Goalie-stick-rider Tate was unaware of Tiger Williams; Clouston talks showmanship

“Just kind of a chat among the guys,” Tate said when asked what spurred him to jump aboard his paddle. “It started as a joke in practice and I got the chance to pull it out on the ice. I knew as soon as the shootout started, as soon as overtime ended, that I had the celebration in my head.”

Vancouver Giants’ top scorer and Anaheim Ducks’ prospect Mathis Preston was methodical in his approach to a shootout attempt on Friday [Oct. 23] at Sandman Centre, creeping in on Tate needing a goal to extend the contest.

Tate outwaited Preston.

“Caught the puck, tossed it, said a little something to him and then just rode my stick,” Tate said. “He was talking trash to a bunch of the guys, so I thought I’d give it to him right before.”

Kamloops won 4-3 and by the time Tate reached for his phone after the game, the clip was well on its way across the Internet.

“It’s a little funny to me, such a random thing to happen, such a random thing to do,” said Tate, the 6-foot-4 backstop who is 5-1 this season with a .936 save percentage. “I didn’t expect anything to come out of it, maybe a post from the Blazers, but that was all.”

Blazers’ head coach and general manager Shaun Clouston has mixed feelings on showmanship.

“To me, I’m a little bit old school,” he said. “I would rather the guys be a little bit more reserved. I think the other team can use it as ammo a little bit, payback. But, again, I’m not going to make a big deal about it. I try to let the young players have their fun.”

Tate is quickly becoming a fan favourite in Kamloops and showing all sorts of confidence and promise between the pipes, with pro scouts taking notice.

He plans to keep his stick out of his five-hole in the immediate future, but is not shutting out the idea of replicating the celebration at some point down the road.

“I think if it ever comes out again, it’s got to be a big win,” he said. “For now, I’ll just keep it tucked away.”

by Marty Hastings

Goalie-stick-rider Tate was unaware of Tiger Williams; Clouston talks showmanship

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