Farewell Season at The Joe: Osgood vs. Roy fight flashback
Joe Louis Arena is closing its doors after the 2016 season, so all season long it is time to look back at the most unforgettable moments that took place at The Joe.
Chris Osgood vs. Patrick Roy. No, that’s not the latest UFC fight card match-up, but it had the drama and intensity to be. It has been nearly 20 years since this epic battle took place, however, for Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche fans it seems like only yesterday.
Hockey fights were part of the game decades ago, but two goalies skating the length of the ice to battle it out was simply unheard of, until these two teams met up on April 1, 1998 at Joe Louis Arena.
Not many fans remember that the Red Wings won that night 2-0, or that Sergei Fedorov scored both of those goals. What they do remember is that before the final buzzer sounded, the scene looked more like the hockey movie “Slap Shot,” than a real NHL game.
The Wings and Avs had already built up a history of hatred back then, and it all came to a head on this day. The pot had been simmering between these two squads since Patrick Roy and Mike Vernon duked it out in the previous season, which also turned into a WWE style brawl.
The dropping of the gloves on this night began at the 12:29 mark of the third period. In the end, it led to Roy receiving a misconduct penalty for leaving the crease along with a game misconduct. Osgood received the same. The fans on the other hand were treated to one of the craziest hockey fights in NHL history – and they loved it!
Nowadays, fighting is nearly a thing of the past in the NHL, but this was a different time. Some would say it was a better time. Either way, The Joe was electric on April 1, 1998. If you were a fan of the “hockey-brawls,” sit back and enjoy.
More from Octopus Thrower
This article originally appeared on 
