On this day in 2007, Patrik Stefan missed an empty net goal against the Edmonton Oilers

January 4, 2007 — The Edmonton Oilers scored one of the strangest goals in team history against the Dallas Stars.

With the Stars up by a score of 5-4 late in the third period, Dallas forward Patrik Stefan poked the puck away from Oilers defender Marc-Andre Bergeron and skated in for what appeared to be the easiest goal of all-time, as Edmonton had pulled goaltender Dwayne Roloson for an extra attacker.

But rather than firing the puck into the open net, Stefan tried to feather it in on his backhand. The puck bounced over his stick and Stefan fell to the ice as he tried to salvage the play. Oilers forward Jarret Stoll grabbed the loose puck and quickly turned it up ice, and Ales Hemsky managed to score to tie the game with just two seconds left on the clock.

Though the Stars wound up winning the game in the shootout, this flub is largely what Stefan is remembered for in his NHL career. A big, skilled centre from the Czech Republic, the Atlanta Thrashers made Stefan their first-ever draft choice with the first overall pick in 1999 but he never lived up to the billing. Stefan wound up getting dealt to Dallas after six seasons with Atlanta and he was out of the league after one year with the Stars.

Ray Ferraro, who played with Stefan for a few seasons in Atlanta, was doing colour commentary for the home broadcast and ripped his former teammate after the play. Following a long pause, Ferarro said “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever seen. Patrik Stefan, you should be embarrassed for what you just did. That does not belong in the National Hockey League.”