“Willy [Lutz] is a fantastic guy, he comes and
fills in for us and takes shots from the best
professional hockey players on the planet.”
—Mark Nemish
“That was just a fantastic experience, I
really got to spend some quality time with
him, I really clicked with T.J. because he’s a
golfer,” Lutz said. “He’s played at Raspber-
ry Falls, he’s been as low as a 1.2 handicap
and has a real passion for the game of golf.
It was like talking to one of my buddies
from high school.”
Raspberry Falls member Phil Olivero
is also an emergency backup for the Cap-
itals, meaning two of the four individuals
hail from one golf club. The 52-year-old
is a vice president for a telecommunica-
tions company called Crown Castle, and
got connected with the Caps through
Nemish as well. Olivero has been assisting
with players’ recoveries since 2012 and
served as an EBUG for the first time this
past season.
“It’s really cool to have them fill in when
guys are injured,” Nemish said, “and they
take killer shots from these guys. Our guys
are firing hard at them and Willy [Lutz]
and Phil [Olivero], they like that, they want
to be tested and challenged. To have them
vsga.org
as EBUGs is like icing on the cake for them,
they get to be part of the organization.”
By being available to the team in the
stands this past season and assisting key
injured players with rehabilitation over
the past several years, Lutz and Olivero
can safely claim they helped contribute to
a Stanley Cup.
“It was absolutely fantastic,” Olivero
said. “It was a thrill to be an emergency
backup goalie at all, but then to have this
team that you’re affiliated with and a part
of in a small, small way win a Stanley Cup,
it’s just unbelievable.”
CUP RUNNETH OVER
Since the legendary Cup was first awarded
in 1893 by Lord Stanley in Canada, tra-
ditions have continued to develop each
year, such as the privilege of all winning
players and coaches to get a day with the
beautiful hardware. Nemish was gifted
the day of July 15, and paid the ultimate
tribute to his two friends in Leesburg.
It was on that day that Lord Stanley’s
Cup blessed Rasp-
berry Falls with its
Lutz drinks from the
presence for a private
Stanley Cup during a
viewing party.
private ceremony at
“It was a no brainer
Raspberry Falls on
for
me to take the Cup
July 15.
to Willy [Lutz] and
Raspberry, because
of him and how much
of a hockey fan he is,
and the amount of
hockey fans there are
at that club, and as
much as I love golf,”
Nemish said.
Alongside their
closest friends and
family, Lutz and Oli-
vero sipped adult
beverages from the
Cup just like mem-
bers of the team, a
true fantasy for any
hockey fan. However,
Lutz’s custom-designed helmet features the PGA
logo and the names of his wife and two daughters.
according to the rules associated with the
historic trophy, only Nemish was permit-
ted to actually touch it, meaning he was
responsible for all pouring.
“It was pretty unbelievable, it was a
very special opportunity,” Lutz said. “One
of the neatest parts of the Stanley Cup is
that you get to share it with the fans, and
I think the players love it. So on a very
small scale, I got to experience that too.”
Although Lutz grew up in New England
as a fan of the Boston Bruins and Hartford
Whalers (now Carolina Hurricanes), his
experiences over the past few years have
changed his allegiances. Now the lifelong
goaltender rocks the red alongside his wife,
Paige, and two daughters, Hannah and Katie,
who are all die-hard Caps fans. In addition to
his required games in which he receives two
tickets, Lutz and his family went to games
regularly last season, including at least one
home game in each playoff series.
“I’m a full-blown Caps fan now, they are
the only team I’ll cheer for,” Lutz said.
The organization has already invited
Lutz and Olivero back for another season,
and they plan to help the squad go back-
to-back. However, Lutz knows a long-term
future as an EBUG is not likely with the
amount of commitment that is required,
both mentally and physically.
“I’ll do at least one more year,” Lutz
said. “I’ll say that working 12 games, it
really does become a job, driving to the city
through traffic and packing my goalie bag
and being prepared, there’s a lot of mental
preparation that goes into being a goalten-
der. Even in beer league hockey I’m always
the first one there and the last one to leave,
that’s just part of the position.”
The perks, as Lutz and Oliviero will tell
you, make the grind well worth it.
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