‘It feels incredible’: Halifax Mooseheads goaltender scores wonder goal, shocks crowd – Halifax | Globalnews.ca

It’s not every day you see a goaltender put the puck into the back of the net.

Hockey fans who missed the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) action Friday night might’ve thought there was an error when first peeking at the scoresheet. Following Halifax Moosehead’s 6-4 victory over Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, the Herd’s goaltender was credited with Halifax’s sixth goal.

But it was no mistake. Late in the third period, 19-year-old Mathis Rousseau caught the puck, gently placed it ahead of his stick, and lobbed it from one end of the rink to the other directly into an empty net.

In front of a pleasantly surprised crowd of more than 7,500 fans at Halifax’s Scotiabank Centre, the young goaltender from Boisbriand, Que., took the unexpected accolades in stride as he celebrated securing the victory alongside his teammates.

In addition to dazzling fans with his goal, Rousseau will see his name permanently cemented into franchise history as he becomes the first-ever goaltender to score for the Halifax Mooseheads.

Following the game, which saw the Halifax side pick up their seventh win of the campaign, Rousseau said capitalizing on a scoring opportunity was something he wanted to “try all of his life,” but he never thought he’d actually see the day where it’d come to fruition.

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“It feels incredible,” he said during a post-game interview that was uploaded by the Mooseheads on social media.

“When I got that puck, I was like ‘Go for it’ and the rest was history.”

When asked if he’s been working on his goal-scoring abilities in training, the goaltender, who also delivered in his typical role by recording 38 saves on the night, said it isn’t something he practices too often.

“I’ve been trying, I don’t think I could do it again,” he laughed. “It’s a one-shot thing, everything felt good, everything aligned perfectly, and it went in.”

In addition to fans being treated to a historic goalie goal, reigning league MVP Jordan Dumais put on a clinic in his return to the Mooseheads lineup from the Columbus Blue Jackets. He recorded a hat trick and two assists, bringing him to within 20 points of the Mooseheads’ franchise record for most points earned by a player.

With the win over Rouyn-Noranda, the Mooseheads jump into second place in the QMJHL’s Eastern Conference standings. They head into the second of back-to-back weekend contests when they take on the Val-d’Or Foreurs Saturday night at the Scotiabank Centre.

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