As one of the many pieces involved in August’s three-team Erik Karlsson trade, goalie Casey DeSmith was a member of the Montreal Canadiens for all of six weeks.
While he never suited up for a single game Habs, the 32-year-old did end up selecting his own jersey number (60) — one day before he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks for forward Tanner Pearson.
Now, the comical brevity of DeSmith’s tenure in Montreal is sparking memes from the Canadiens community.
First, there was this nine-second “highlight reel” posted to social media by Habs Fan TV that featured a photo of DeSmith in his Canadiens jersey at the team’s golf tournament.
Casey DeSmith Habs Highlights | The Modern Day José Théodore 🔥 ? (2023) pic.twitter.com/5PlR4LRyoh
— Habs Fan TV (@HabsFanTV_) September 20, 2023
Then, a forum on hfboards.com full of sarcastic tributes gained traction among members after someone pointed out that DeSmith is one of only four Habs goalies who never allowed a goal during his stint with the team.
“He just made history and joined a very short list of four Montreal Canadiens goaltenders who didn’t allow a single goal during their tenure,” a user by the name of WatchfulElm wrote. “The other three are Olivier Michaud, Randy Exelby and Sprague Cleghorn (technically a D, but he spent a total of two minutes between the pipes).”
Others took the peculiar stat as motivation to show their appreciation for the new Montreal legend.
“The end of an era. Truly a Hab for life! Congratulations Casey!” one user wrote sarcastically.
“Gone but never forgotten. The forum ghosts wept,” another added.
“Can’t think of a bad game he played for us,” someone pointed out.
One member of the thread even predicted that the Canadiens would honour DeSmith when the Canucks play the Canadiens at the Bell Centre this season.
“Vancouver is in Montréal November 12. Can’t wait for his homage,” they wrote.
Habs fans who want to drop their own tribute to the goalie or just get a good laugh can access the forum here.
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