I Missed The Date...

I was cruising through the archives yesterday in my search for some information that I thought I had posted, and I came across something that I forgot had happened on April 24. The man to the left, Michael Leighton, is back with Philadelphia as they look to recreate the magic from last season, but April 24 is a big day for Michael Leighton for another reason as he was part of history on this day. I'm going to assume it was overlooked by a number of news sources and weblogs, but Leighton was one of the goaltenders of record in the longest AHL game in history on April 24, 2008.

Michael Leighton was tending the net for the Albany River Rats in 2008, and they met the Philadelphia Phantoms in the AHL Calder Cup Playoffs. Game Five took place on April 24, and who would have known at that time that the game would take on historical proportions as the two teams battled through eight periods before a winner was crowned.

I'll let the video do most of the talking on this one, but I'll get everyone up to speed after the highlight. Mark your calendars, kids, because April 24 is a big day once you see the stats.

Onion bag? Did he just... seriously? Seriously. Alright, here are the cold, hard numbers from that game:

• Leighton made 98 saves on 101 shots. The 101st shot was the one that got away. His 98-save performance broke the record held by Ty Conklin who had made 83 saves for the Hamilton Bulldogs in 2003 against Houston.
• 62 of Leighton's 98 saves came in overtime.
• Michael Leighton, for all his work, was voted as the second star of the game. The first star? Game-winning goal-scorer Ryan Potulny.
  
• Phantoms goaltender Scott Munroe made 65 saves on 67 shots.
• Because of the number of shots taken by the Phantoms, the scoreboard showed only one shot on net at the conclusion of the game. Albany's scoreboard rolled over to zero on the 100th shot.
  
• A mere 1809 people showed up for the game. By the time the game was done, only a few hundred remained in their seats.
• For a bigger slap in the face of fans that decided to watch history, the concession stands reportedly closed down at 9PM for night. The game officially ended at 12:38AM, a short five hours and 38 minutes after the puck was dropped.

With the AHL Calder Cup Playoffs nearly having decided the opening round, I guess I can be thankful that I haven't had to endure one of these marathon games yet. Only one bracket is left to decide in this year's AHL Playoffs as the Manitoba Moose and Lake Erie Monsters play Game Seven in Cleveland tomorrow.

Here's hoping the Moose can win Game Seven so I can see more live playoff action this season!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!