Needing NHL-calibre netminding, he called Budaj, who lives in the area. Others participating include Jake Bean, Anthony Duclair, Matt Dumba, Alex Galchenyuk and several Coyotes. Word got out, much to the intrigue of their peers. They’ve been skating together four times a week. They were teammates on Team North America at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey both are Wasserman Hockey clients. McDavid, awaiting the NHL’s return and in search of something to get his competitive juices flowing, joined Matthews in Arizona earlier this month. It is so cool to see that desire to score.”īudaj and Doan have a front-row seat to what’s quietly become hockey’s hottest show the past two weeks. “It was hitting the net, it was going to go in.

“That’s what (Matthews) said to me right after,” Doan adds. “He came over right away, ‘Man I’m sorry.’ I told him, ‘No big deal.’ I was fine. “He felt pretty bad about it,” Budaj says, laughing. The blast hit Budaj right in the facemask. You haven’t let me score.’ I don’t think I could ever shoot the puck like that on my goalie, especially in practice.

“His attitude was, ‘Sorry Petey, but I’ve got to score. “Auston shot from about 20-25 feet away and he shoots the puck about as hard as anyone I’ve ever seen,” said Shane Doan, a witness to this performance.

I was just trying to get good position, force them to beat me with a great shot.” “You can’t anticipate with these guys, because they’ll burn you if you cheat. “People say you should anticipate this and that,” Budaj said. Two of the NHL’s most lethal talents - a combined 81 goals and 177 points during the 2019-20 season. Stopping everything sent at him, Budaj looked up to see a goalie-deflating challenge headed his way: Connor McDavid carrying the puck, Auston Matthews on the opposite wing. Almost two years to the day since his final NHL appearance, Peter Budaj strapped on the pads and unleashed a brilliant performance.

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