The most bizarre sports moments of 2022
Every year, the sports world at large gives fans plenty of everything—upsets, dramatic finishes, great games, great individual performances, and so on. The same thing goes for bizarre, strange stories and moments. There was no shortage of both in 2022, so from Antonio Brown’s exit from the Bucs to a baseball fight about…fantasy football. Let’s take a look at the most bizarre sports moments in 2022.
Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues, was so cold that the NHL’s operations crew was forced to warm up the ice. In case you’re curious, the optimum temperature for ice is evidently 22 to 24 degrees; any colder and said ice is prone to chipping more easily, creating an uneven playing surface. The warming was necessary because the temperature at puck drop was -8 degrees, with wind chills sitting around -20 degrees. Not that it wasn’t already obvious, but the game, won 6-4 by the Blues, was the coldest in NHL history.
Vancouver Canucks’ bench. While at the game, she noticed what she believed to be a concerning mole on the back of Canucks assistant equipment manager Brian “Red” Hamilton’s neck. Popovici managed to surreptitiously alert Hamilton to the issue. Subsequent tests showed that the mole was, in fact, a malignant melanoma, which team doctors were able to remove. Hamilton sent out a New Year’s Day message through the team’s Twitter feed in an effort to find the Good Samaritan fan and was able to meet with Popovici, who received a $10,000 medical school scholarship from both teams.
Bruce Arians’ requests to enter the game, so Arians told him to “get out.” Brown responded by taking off his jersey, pads, and undershirt, tossing his shirt and gloves into the stands, and running across the field and into the tunnel. Arians said after the game that Brown was “no longer a Buc.”
Jalen Hurts had to dodge a game Washington defense all afternoon as he guided the Eagles to a crucial 20-16 win, but his biggest brush with danger came after the win was secured. As Hurts trotted off FedEx Field, several Eagles fans leaned over the railing near the tunnel when it suddenly gave way, sending a pile of bodies falling to the ground, nearly taking out Hurts in the process. He wasn’t injured, however, and none of the fans who fell were seriously hurt, either. Imagine that; Daniel Snyder’s stadium is a dilapidated, dangerous mess. Knock me over with a feather.
Rafael Nadal. He got bounced from the 2022 Australian Open, however, by the Australian government, which deported him because he “tried to breach entry rules” at the border. The whole thing boiled down to Djokovic not being vaccinated and having no intention of getting vaccinated. With the rules that kept him out last time having been lifted, Djokovic is back in Australia already and will participate in the 2023 iteration of the tournament.
Tom Brady retires…then doesn’t
Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK
What seemed like it would never actually happen finally did when Tom Brady announced his retirement not long after the Buccaneers were bounced from the 2021 NFC playoffs by the eventual champion Rams. Hahaha, just kidding. Reports surfaced almost the next day suggesting that the retirement might not last, and on March 13th, Brady formally announced his return to the sport that he never really left. Brady has already said that the next time he retires, it will be for good. Call me crazy, but I don’t actually believe that, either.
Take it away, Buck.
this picture all you need to see to feel like all is right with the world?
Joc Pederson over…fantasy football?
Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports
Baseball warmups are usually pretty boring. The season is a grind, the players do more or less the same thing every day, and really, everything that happens before the game is just part of a routine. That routine got pretty spicy when Pham, then with the Reds, slapped San Francisco’s Pederson during warmups. Naturally, Pham was angry because he felt Pederson was cheating in their $10,000 buy-in fantasy football league. When asked about the incident, he said, “I’ve got no regrets. None at all. Joc deserved to be slapped.” Okay then!
watch. I have nothing to add. Everyone in Denver should have known things were going to go sideways from the moment this video got out.
Colorado Avalanche ripped through opponents to win the Stanley Cup in impressive fashion, and as captain of the team, Gabriel Landeskog likely couldn’t wait to have his day with the Cup. He got a late start, however, because the Cup handlers got lost on the way to his house – they had the wrong address – and so a gentleman named Kit Karbler and his husband ended up with the Cup at their house. Landeskog did live in their neighborhood, so they sent the Cup to its proper destination, but not before getting to touch it and snap a few pictures.
Kyler Murray and the Cardinals agreed on a shiny new contract extension this past offseason. It was a $230.5 million extension, with $160 million guaranteed. What really got people talking was the presence of an “independent study” clause in the deal, one that required Murray to complete at least four hours per week of self-study, with potential chunks of the guaranteed money at risk. Fans and commentators rightly pointed out that it seemed a little ridiculous to throw a huge guarantee at someone without trusting their work habits, and the whole story blew up. Naturally, once that happened, the Cardinals removed the clause.
Keith Yandle’s record, and as of this writing, he has played in 1,018 consecutive games.
San Francisco Giants had signed free-agent slugger Aaron Judge. Not only had no such thing happened, but Heyman’s tweet announcing the nonexistent move referred to the all-time American League single-season home run champion as “Arson Judge.” Heyman deleted the tweet, which is a bummer, but screenshots are forever.
Jaromir Jagr comes back to pro hockey at 50
Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Jagr played in the NHL into his mid-40s, but after a few years away, he decided to get back onto the ice – for the Kladno Knights, the team he owns in the Czech Extraliga. An illness laid many Knights players low, so Jagr decided to jump into the lineup. Naturally, he managed two assists in 15:10 of ice time, but his team did lose 7-3.
Bill Belichick’s teams are known for rarely beating themselves and almost always making the heads-up play, regardless of the situation. That makes Rhamondre Stevenson and Jakobi Meyers’ tandem screw-up at the end of a Week 15 battle with the Raiders that much sweeter. With the game tied at 24, the Patriots ran what looked like it would be the final play of regulation. Stevenson ripped off a surprisingly good run, then inexplicably lateraled to Meyers, who even more inexplicably did this. I could watch it 1,000 times.
Hudson Primus – were left stranded by canceled flights while trying to make their way to El Paso for the Sun Bowl. The three players were stuck in Dallas, 635 miles from their destination, until Joe Golding, UTEP’s head basketball coach and also a stuck traveler, rented an SUV, loaded up his wife and kids with the players, and drove them across the state to get them to the team hotel on time.
Chris Mueller is the co-host of The PM Team with Poni & Mueller on Pittsburgh’s 93.7 The Fan, Monday-Friday from 2-6 p.m. ET. Owner of a dog with a Napoleon complex, consumer of beer, cooker of chili, closet Cleveland Browns fan. On Twitter at @ChrisMuellerPGH – please laugh.
