There's a peculiar phenomenon among goaltenders: they get called up to the NHL, dress, warm up…And never get to play. Here are the league leaders in sitting on the bench since the start of the 2007-08 season:
| Goalie | Games Dressed | Team | Highest League |
| JAMES REIMER | 10 (finally got to play) | TOR | AHL |
| MARK DEKANICH | 10 (finally got to play) | NSH | AHL |
| BRYAN PITTON | 5 | EDM | AHL |
| DAN TURPLE | 3 | ATL | AHL |
| DANIEL LARSSON | 3 | DET | AHL, SEL |
| DAREN MACHESNEY | 3 | WSH | AHL |
| TYLER PLANTE | 3 | FLA | AHL |
| MICHAEL MOLE | 2 | NYI | AHL |
| AARON SOROCHAN | 1 | EDM | AHL |
| CARTER HUTTON | 1 | PHI | AHL |
| DAVID SHANTZ | 1 | FLA | AHL |
| JEAN-PHILIPPE LEVASSEUR | 1 | ANA | AHL |
| JEFF FRAZEE | 1 | NJD | AHL |
| JOE FALLON | 1 | CHI | AHL |
| JONATHAN BOUTIN | 1 | TBL | AHL |
| MATT DALTON | 1 | BOS | AHL |
| TIMO PIELMEIER | 1 | ANA | AHL |
| TORRIE JUNG | 1 | EDM | CHL |
What got me thinking about this was the much more peculiar phenomenon of amateur goaltenders being signed to contracts to fill in for missing backups:
| Goalie | Games Dressed | Team | Highest League |
| BRETT LEONHARDT | 1 | WSH | NCAA DIII |
| NATHAN DEOBALD | 1 | EDM | Alberta College/CWUAA |
| THOMAS FENTON | 1 | PHX | AHA |
Leonhardt was the backup for just nine minutes during his one-game contract. Washington was allowed to dress 21 players – 3 goalies – and the true backup (Varlamov) showed up during the game. Deobald and Fenton, however, were on their own. The notion of amateur goaltenders dressing in NHL games is truly ridiculous, but I don't know what an alternative solution is. If one of these quirks happens every year, it won't be long before we see an amateur goaltender playing in an NHL game when the starter goes down with an injury. The results could be very ugly…
Edit: my dad reminds me of the best emergency backup ever, Lefty Wilson, who served as athletic trainer and emergency goaltender for Detroit, Toronto and Boston in the 1950s. He allowed one goal in 81 minutes and one imagines he might have a job in a 30-team NHL.
