A wild NHL playoff moment turned borderline dangerous when a pane of glass exploded behind the Los Angeles Kings bench, sending shards raining down on head coach D.J. Smith in a frightening midgame incident.
The bizarre scene unfolded during the second period of Game 2 between the Kings and Colorado Avalanche in Denver, moments after Avalanche goalie Scott Wedgewood produced a huge penalty-shot save to keep the game scoreless.
You can watch the footage in the viewer above.
As the home crowd erupted, fans surged forward and began pounding on the glass behind the visitors’ bench. Within seconds, the barrier started to sway — before cracking and completely giving way.
Shards of tempered glass cascaded onto Smith and the Kings bench, forcing players and staff to scramble for safety.
Smith, caught directly underneath the collapsing pane, instinctively covered his head as fragments struck his suit and shoulders.
“Whoever the guy was just kept pushing and pushing and pushing,” Smith said post-game. “I looked back because it hit me a bunch of times, then it broke.”
The Kings bench was immediately evacuated as glass littered the area, with players stepping onto the ice to avoid injury. Smith and his coaching staff retreated to the locker room to clean up, with reports indicating minor cuts to both Smith and assistant coach Newell Brown.
The chaotic scenes brought the game to a halt for more than 15 minutes as arena staff armed with shovels and buckets worked to clear the debris. A replacement pane was eventually installed, drawing cheers from the crowd before play resumed.
Players from both teams milled around during the delay, while officials inspected the area to ensure it was safe to continue.
Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog admitted he had never seen anything like it.
“It was loud when ‘Wedgy’ made that save and fans got a little too excited,” he said. “You’ve seen glass break from hits or shots — never like that.”
Despite the disruption, the game continued without further incident, with Colorado eventually claiming a 2-1 overtime win to take a 2-0 series lead.
While glass breakages are not unheard of in hockey, they are almost always caused by on-ice collisions or powerful shots rather than crowd pressure.
In this case, the fan involved was reportedly moved from the area, though officials determined no further action was required.
Avalanche coach Jared Bednar summed up the surreal moment: “That’s a different one. But stuff happens — fans get excited. It felt like playoff hockey.”
For Smith, it was a night he won’t forget in a hurry, even if he had to pick glass out of his suit to finish it.
