Ducks End Season Finale with Emergency Backup Goalie in 4-2 Loss to Stars

In what has been a topsy-turvy and rarely boring season for the Anaheim Ducks, it's only fitting they ended it playing in front of a goalie nobody on the team had ever met.

Anaheim played the entire third period with emergency backup Tom Hodges in its net in what was ultimately a 4-2 defeat to the Dallas Stars in the Ducks' season finale at American Airlines Center.
After starter John Gibson left the game after one period with an upper body injury and backup Anthony Stolarz exited after the second with a lower body injury, Hodges was forced into the Anaheim net to start the third.
By NHL rule, the home team is required to have an Emergency Backup Goalie (commonly known as the EBUG) available to either team, and Hodges was on call and forced into action tonight. Originally from Shropshire, England, Hodges played college hockey for SMU near Dallas and briefly for the Allen Americans of the ECHL.
Wearing a Stars branded mask and green leg pads that clashed with his new Ducks jersey, Hodges made one save and gave up what was ultimately the game-winning goal, but was just satisfied with getting through the experience. "I'm a little out of breath, but doing alright," he said immediately after the game. "It was a little touch and go there. We weren't exactly sure, but [Stolarz] could barely walk and I had to throw my jersey on there. It was probably the most nervous I've even been in my life, but I'm just glad I didn't embarrass myself out there."
Hodges grew up in England and came to the States with his family at 12, the same age where he lost vision in his left eye from a freak hockey injury. As one of the two emergency backups, he's at most Stars home games, and he was encouraged by the Dallas fans who cheered for him throughout that third period. "It's super nice, appreciate it," he said, "I think everyone could tell I was a little nervous. The support of the home fans made a big difference. I really appreciate all of them."

He also praised the rest of the Ducks for the support they offered him. "That's the best group of guys ever," Hodges said. "They just came up to me and tried to calm me down. They could tell I was ready to have a panic attack. They didn't care, win or lose, let in 10 (goals), just go out there and have fun. That made the whole experience a lot easier."

His brand new Ducks teammates kept the puck away from him for most of the third period, but Dallas winger Jason Robertson got one past him on the power play with 10:04 left.
Down a goal, the Ducks sent Hodges to the bench for an extra attacker with just under two minutes left, but Dallas center Vladislav Namestnikov filled the empty net with 1:00 left to slam the door on the game.
Max Comtois and Troy Terry each had goals for the Ducks, who finished the season 31-37-14 and seventh in the Pacific Division, while Dallas came into tonight having already earned a postseason berth and moved into first in the Western Conference Wild Card race at 46-30-6.
Comtois put a nice ending on a self-described frustrating season with a deflection goal 7 1/2 minutes into the first that actually bounced into the net off Dallas defenseman Esa Lindell.

It was the third goal in as many games to close the season for Comtois, who led the Ducks in scoring last season and ended 2021-22 with six goals and 15 points.
Gibson saved all five shots he saw in the first before the injury, but Dallas roared back with goals on Stolarz from Thomas Harley (the first of his NHL career) and Joel Hanley within 2 1/2 minutes of each other early in the middle session to make it 2-1 Dallas.
Terry tied it with his 37th of the season with 4:19 left, benefitting from a great pass from Adam Henrique just outside of the crease.

But that was the last goal from the Ducks, who focused heavily on keeping the puck away from Hodges over the final 20 minutes. And despite the defeat, Hodges was embraced by his Ducks teammates and later the Stars after the final horn.
"I think once we got on the ice and started skating around a little bit doing my normal routine it felt like any other hockey game I've played before," said Hodges, whose day job is selling life insurance. "In that locker room when I got that call, 'Hey you're actually going to have to go out,' because it was 50-50 there for a little bit. Yeah, I was probably as nervous as I've ever been. I've never played in front of so many people. Experience of a lifetime and something I'm going to remember for the rest of my life for sure."

• • • • -
        The Ducks will ultimately look back on the 2021-22 season as one that provided countless memorable moments, one that started with a splash and ultimately ended as the latest step in a franchise rebuilding process.
        Anaheim surprised many with a successful first half of the campaign, putting together an eight-game winning streak and 8-0-2 run from late October through mid-November. The Ducks flirted with first place in the Pacific Division for a moment and were a respectable 17-9-6 going into the Christmas break. But several players and coaches coming down with COVID, injuries, defensive struggles and a roster shakeup all contributed to a frustrating second half of the season. The NHL Trade Deadline saw veterans like Hampus Lindholm, Rickard Rakell, Josh Manson and Nic Deslauriers traded away for prospects and draft picks. All were players who would become free agents this offseason, part of the rebuilding plan put in place by General Manager Pat Verbeek, hired by Anaheim in the beginning of February.
        Regardless of the wins and losses, the Ducks had countless memorable moments during the season. Center Trevor Zegras made his case for the Calder Trophy with a 60-point season punctuated with frequent flashes of brilliance, including two lacrosse-style goals and a lacrosse-style "alley-oop" pass for a Sonny Milano goal last December in Buffalo.
        Terry obliterated his career high with 36 goals, becoming the first Ducks player to score more than 30 in a reason since 2017-18 and making his first All-Star Game in the process.
        Captain Ryan Getzlaf in early April announced his pending retirement following the season, and went out with a bang in his final game with a spinning backhand assist to Adam Henrique in front of an overflow crowd last Sunday at Honda Center.
        Young players like Zegras, Terry, Jamie Drysdale, Isac Lundestrom, Sam Steel and (briefly) Mason McTavish continued to evolve. The promise of those players combined with the prospects in Anaheim's system and eight picks in the first two rounds of the next two NHL Drafts led The Hockey News to rank the Ducks #1 in the NHL in its annual Future Watch issue.
        In addition to Zegras and Drysdale, the Ducks also have five of the top 83 ranked prospects in the league with the trade deadline addition of Drew Helleson, who joins prospects McTavish, Lukas Dostal, Olen Zellweger and Jacob Perreault.
        So while it will be another long summer for the Ducks after a fourth straight season of missing the playoffs, all signs point to the future looking bright in Anaheim.