Father to back up son at minor-league hockey game
The emergency goaltender can lend itself to random stories in hockey.
It isn't quite an emergency but Ontario Reign will add a unique twist on Saturday.
As goalie Jonah Imoo is making his first pro start it will be his father Dusty, the Reign’s goalie coach, who will serve as his backup.
“This could set some kind of hockey history,” Reign coach Mike Stothers said following morning skate ahead of Saturday’s game against visiting San Jose. “The son will be backed up by his dad. We’ll have two Imoos on the roster, both on PTOs. … I guess it’s good to have your goalie coach that close, right? He’s on the bench.”
The Reign are caught shorthanded because their No. 1 goaltender Jack Campbell had to head to the LA Kings, when their backup goaltender Jeff Zatkoff suffered an injury at a morning skate. That added to the Kings' woes as their top goaltender Jonathan Quick is out for months, necessitaing a call-up of the Reign's Peter Budaj.
Jonah Imoo, 22, played in three games last season split between the Southern Professional Hockey League and the Federal Hockey League.
“Jonah’s by far the better of the two,” Stothers said with a laugh.
The elder of the Imoos will wear No. 70. Double the number that his son Jonah wears (35). Can't make it up. https://t.co/HjDi4D6Eu0
— Lindsay Czarnecki (@ReignInsider) October 22, 2016
