Not one, but two NHL goalies had blunders when announcing their respective team’s selection during the first round of the NHL Entry Draft on Wednesday.
First, there was Carey Price, who infamously blanked on Austrian defenceman David Reinbacher’s name when it was time for the Montreal Canadiens to select him with the fifth overall pick.
Luckily, Montreal’s GM Kent Hughes came to the goalie’s rescue, joking that the pause was planned and finishing the selection for him.
Price later apologized on Twitter, poking fun at the gaffe in the process.
Boy that was embarrassing. Sorry Davidā¦.. Reinbacher. š¤¦š»āāļøš
— Carey Price (@CP0031) June 29, 2023
Then, later in Round 1, former Nashville Predators netminder Pekka Rinne suffered a similar fate when he was given the honours of selecting forward Tanner Molendyk.
He too had trouble remembering (or pronouncing) the prospect’s last name, resulting in another awkward moment at the podium.
Former Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo couldn’t resist commenting on the strange occurrences involving his former opponents, offering his two cents on Twitter.
“The tendies are having a tough night selecting picks,” wrote the Hockey Hall of Fame inductee.
The tendies are having a tough night selecting picks
— Strombone (@strombone1) June 29, 2023
Luongo is no stranger to laughing at himself either, though.
Last month, when the Florida Panthers advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, Luongo, who holds the position of special advisor to the general manager, celebrated hard.
So hard that he tweeted out a sarcastic message that read, āact like youāve been there before,ā accompanied by a photo of him hugging his front office colleagues enthusiastically.
Act like youāve been there before fk pic.twitter.com/Yjo82Azt3j
— Strombone (@strombone1) May 13, 2023
“I seriously need to get ahold of myself moving forward,” he wrote in another tweet, poking fun at the moment.
I seriously need to get ahold of myself moving forward pic.twitter.com/1m53rQiCoM
ā Strombone (@strombone1) May 19, 2023
As he continues to find success in a managerial position, Luongo might have to make his own podium debut in the near future.
Here’s hoping he doesn’t suffer a similar fate.