The crazy story of Canadian goaltender Aaron Dell: even his NHL dream has to wait for the Spengler Cup

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A shutout. Not exactly a miracle for a goalkeeper. In the case of Aaron Dell, however, a remarkable achievement. His performance in the match between his Team Canada and Frölunda (4-0) is the Canadian’s first serious fight this season. After playing on and off in the NHL for the past six years (a total of 134 games for San Jose, Buffalo, New Jersey), the 34-year-old is out of contract this summer.

His last team, the Sharks, prefers to rely on younger goalkeepers. “Without a contract or salary was tough,” says family father Dell. He managed to get a spot in the Columbus Blue Jackets camp in late summer, but not on their team. Then he stays fit in San Jose.

There he runs into his ex-teammate Joe Thornton (44), who works in development for the Sharks and is general manager for the Spengler Cup for Team Canada. “He asked me if I would like to play with Team Canada in Davos,” Dell said. Finding good goalies for the tournament is always a challenge for Team Canada.

Dell is pleasantly surprised, because he knows the tournament – like every Canadian – from television. “The hall is actually so beautiful.” He says yes to Thornton. But just two days later he received an unexpected call: Carolina offered him a trial contract. He also takes action there, but with the wish to still participate in the Spengler Cup. “The Hurricanes agreed when I told them I had already committed to Team Canada.” They let Dell go on this adventure and simply follow his appearances on TV.

“The way everything went is a bit crazy,” Dell said before the classic against host country Davos. He will get some rest because the intense opening match demanded a lot from him. “And yes, there are two or three more games coming up,” he says with a wink and full of expectation.

Source : Blick