“Is that Shaq and are those skates?”
The answer to both those questions from Liam McHugh is an emphatic yes.
NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, better known as Shaq Hyman in the hockey world, made a triumphant return appearance on NHL on TNT for their Stanley Cup Playoffs broadcast on Tuesday.
O’Neal “skated” his way onto set … kind of. He actually rolled, as the seven-foot-one, 325-pound O’Neal had skateboards strapped to his feet. The 52-year-old also didn’t get very far.
Thankfully O’Neal was wearing a helmet and using a stick to keep his balance.
O’Neal returned to the TNT set for the second time this post-season, after stepping in to help with a net-front demo a week prior. Working alongside McHugh and former players Henrik Lundqvist, Anson Carter and Paul Bissonnette, O’Neal demonstrated how effectively a former NBAer can screen a goalie.
Lundqvist, the former New York Rangers goalie, responded to the Shaq-sized dilemma how anyone would’ve expected.
“I’m gonna need a ladder,” Lundqvist said.
“Shaq Hyman” refers to Oilers winger Zach Hyman, a 54-goal scorer this season for Edmonton, who drew a comparison to his namesake by his former coach in Toronto recently.
“When I was with the Marlies, we called him Shaq Hyman, because he got to the paint better than anybody,” current Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said recently.
The only thing missing from the first appearance was seeing how O’Neal would do on some real ice. His second appearance didn’t quite give fans that, but it was the next best thing and didn’t disappoint for a second.
