| The Detroit News
East Lansing’s Brad Fast is reminded about his place in National Hockey League history every so often.
The former Michigan State Spartans defenseman and third-round draft choice of the Carolina Hurricanes is one of three players among more than 7,600 players in the 103-year history of the league to score a goal in his only NHL game.
Featured in Ken Reid’s recently published book, “One Night Only: Conversations with the NHL’s One-Game Wonders,” Fast’s goal was also the last tying goal before the league moved to shootouts in 2004.
“I wrote the book from the standpoint of, ‘Wow, you played one game’ as opposed to, ‘You only played one game?’ ” said Reid, the co-anchor of Sportsnet’s weeknight TV show in Canada.
“Most of these guys could’ve been bitter and wondered why they didn’t get more than one shot but time heals all wounds. One game is an incredible feat and I think most guys finally realize that.”
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Fast’s “incredible feat” came with 2:26 left in the third period of the Hurricanes’ 6-6 tie on the final day of the regular season against the Florida Panthers in Miami on April 4, 2004.
Called up a day earlier from the Lowell Lock Monsters in the American Hockey League, Fast took a pass from former Spartan Rod Brind’ Amour and scored on future Hall of Fame goaltender Roberto Luongo.
“As time passes, the story gets pushed back further every year,” said Fast, who is now 40 years old and a sales consultant for medical company DePuy Synthes while coaching his three children between the ages of 8 to 14 and teaching the game at Elevation Hockey and the Lansing Hockey Club.
“I’m really grateful to have played in the best league in the world for one day. Effort wise, yes . . . I was good enough. Performance wise, no. If I did better, this wouldn’t be a story other than scoring the last goal in the last tie game.”
The other two players to score a goal in their only NHL game were Red Wings defenseman Dean Morton, who is now an NHL referee, and Toronto Maple Leafs center Roland Huard, who died in a hunting accident in 1979 near Maniwaki, Quebec.
Morton’s goal in Calgary on Oct. 5, 1989, was scored on future Red Wings goalie Mike Vernon at 12:52 of the first period in Detroit’s 10-7 loss and was assisted by captain Steve Yzerman, who had 1,755 points in 1,514 regular season games.
Huard scored his unassisted goal on Dec. 13, 1930, against Hall of Fame goalie Tiny Thompson of the Boston Bruins at 9:10 of the first period in Toronto’s 7-3 loss at home.
Fast’s goal capped a quick rise to the NHL after four seasons with the Spartans playing alongside Red Wings director of player development Shawn Horcoff and three-time Stanley Cup champion Duncan Keith of the Chicago Blackhawks.
After averaging more than a point-per-game with the Prince George Spruce Kings in the British Columbia Hockey League, the native of Fort St. John, British Columbia, won back-to-back Central Collegiate Hockey League titles in his first two seasons at Michigan State and finished with 30 goals, 84 assists, 114 points and a plus-54 rating in 164 career games.
In his senior season in 2003, he was named captain, the best defensive defenseman in the CCHA and was second in team scoring behind defensive partner John-Michael Liles, who broke the NHL record for longest scoring streak by a defenseman to open the season with points in nine straight games with the Colorado Avalanche in 2010.
“I was a puck-moving defensemen who liked to join the play and, at the same time, I took pride in my work in the defensive end of the game,” Fast said. “That describes my aspirations of what I would like to be seen as but coaches didn’t always agree with my version of the story.”
After scoring a goal in his first NHL game, Fast said Hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette called during the following summer and said he was “pencilled in” and be “ready to go.”
“He was honest and said, ‘It’s your position to lose,’ ” Fast said. “I got ready as best I could but there were some unfortunate circumstances in my situation that nobody could control. We didn’t play hockey for the whole next year.”
The NHL cancelled the entire 2004-05 season because of a labor dispute. Fast played that season in the AHL with goalie Cam Ward, who went on to lead Carolina to the 2006 Stanley Cup.
“I tried my best to get my game back up to that level again,” Fast said. “Unfortunately, the timing of it never worked out. I was close but close doesn’t quite count. The level of consistency needed is amazing. You battle every single day to earn your spot and ice time.”
After another year in the minors with the Lock Monsters and the ECHL Florida Everblades, Fast signed with the Los Angeles Kings and played for the AHL Manchester Monarchs before finishing his career overseas in Switzerland, Austria, Germany and South Korea from 2006-11.
“There were definitely some tough times,” said Fast, who also spent four years as director of hockey operations at Michigan State from 2015-19. “It’s hard to keep perspective while it’s happening and you’re grinding it out to get back to the NHL. That’s why you see so many people seek ex-athletes out in different avenues at work because of their habits.”
As for Fast’s historic puck, he said the kids “used to play with the puck in the basement” until he realized the importance of the final goal in the final tie game.
“Now the puck is up on a shelf,” Fast said. “I know it’s only one goal in one game but it’s one more goal than most people have. It’s a profession like no other. The turnover is quick and you have to be ready to make the most of your opportunity and be ready to sustain that. Looking back, I’m just glad that I got to play in the best league in the world and pretty much fulfill every hockey player’s dream growing up.”
mfalkner@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @falkner
Brad Fast glance
Age: 40 (Feb. 21, 1980)
Birthplace: Fort St. John, British Columbia
Position: Defenseman
Height/weight: 6’0′, 195 pounds
College hockey: Recorded 114 points in 165 games with the Michigan State Spartans from 1999-2003. Two-time CCHA champion and All-CCHA first team and best defensive defenseman in senior season.
NHL career: Drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes in the third round in 1999. One of only three players to score a goal in his only NHL game.
Quote: “I’ll always have that little fun fact, a great trivia question,” said Brad Fast, who scored the last tying goal before the NHL moved to shootouts in 2004.