GOTTA SEE IT: 37 James Reimer Pictures…Animated!

I can’t take my eyes off this.

Artist Elena Valdés made 37 sequential drawings of a dramatic James Reimer save…then got it animated!

On Apr. 14, the San Jose Sharks goalie stopped the Blackhawks’ Alex DeBrincat with a desperate windmill glove save at the goal line.

James Reimer is a magician. 🔮 pic.twitter.com/R8j7SctArh

— NHL (@NHL) April 15, 2022

This inspired the Germany-based artist to get to work. Then, friend Jey Marco animated Valdés’s 37 drawings and added the thrilling call from San Jose Sharks announcer Randy Hahn.

When you start a ridiculous project involving 37 pencil drawings of James Reimer bouncing like a cat and your friend says, eh, let's add sound to it!

Thank you Jey @cl0xwork , you're the best! 😘#optimusreim pic.twitter.com/cYeE0XdjBZ

— Elena 🏳️‍🌈 (@Gazapito2) May 21, 2022

“I actually had something in mind when I started,” Valdés told San Jose Hockey Now. “Slow motion repetitions of sports plays always remind me of children’s flip books, and I thought it would be a fun project to do between bigger, more serious drawings, that usually take me lots of hours. So it’s actually a little flip book.”

One of Valdés’s “more serious” drawings was this recent portrait of Tomas Hertl, which captures the magnetism of the San Jose Sharks star’s mega-watt smile.

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A post shared by Elena (@similde)

“I started watching hockey a couple of years ago. At the beginning, because I found it so exotic,” the native of Spain shared. “I started following the Sharks when I saw Kurtis Gabriel’s Pride tape. I then started chatting with other Sharks followers on Twitter and found a wonderful group of people.”

She will be attending her first Sharks games this fall when San Jose plays in Berlin and Prague.

So how can you support this new Sharks fan and gifted artist? Check out Elena’s Instagram, where you can DM or e-mail her for commissions.

“Support small artists, hire them, credit them when sharing their work and pay decently for it when commissioned,” Valdés implored. “Some people don’t realize how much work and time is put into art, and it’s really nice to see it appreciated.”