Viel Goes Wrong Way During NHL Debut Solo Warm-Up Lap

Well, that’s literally the wrong way to start your NHL career.

Hey Jeffrey, we warmup on the other side of the ice…

…but tbf it was your first NHL game solo lap! 🙃@Bloom_Energy | #SJSharks pic.twitter.com/LgVWZF4Eb6

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) March 30, 2021

Jeffrey Viel took the ice before the rest of the San Jose Sharks players during warm-ups – it was the traditional NHL debut solo lap – and he went the wrong way.

“Yeah, we got it on video,” Erik Karlsson smiled. “I’m sure we’re all gonna watch it tomorrow and have a good laugh about it.”

Viel explained: “That’s my old Barracuda warm-up. We usually go the other way from where we came on. I thought that was pretty funny. The guys gave me a hard time about it.

“I didn’t really look at [the Wild players], to be honest. I just tried to go the right way as soon as possible as soon as I realized that I was going the wrong way.”

Everything else, more or less, went right for Viel and the San Jose Sharks tonight. Viel won his first NHL fight against Luke Johnson and the Sharks pulled out a 4-3 shootout victory over the Wild.

Everybody on ice and benches give stick taps to Marleau as they announce that he's passed Mark Messier. Then to celebrate, off the draw, Viel pounds on Luke Johnson

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) March 30, 2021

Well, that didn't take long. 👀

Luke Johnson and Jeff Viel drop the mitts. pic.twitter.com/unLtj50xdo

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) March 30, 2021

It certainly won’t be a day that Viel ever forgets.

“This morning, I actually just found out, I saw it on the screen,” the newest San Jose Sharks player said, of when he found out that he was making his NHL debut. “I talked to all my family and friends and got a lot of messages. I haven’t looked at all of them. But yeah, they were really happy for me.”

Hopefully next time, he remembers which way to go during warm-ups!