Scott Foster’s night probably started the same way it does every night there’s a Chicago Blackhawks game in the Windy City.
He arrived at the arena as the emergency goalie with his equipment in tow before depositing it somewhere for safe keeping. Then, he makes his way up to the press box, gets his free meal with a guest he brought and settles down to watch the game from high above the ice surface at United Center.
Rinse and repeat.
Except for Thursday.
All of that preamble likely happened for Foster. He probably arrived at the rink at the same time, ate a nice press box meal and then settled into his comfy seat. But it’s unlikely he ever thought he’d be throwing his gear on, nevermind stepping onto the ice in his first professional hockey game.
G Anton Forsberg sustained an injury warming up before tonight’s game and will not be in the lineup. Collin Delia will make his NHL debut, and the #Blackhawks have signed Scott Foster to an ATO to serve in an emergency backup role.
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 30, 2018
That dream got one step closer to become a reality when Anton Forsberg going down in warm up, Foster likely took the rest of his pre-game meal in a to-go bag.
And when Collin Delia (also making his first pro start) went down injured in the third period with a 6-2 lead against the Winnipeg Jets, Foster likely threw up whatever he ate into the nearest garbage bin and then put his mask over his face before walking down the tunnel, past names like Kane and Keith and onto the ice in front of 20,000-plus.
You could say he was ready:
EMERGENCY GOALTENDER SCOTT FOSTER FILLS IN AND MAKES HIS FIRST CAREER SAVE! pic.twitter.com/D6CZ7HPfof
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights (@HockeyDaily365) March 30, 2018
Foster then had some fun with his post-game media scrum:
Foster isn’t an easy man to find with a Google search. His HockeyDB page is pretty much it. He’s listed as a 6-foot, 185-pound goalie from Sarnia, Ont., who hasn’t played a meaningful game since the 2005-06 season when he was at Western Michigan.
That was well over a decade ago.
Scott Foster, now in goal for the Blackhawks, has the following goaltending resume on HockeyDB pic.twitter.com/ywrigpJBHI
— Paul Campbell (@WayToGoPaul) March 30, 2018
As of Thursday, Foster now has an update to add to that website.
Foster made seven saves on seven shots in his 14:01 of fame.
36-year-old emergency goalie Scott Foster played final 14:01 for Blackhawks. Stopped all seven Jets shots he faced:
— Tom Gulitti (@TomGulittiNHL) March 30, 2018
Tyler Myers 2
Patrik Laine 1
Andrew Copp 1
Dustin Byfuglien 1
Paul Stastny 1
Joel Armia 1
Look at Joel Quenneville’s smile:
Wearing No. 90 for the Chicago #Blackhawks: Scott Foster pic.twitter.com/2u3uCFXGhO
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 30, 2018
And guess who was the night’s No. 1 star.
Ladies and gentlemen, your No. 1 star of the game: Scott Foster. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/m37cPJ90p9
— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) March 30, 2018
You can’t make this stuff up.
Scott Billeck is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @scottbilleck