.
In an odd way, Noesen had an impact on the Ducks franchise even before he was acquired by Anaheim. Ducks GM Bob Murray has acknowledged that Anaheim wanted to take Noesen with the 22nd selection of the 2011 NHL Draft, but the Senators snatched him up one pick prior. The Ducks quickly swung a deal with Toronto to send that 22nd pick to the Leafs for the 30th and 39th, which became franchise cornerstones Rickard Rakell and John Gibson.
Two years later the Ducks got Noesen anyway, dealing Bobby Ryan to Ottawa for Jakob Silfverberg, Noesen and a 2014 first round draft pick they used to select Nick Ritchie.
Hopes for Noesen were high, but during an early-season practice with Anaheim's AHL affiliate in Norfolk, he suffered the knee injury that kept him out for the duration of the regular season. He fought through a grinding rehab to make it back for the Admirals' postseason run that spring, appearing in four Calder Cup Playoff games.

"In the very beginning, to have a devastating injury like that really sucks," Noesen says. "I had good family support though, and my girlfriend at the time was very crucial in helping me get through everything. You fight through it, and it's six months of your life. I came back and just when you think things are going to start turning for you…"
It all came crashing down again for Noesen just a few months later. "I was amped up and ready to get in the swing of things," he says. "And it happened again."
Playing in Norfolk's fourth game of the season, he was cut in the back of the leg with a skate during a faceoff ("a fluke thing, really") and suffered a 95 percent laceration of the Achilles tendon. Doctors said he would be out four to six months.
"It happens again, and you're shaking your head, almost like a 'Why me?' sort of thing," Noesen recalls. "But you've just got to shake it off and say, 'How long is the recovery, and can I beat that recovery?' That's one thing I think I was able to do very well, to tell myself I'm gonna prove the doctor and other people wrong that I'm not going to be out four to six months for this injury. I'm gonna make it under four."
He did just that, getting back on the ice for the Admirals' game vs. the Syracuse Crunch on February 13 of last year, just 118 days after the injury occurred.
"You tell your body that, you tell your mind that, and bodies are amazing things," he says "They do wonders."
A rejuvenated Noesen played only two games for the Ducks over the following two seasons, spending the bulk of his time in the minors. With hopes of making the Ducks roster out of last fall's training camp, he was instead sent back down to Anaheim's AHL affiliate in San Diego. He was disappointed, but was able to keep stay optimistic considering what he had undergone.
"I had two pretty hard years where I had to learn how to grow up and be mature very quickly," he says. "It helped me in the long run. I wanted to prove myself that I belonged up here and be a part of this team."
Tuesday night Noesen scored a dramatic tying goal for the Gulls in an eventual overtime victory over Bakersfield, and during the postgame celebration came even more good news - the Ducks were calling him up again.
He drove up from San Diego on Wednesday, took part in the pregame skate and was in the lineup that night against Carolina. His momentous goal came off an assist from fellow youngster Joseph Cramarossa, who happened to be Noesen's roommate when they were both AHL rookies in Norfolk.

"I think everyone saw the big smile on my face afterwards," Noesen says. "It's one of those moments you're always gonna remember. Going back to the bench and high-fiving all the guys, you're still smiling. But after that, it's over, reality sets in and it's time to get back to playing."
When he finally got to his phone after the game, "It took me awhile to go through it. I think I had about 160 messages or something like that. It took me all night to sort through everything. You just go through your Twitter and Instagram feeds, and buddies are posting videos of themselves going crazy."
Both of his parents were watching back home in Plano, Texas, and when Noesen finally got a minute to call them, it was 2 a.m. Central time. "But my mom was still wide awake," he says with a laugh. The puck, he says, will be sent home at some point to go next to mementos from his junior hockey days he's kept in a bedroom closet.
First goals are one thing, but the ultimate goal for Noesen is remaining at the NHL level after battling through two potentially overwhelming setbacks.
"For now I'm staying in the moment," Noesen says. "I'm doing my best to make the most of this opportunity. I'm hoping I get a shot, and every single chance I get to step on the ice, I'm going to show what I have."