Guess who's back?
Back again!
Legendary Boston Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask is back between the pipes for the team and will suit up as the emergency backup goaltender (EBUG) for tonight's game against the Buffalo Sabres.
Here's Rask hitting the ice for some reps at morning skate earlier today:
It appears that Jeremy Swayman is sick and so the team has recalled Brandon Bussi from the AHL's Providence Bruins on an emergency basis. With only Ullmark available for skate, Rask strapped on the pads so that the team could run a proper practice.
Near as I can tell, Rask hasn't been back on the ice since he retired back in February, 2022. The 36 year old former Vezina Trophy winning goaltender has to be the best emergency backup in the entire NHL. I mean... if the Bruins get into some goaltending trouble, it may not be the worst idea to fake an injury so that they can get Tuuks into the action.
I kid, of course, but if you're Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark and/or Jeremy Swayman, you have to live with the fact that a franchise legend is chilling in the building somewhere ready to take over if things go sideways. That's gotta be a factor.
The funny thing is, Rask has just as much of a chance of suiting up for the visiting Buffalo Sabres as his does for the hometown Bruins. Each NHL team is required to have an emergency backup goaltender in the building for home games and that goalie serves as the emergency for BOTH teams. That's why legendary emergency backup David Ayres ending up suiting up and winning for the Carolina Hurricanes back in 2020 when he was in fact an employee of the Toronto Maple Leafs. I'm sure we can all remember the iconic shots of Ayres wearing his blue and white Leafs themed gear with the red and white Hurricanes jersey? How bizarre would it be to see Rask suit up in Sabres blue and gold with the Swordsmen's logo rather than the black and gold with a big spoked B? I'm not sure Bruins fans would ever recover... but then again I can always dig up some old shots of Bobby Orr rocking a Chicago Blackhawks jersey.
