Breaking News: Goalie in Islanders System Prevents Opponent from Scoring

When the Islanders signed goaltender David Leggio on the first day of free agency, we knew two things about him: 1. He would start the season in Bridgeport while Jaroslav Halak and Chad Johnson manned the crease on Long Island and 2. He does a great Pierre McGuire impersonation.

What we found out about Leggio this weekend is that he is one cagey SOB and knows his AHL rulebook. In the Sound Tigers game on Sunday versus Springfield, a turnover at center ice sprung two (2) Falcons towards Leggio without a defenseman between them. What Leggio did next went a little viral today (video posted  by commenter EvaanM):

Knocking the net off its posts forced the refs to blow the play dead (while one of the Springfield players didn't really have a handle on the puck anyway), but Leggio wasn't exactly out of the woods. His transgression resulted in a penalty shot being awarded to Springfield's Dana Tyrell.

Turns out Leggio's bailout move was the right call. He stopped Tyrell's breakaway to keep the score at 2-1 for Bridgeport. Tyrell eventually scored a few minutes later to tie the game, and the Falcons went on to win 4-3.

Leggio's quick thinking was an inventive, if not gloriously dastardly, way out of a sticky situation. It's also one of the few times in this early part of the season that a goalie on the Islanders' payroll made a save he wasn't expected to make.

Maybe he can give the other guys a few tips:

We teach knocking off nets in the summer at Leggio Goaltending, along with fixing a "broke" strap and patching bad ice when your tired

— Leggio Goaltending (@LeggioGoaltend) November 3, 2014