SEATTLE - Dusty Nickel got to the rink early on this practice day in the Pacific Northwest, just as he has since the Flames made him their full-time emergency back-up goalie this season.
For Nickel, 35, the job is part dream, part duty. He’s on the road with Calgary, traveling on the plane, staying in the hotels and taking the ice in Flames gear to face NHL shooters as the team’s EBUG.
“It's been awesome,” Nickel said of his new, seasonal gig. “It's a pretty cool experience to get along to be able to go on the road with the guys, travel on the plane, stay in nice hotels.
“I’m still skating a lot. It's been a great experience so far.”
Nickel’s path to the role runs through the AJHL, the SJHL and Mount Royal University, where he played in net before moving into the family construction business. He had already served as the local EBUG in Calgary in years past, but the role took on a much bigger profile in November of 2023.
That was when then-Flames goalie Jacob Markstrom got sick before a home game against the Vegas Golden Knights, and Nickel was called on as the backup. He took warmup and sat on the bench while Dan Vladar and Calgary pulled out a 2-1 overtime win.
The situation came up again last week in Edmonton. Devin Cooley left after 20 minutes with a lower-body injury, and Nickel had to leave his press-box seat at Rogers Place and head for the dressing room.
“I saw him get hit, so I got a little bit of a heart rate spike there. A little more heightened awareness at that point,” Nickel recalled.
“I just kept checking my phone, and watched how he was doing and he seemed to be okay. Skated off the ice fine.
Then just before they were going on the ice (for the second period), Barbs (Goaltending Coach Jason LaBarbera) texted me and told me I’ve got to come down and get dressed.
“I was pretty calm. I got in the room and Cools was in there. We just ended up watching the game in the dressing room, trying to keep it light.”
Nickel’s personality has made him an easy fit with the Flames’ goalie group, and that includes Dustin Wolf, Cooley and Arsenii Sergeev. Wolf said having Nickel around gives the team more flexibility, especially on mornings when one of the goalies isn’t skating.
“It's great. It gives the team a little more flexibility with what we can do in the mornings, or if it's a day off where one of us aren't skating,” Wolf said. “You can fill the void, especially with like guys that are injured skating early in the morning, giving them a target to shoot at.
“You get into January, February, March, where maybe you're a little more fatigued than you were in September, and, um, just kind of gives you an out; you don't feel as bad not going out there, leaving the boys with nothing. And I think the boys all love him being around. He's a fun dude and puts the work in.”
Nickel said the welcome has been just as warm from his side of the locker room.
“They're awesome,” Nickel added. “They've kind of just included me as part of the goalie union here.
We have some great chats, some great laughs, and we talk goalie stuff, life stuff. It's been great.
“It's got to be nice for them, too, I guess, to be spelled off every now and again, too. I think that was part of the design of the role. It can be a long season, especially for goalies.”
After a month of regular-season work and a couple of trips, Nickel said the nerves have settled some. Still, the Edmonton experience reinforced the one thing this job demands: be ready at all times.
He’s learned that much while living out a role he never quite expected to hold.
“I happened to be just in the right place at the right time,” he said. “When I heard about it, I was like, ‘I want to work, take on that role and do the job the best that I can.’”
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