A Doming-goal In Hartford

If there's one thing I never tire of seeing, it's goals scored by guys who usually prevent them. We were treated to another goaltender goal tonight in the AHL, marking the fourth time it's happened this season. We'll get to those three other netminders who have done it, but tonight's goal happened in Hartford where the Springfield Falcons and the Hartford Wolf Pack were both fighting for their playoff lives. Neither of those teams has clinched a spot in the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs, but Hartford's Louis Domingue helped his team in a big way tonight.

Domingue is a 32 year-old journeyman goaltender who was drafted in the fifth-round at 138th-overall in 2010 by the Arizona Coyotes. Since making his debut in 2014-15 with the Coyotes, Domingue has made appearances for six other NHL teams while spending most of last three seasons in the AHL. That's not to say that Domingue hasn't played meaningful games as he searched for opportunities. One may remember his play in the Stanley Cup Playoffs a few years ago when the Pittsburgh Penguins ran into goalie injury trouble.

In July 2022, Domingue signed with the New York Rangers where he was the main goaltender for Hartford as he awaited opportunities behind Igor Shesterkin and Jaroslav Halak. Shesterkin wasn't going anywhere in the offseason in 2023, but the Rangers acquired Jonathan Quick who made Domingue's path to the NHL a little more difficult once again. As such, Domingue has played one game in two seasons for the Blueshirts, but he made the most of it as he won the game over the Wild, has a 1.00 GAA, and a .962 save percentage after stopping 25 of 26 shots he faced in his Rangers era thus far.

The good news is that Domingue has been solid for the Wolf Pack at the AHL level where he's 36-20-12 in 71 games over two seasons, and his 14-8-4 record this season should likely have earned him more starts. He did get the start tonight, though, and the Wolf Pack and their fans were likely happy about that after he went and did this.
As I mentioned above, Domingue helped his team in a big way tonight as that insurance marker that he scored gave the Wolf Pack the 5-3 victory over the Thunderbirds, clinching a playoff spot for Hartford with the victory! For those asking, this is just the second time since 2014-15 that the Wolf Pack have qualified for the playoffs, so it was a rather big night for the AHL franchise this evening!

Domingue joins the likes of Strauss Mann, Alex Nedeljkovic, and Jaxson Stauber as the fourth goaltender to score in the AHL this season, and one has to wonder if there's something in the water at the AHL level. We know Domingue enjoys spicy pork and broccoli before starts as his pregame meal which the other three netminders don't share, so four goals in one season at the AHL level is a pretty incredible feat! Well done, AHL netminders!

Once more, here's the updated list of AHL goalies scorers.

• Darcy Wakaluk, Rochester – Dec. 5, 1987 at Utica
• Paul Cohen, Springfield – Mar. 28, 1992 vs. Rochester
• Robb Stauber, Rochester – Oct. 9, 1995 at Prince Edward Island
• Christian Bronsard, Syracuse – Oct. 30, 1999 at Rochester
• Jean-Francois Labbe, Hartford – Feb. 5, 2000 at Quebec
• Chris Mason, Milwaukee – Oct. 15, 2001 at Utah
• Antero Niittymaki, Philadelphia – Apr. 11, 2004 at Hershey*
• Seamus Kotyk, Milwaukee – Apr. 17, 2005 at San Antonio
• Drew MacIntyre, Manitoba – Feb. 20, 2008 at Chicago*
• Chris Holt, Binghamton – Mar. 19, 2010 vs. Rochester
• Reto Berra, Lake Erie – Jan. 16, 2015 at Chicago
• Jonas Gustavsson, Bakersfield – Mar. 24, 2017 vs. San Diego
• Alex Nedeljkovic, Charlotte – Mar. 10, 2018 vs. Hartford
• Tristan Jarry, W-B/Scranton – Nov. 14, 2018 at Springfield
• Maxime Lagace, Chicago - May 25, 2019 at San Diego**
• Collin Delia, Rockford - Dec. 17, 2021 at Texas
• Lukas Dostal, San Diego - Mar. 2, 2022 at Colorado
• Jesper Wallstedt, Iowa - Nov. 12, 2022 at Chicago
• Pyotr Kochetkov, Chicago - Feb. 3, 2023 vs. Manitoba
• Strauss Mann, Laval - Oct. 18, 2023 vs. Rochester
• Alex Nedeljkovic, W-B/Scranton – Nov. 17, 2023 at Providence
• Jaxson Stauber, Rockford - Feb. 16, 2024 vs. Chicago
• Louis Domingue, Hartford - April 12, 2024 vs. Springfield
NOTE: asterisked goals are OT goals. Double-asterisked goal is a playoff goal.

23 men have their names in the AHL record book for recording a goal while stopping pucks, and it's pretty crazy that more than a third of those names have been added since late-2021. As we know, goalies are improving their stickhandling skills every year, though, so maybe we shouldn't be so surprised. What once was an outlier for goalie skills is now a required necessity to play the game!

Congratulations to Louis Domingue on the goal and the win tonight, and to the Wolf Pack for finding their way back to the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs after missing out far too often considering the history of the franchise! Maybe Domingue can notch a playoff goal too?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!