Where Were You When: The Night the Goalies Threw Down in

Battle of Alberta—A Rivalry That Just Kept Heating Up

If you followed the games between the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames during the 2019-20 season, you could tell something big was coming. Every game felt a little edgier than the last. Hits got heavier, chirps got louder, and you could practically feel the tension buzzing through your TV. Still, nobody thought the breaking point would involve the two guys usually responsible for calming things down.

One Scramble, One Look, and Suddenly It Was On

The Night the Goalies Threw Down: February 1, 2020 in Calgary. Late in the second period, a messy scramble in front of the Flames’ net turned into a full-on traffic jam of bodies and sticks. And right in the middle of that chaos, Mike Smith decided he’d had enough. He coasted out to center ice like a guy who already knew how this was going to end.

Cam Talbot looked up, saw him waiting, and the rest happened faster than most fans could process: gloves off, gear tossed, two goalies squaring up against each other. If you were watching live, there’s a good chance you started laughing, yelling, or just staring with your mouth open. Goalie fights are basically unicorn sightings in today’s NHL—you don’t expect them, but when one appears, you don’t forget it.

A Game That Turned Into a “Battle of Alberta” Story Fans Still Tell

The Oilers ended up rolling to an 8–3 win, but honestly, the final score felt like background noise after that moment. Sure, goalie fights are rare. But this one hit a different note. Two veteran goalies, both familiar to fans on both sides of the ice, meeting at center ice in the middle of an already heated stretch—that’s the kind of thing people bring up years later without needing a highlight clip to jog their memory.

So… Where Were You That Night?

Were you watching live? Sitting with friends when the room suddenly went silent? Maybe you caught the replay and had to double-check that it wasn’t some throwback clip. However you saw it, you were part of one of those moments that remind hockey fans why rivalries matter—and why the unexpected can become the most memorable part of all.