Nearly 36 years after Mike Liut played in the first NHL All-Star game in Los Angeles, he remembers being so tired after a cross-country flight and late dinner the night before that he asked to start in goal for fear he’d fall asleep if he had to wait. Liut, who represented the St. Louis Blues, also recalls one of his 25 saves with particular clarity.
“Charlie Simmer had the puck and I was down and out and I just sort of flopped over there and stacked the pads and I thought he was for sure going to score,” Liut said.