Pulling the Goalie
The coach's most second-guessed call. When a trailing team pulls its goalie for a 6th attacker, how often does it actually work - and have teams learned to pull earlier? 2009-10-2025-26.
Pull down a goal and you tie it 17.5% of the time and go on to win 6.7% - far better than the 0% you get by leaving the goalie in.
Down two it almost never comes back: just 1.1% force overtime across 5,251 attempts. The empty net mostly just pads the other team's total.
Teams have learned to pull earlier
Average time left when teams pull down one, by season - the analytics era pushed the call earlier.
| Season | Avg pull (time left) | Forced OT | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-10 | 1:43 | 15.7% | |
| 2010-11 | 1:22 | 14.2% | |
| 2011-12 | 1:40 | 13.1% | |
| 2012-13 | 1:28 | 13.6% | |
| 2013-14 | 1:18 | 15.6% | |
| 2014-15 | 1:55 | 15.3% | |
| 2015-16 | 1:35 | 14.0% | |
| 2016-17 | 1:50 | 16.4% | |
| 2017-18 | 2:01 | 20.6% | |
| 2018-19 | 1:48 | 19.3% | |
| 2019-20 | 2:06 | 20.1% | |
| 2020-21 | 1:45 | 18.6% | |
| 2021-22 | 1:54 | 19.6% | |
| 2022-23 | 1:52 | 20.1% | |
| 2023-24 | 1:50 | 18.1% | |
| 2024-25 | 1:56 | 18.6% | |
| 2025-26 | 2:13 | 23.4% |
By team
Down-1 comeback pulls, all-time (min 40).
| # | Team | Pulls at | Forced OT | Pulls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  VGK | 1:53 | 23.3% | 129 |
| 2 |  PHI | 1:48 | 22.2% | 207 |
| 3 |  WSH | 1:59 | 22.2% | 212 |
| 4 |  MIN | 2:06 | 21.3% | 230 |
| 5 |  ANA | 1:44 | 20.5% | 224 |
| 6 |  VAN | 2:12 | 20.5% | 234 |
| 7 |  TOR | 1:41 | 20.4% | 220 |
| 8 |  PIT | 1:41 | 19.8% | 197 |
| 9 |  COL | 1:53 | 19.7% | 229 |
| 10 |  FLA | 1:54 | 19.6% | 224 |
| 11 |  TBL | 1:57 | 19.5% | 210 |
| 12 |  MTL | 1:44 | 19.2% | 224 |
| 13 |  CAR | 2:13 | 18.5% | 222 |
| 14 |  CHI | 1:51 | 18.3% | 241 |
| 15 |  NYI | 1:37 | 17.4% | 242 |
| 16 |  PHX | 1:28 | 17.2% | 58 |
| 17 |  SJS | 1:45 | 17.2% | 244 |
| 18 |  NJD | 1:55 | 16.9% | 225 |
| 19 |  CBJ | 1:48 | 16.7% | 221 |
| 20 |  WPG | 1:25 | 16.3% | 190 |
| 21 |  DAL | 1:59 | 16.2% | 210 |
| 22 |  BUF | 1:50 | 16.0% | 232 |
| 23 |  DET | 1:33 | 15.7% | 223 |
| 24 |  LAK | 1:34 | 15.6% | 243 |
| 25 |  BOS | 1:51 | 15.6% | 224 |
| 26 |  CGY | 1:43 | 15.2% | 243 |
| 27 |  NSH | 1:59 | 15.2% | 204 |
| 28 |  EDM | 1:42 | 14.7% | 238 |
| 29 |  OTT | 1:28 | 13.4% | 217 |
| 30 |  NYR | 1:31 | 13.2% | 235 |
| 31 |  STL | 1:35 | 13.2% | 190 |
| 32 |  ARI | 1:42 | 13.0% | 138 |
| 33 |  SEA | 1:36 | 12.7% | 71 |
How to read this. A comeback pull is the last stretch a trailing team plays with its goalie pulled for a 6th attacker in the 3rd period or OT (brief delayed-penalty pulls are excluded). Forced OTmeans the team tied the game in regulation - the pull's actual goal; EAGF/ENGA are goals scored / allowed into the empty net while pulled. Regular season, 2009-10 on (where the on-ice strength state is reliable).