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KHL Player Pulls a Patrik Stefan and Whiffs on Empty-Net Breakaway

Scoring an empty-net goal is apparently harder than it looks.

Shit keeps getting weird in the KHL.

With Dinamo Minsk leading 2-0 over Metallurg Magnitogorsk on Monday, the losing team chose to pull its goalie for an extra attacker. After a beautiful move to get in all alone, Dinamo forward Sergei Drozd went in on goal, looking for the easy insurance tally. It didn't quite go as planned, though, as Drozd's hands magically transformed into a pair of cinder blocks while the puck rolled off his stick and through the crease, avoiding the empty cage altogether.

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Everyone in the rink thought this was a sure goal, including No. 88 in red, defenceman Evgeny Viksna, who completely mailed it in on the back check and coasted toward his own goal after getting burned. Much to the surprise of Viksna, and every single person watching, it didn't go in the net.

The NHL has had its fair share of crazy empty-net misses, as well. In 2011, Nashville's Craig Smith defied all rules of physics as he somehow, someway sailed this sure-fire goal over the Maple Leafs' empty net and right into the crowd. He couldn't miss like that again if he tried.

The outcome of the blunder could have been way worse for Drozd and Dinamo, just ask Patrik Stefan. The No. 1 selection in the 1999 draft had a classic empty-net breakaway miss against Edmonton in 2007, resulting in an Ales Hemsky game-tying goal with under five seconds left. The perfect synopsis of Patrik Stefan's disappointing career, actually. We previously covered that gaffe in full.

There has been some awful empty-net blunders in the NHL over the years. For some reason, though, everything is wackier when it comes out of Russia.