Mittelstadt was that guy for the Buffalo Sabres in their win over Vancouver on Saturday, beating Canucks goalie Jacob Markstrom on his first NHL shootout attempt. He insisted afterward that he wasn't nervous. His skills, he said, were polished from a year of practice shootouts in college.
For Schierhorn, his opponent in those practices, the goal was a familiar sight.
"The goal was unreal," he said. "I've seen that one out of him a lot. That's kind of his go-to move, that one or a quick backhand shelf. It was pretty sick. But playing with him all year last year, it kind of became the norm, know what I mean? It was sweet."
Mittelstadt said he had the move planned from the beginning - puck moving quickly as he approached the net, a quick cut to his backhand near the edge of the paint followed by and equally fast switch back to his forehand.
The move to his backhand drew Markstrom just enough to his left to provide space for the puck to be tucked in behind the goalie's skate.
"I think it's, one, how dangerous his backhand is and how quickly he can get it up, so you've got to stay true to that," Schierhorn said. "When he brings it to his backhand before he kind of does that hard cut to his forehand, you've got to honor that."
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