It was a birthday Terry Ryan will never forget.

The Mount Pearl native celebrated his 47th birthday by lacing up his skates for the Newfoundland Growlers Sunday afternoon at Mary Browns Centre.

As a flu spreads through the Growlers locker room, the team called on the former first round NHL draft pick to step in.

Ryan got the call while out having a few drinks to celebrate his birthday and thought it was a prank.

Though he regularly skates and plays ball hockey, Ryan couldn’t escape the nervous jitters before playing against guys who are half his age.

“I was joking with the guys, ‘you know you get sent down for two weeks, but two decades is a little much.”

His voice cracking with emotion, Ryan says the sentiment of Sunday’s game is comparable to his first-ever NHL game because it was the first time his teenage daughter got to see him play professionally.

“I knew that she and her friends were there and I didn’t want to embarrass them,” he said. “I just didn’t see this coming, to look up and see her there. To hear the ovation—I never thought I’d hear that ovation again in my life.”

Ryan didn’t manage to put up any points, but also didn’t go away quietly as he got into a scrap in the third period. He was greeted by a raucous ovation from the Growlers’ faithful and caught the attention of national media.

Inevitable.#ChapterV pic.twitter.com/3IqMF6gv1H

— Newfoundland Growlers (@NLGrowlers) January 14, 2024

The Growlers lost 6-2 and were swept in their weekend series with the Adirondack Thunder.