ESPN’s Steve Levy seemed to be too excited about calling the Bruins-Maple Leafs shootout Thursday night, but Jake DeBrusk was all smiles after Boston’s win.
Levy notoriously mentions on NHL broadcasts he’s never called a shootout throughout his three decades of sports broadcasting. He got his wish when Boston and Toronto were tied up at two after regulation and overtime.
DeBrusk was the first to take his chance against Ilya Samsonov. Levy accidentally called Jake DeBrusk by his father’s name Louie DeBrusk. The ESPN play-by-play broadcaster quickly was corrected as the Bruins forward fired a shot past Samsonov. Boston went on to win the shootout to continue its historic start to the season.
“It’s not the first time that’s happened,” Jake DeBrusk told reporters. “I think at junior my whole first year they called me Louie. I mean, (Zdeno Chara) used to call me Lou, so it’s not the first time. I didn’t really play like him (Thursday), honestly.”
On his shootout technique, DeBrusk added: “I give him credit. He was a five-hole guy. He’d just come in and just try to overpower the goalie They didn’t really do shootouts back then, so I don’t know if he would have gotten his name called, but I would have loved to — he thinks he has hands. I don’t know exactly what move he’d pull, but I think it’d be a backhand five-hole. he said he’d be able to do it.”
Louie DeBrusk played professional hockey from 1991-2003. He currently is a color analyst for Edmonton Oilers broadcasts on Sportsnet and “Hockey Night in Canada.”
Jake DeBrusk also scored a goal in regulation, which was what the Bruins forward needed amid an inconsistent start to the season.
He’ll hope to build on Thursday’s game when the Bruins travel to Detriot to take on the Red Wings. Coverage returns to NESN starting with pregame at 6 p.m. ET.
