Admittedly, part of that was playing NHL13. I was playing through some of the Live Moments games, including having to play as Nail Yakupov during that gigantic game against L.A. last season.
I watched that game live last year, and absolutely lost it when I seen him sliding on his knees down the ice the way he did. It was nuts, but I loved it. This kid was showing the world how passionate he is for the game, and how excited he was to get that goal. A good celebration shows the pride you have in yourself, and vents off that excitement you have for scoring that goal. Some celebrations are just tacky, done solely to piss off the other team, but the good one you can tell are purely reactionary, and are driven by the love for the game.
In thinking about that, I decided to make a list of my favourite goal celebrations of all time. And in case some of you don't know which ones I'm talking about, I'll put the video of it on here. Note: I do not own the videos used, just linking them from YouTube. Give your thanks to them if you wish.
Honourable Mention: Bobby Orr's Dive
This doesn't really count as a celebration because he didn't really mean to dive like that. He was tripped just as he scored the goal. Still, that is one of the most iconic moments in hockey history.
5. Marek Malik Makes The Shootout Relevant
This would make my list of best shootout moves ever, when/if I make such a list. But this also counts as one of my favourite celebrations. In this case, a little goes a long way. Here's a guy who rarely scores at all, pulls off the first highlight reel shootout move since the NHL brought it in, wins the game, erupts the building, and acts like its nothing special, just part of his job. Definition of "cool".
4. Sean Avery Does Push-Ups
Alright, remember what I said about tacky celebrations that are just for the sake of pissing off the other team? Well this is it. But in this case, I like it. Pissing off the other team is Sean Avery's job. This wasn't disrespectful in any way, it wasn't too tasteless, it was just fun to watch (maybe not for the Preds, but thats the point). Although, I'm one of the few guys who would love to have Avery on my team, and this is partly why.
3. Nail Yakupov Steals the Show
If you're a hater of this celebration, then you're a Kings fan, or you really don't like hockey. 1) Pro hockey is part of the entertainment business. If this doesn't entertain you, you probably dead. 2) This is a young player who is trying to be a big star in the league. Maybe getting millions of extra looks because of your celebration wont hurt. 3) And this is the biggest one, he scored a goal to tie the game with 4 SECONDS LEFT. I'd be jumping out of my skull if such an exciting goal came from my stick. He made the building jump and gave the Oilers new life in the hockey game. This celebration (and other ones during the season) shows how passionate of a hockey player he is.
2. Selanne Snipes His Glove
As an aside, I firmly believe the French language was invented solely for making hockey sound even better than it already is.
All joking aside, this comes in at #2. Selanne shatters Mike Bossy's rookie scoring record, and basically cemented his status as the best rookie season in history. The celebration is unique, and spur of the moment, despite how cool Selanne looks throughout it. And best of all, this was a one-time thing. If anyone tries the same celebration now, they look like a hack trying to get more attention. This was the real deal.
1. Henderson Has Scored For Canada
I don't think I need to explain this one much. This is probably the most important moment in hockey, and the celebration that shows it.
Well here you have my opinions of the best goal celebrations in history. I'm sure some of you have other ones you'd like to share, or disagreements with my list, and I'd love to hear them. Thanks for reading.
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