Sam Simon’s 84 saves in hockey’s title game tied a national record
Fort Collins goalie Sam Simon performance on Tuesday night was the talk of the hockey community. The junior stopped 84 shots in a thrilling five-overtime state championship hockey game.
At the time, it was believed that his performance tied a national record. And on Wednesday, the CHSAA office got official confirmation from the NFHS: Simon’s 84 saves tied the national mark, originally set in 1987 by Jamey Ramsey of Flint Northern, Michigan.
“I’m just out there having fun,” Simon told the Coloradoan after the game.
Said his coach, Dylan Strom, also to the Coloradoan: “He’s phenomenal. There’s a reason why we’re here and he’s a big part of that.”
Simon’s save total went like this: He stoped 14 shots in the first period, 18 in the second and 12 in the third, giving him 44 in regulation. Each overtime period is eight minutes. He had seven in the first, four in the second, nine in the third, and 12 in the fourth, and eight in the fifth.
“Sam Simon did a great job,” said Valor Christian coach George Gwozdecky, whose team won the title. “There are so many superlatives that you can use to describe his performance, but he was outstanding.”
Added Valor Christian’s Evan Pahos, who scored the winning goal: “I’ve never seen that in my life, and he had the game of a lifetime.”
