Rantanen scored his first NHL goal in the first period of a 3-2 overtime win against the Winnipeg Jets on Friday. The rookie's milestone puck was taken out of play as Matt Duchene grabbed it and skated it over to Pickard on the bench for safe keeping. The goalie clearly handed the puck over to a member of the Avalanche staff behind the bench.
But, Pickard seemingly saw an opportunity to both make a young fan's night and make Rantanen a little nervous that he gave away a treasured bit of personal memorabilia, so he called over a a kid near the bench and handed him a different puck, just in case the rookie was watching.
The young man who got the puck from Pickard quickly ran back to his seat with an ear-to-ear smile and got a big hug.
It's a huge win for everyone involved. Rantanen gets the puck from his first goal, Pickard gets to perhaps make the rookie sweat a bit and a young hockey fan gets a memory he'll never forget.
