MUSKEGON, MI- Over the course of 57 years, a lot can happen. But until this

past Friday, the historic building downtown hadn't seen everything.

Now, with Keith Petruzzelli scoring what is believed to be the first-ever goal scored by a goaltender in the building, LC Walker Arena probably HAS seen it all.

It's seen Cups won, banners hung, gloves dropped, even chicken-wire fencing. It has hosted games played in the IHL, UHL, CoHL, and now USHL. The Zephyrs, Mohawks, Fury and Lumberjacks have shared decades of history within Louis Carlisle "LC" Walker Arena's hallowed walls.

2,099 regular-season hockey games and dozens more playoff games were played before Friday night's tilt between the Lumberjacks and the Madison Capitols. The 2,100th was something special.

With the Lumberjacks up 3-1, and time on the clock running out, Madison pulled their goaltender in favor of an extra attacker. With less than a minute to play, Lumberjack forward Keeghan Howdeshell had two chances at the empty net, but the Capitols were able to regain control.

With time running down, Madison's Austin Redders fired a shot from the blue line that Petruzzelli snagged with his glove. Seeing an opening, Petruzzelli quickly slammed the puck to the ice, and let fly a high-arching shot that dropped behind the Madison defense. It slid across the goal line before the sprinting Capitol, Vincent de Mey, could reach it, and for the first time in his career at any level, Petruzzelli had scored a goal.

It's the first time since 2010 that a goaltender has scored in a USHL game, a span of approximately 3,500 games.

"I told equipment manager Patrick Dooley during a timeout, with two minutes to play, up by two, now is the time," said Petruzzelli. "I liked it as soon as I shot it. I saw they weren't forechecking that hard, and I had a little space. I put it down, and when I looked up and saw where it landed... I can't put it into words."

Petruzzelli, a 6-foot-6 native of Wilbraham, MA, is ranked as the number one North American goaltending prospect by NHL Central Scouting, and most prognosticators have him being drafted in the second round. Petruzzelli boasts a 16-9-0 record, a 2.61 GAA, and a .908 save percentage in his rookie USHL season.

Obviously, Petruzzelli will be a high draft pick because of his excellent ability to stop the puck, but of note as well is his ability to play it. The goal wasn't his first point of the season- he already had notched two assists, including one on a game-winning overtime goal.

Petruzzelli, at age 18, has done what so few goaltenders have been able to do in their lifetime: not just score a goal, but do it with a shot.

Throughout NHL history, goaltenders have scored many goals. Before 1967, they were allowed to join the rush, and rumor has it that goalies would screen the opposing goalie and score from time to time.

However, goalies were banned from crossing the red line in 1967, and since then only 11 netminders have been credited with a goal. Ron Hextall scored two, and Martin Brodeur scored three, meaning that in total, 14 goals have been scored by goaltenders. Of those 14 goals, only seven were scored by a goaltender that shot the puck on net. The other seven goals were instances of the opposing team scoring into their own net, with the goaltender being the last member of the scoring team to touch the puck.

Saying it's a once-in-a-lifetime feat is selling it short. This type of thing is accomplished by next to no one.

Assistant coach Todd Robinson played a 20-year professional career, but had never seen one as a player or coach. General Manager John Vanbiesbrouck played a 21-year NHL career, but never scored a goal.

"I was totally surprised he tried it," said Vanbiesbrouck. "It's special for Keith and the players. I like when players have a chance to celebrate something special."

If history repeats itself, and it takes another 2,100 regular-season games for a goaltender to score at Walker Arena, 2086-2087 is the season you'll want to buy season tickets for.

For the more immediate future, buy 2017-18 season seats by March 31st and get FREE playoff tickets for every 2017 Clark Cup Playoff game at LC Walker Arena. The Jacks are currently in third place, and their magic number stands at 19 points with 13 games to play.

Call today at 231-724-5225!