Top 8 Worst Feelings in the NHL

These terrible feelings spawn from the moments when a player drops in pain, commits an ugly mistake or makes himself look like a fool.

There is no doubt that hockey is a game that can be damaging both physically and emotionally. The NHL is the pinnacle of the sport in America and is also a breeding ground for the worst feelings you can fathom on the ice.

Feel free to comment if you think I've missed one or have something to add!

8. Allowing a Goal

There's nothing worse for a goalie than to turn around and see the puck sitting in the back of the net, especially if the puck should have been stopped without too much trouble.

Having a shot slip between your legs hurts, but misplaying a puck behind the net and allowing your opponents an easy goal is unforgivable.

Best-Case Scenario

Your defenders can't clear the rebound and the attacking team puts the puck away.

Worst-Case Scenario

You are caught sleeping as the opposing team forces the puck through you into the cage for the game-winning score.

7. Missing on a Breakaway, Penalty Shot or in a Shootout

To put it bluntly, a shooter is never happy when he can't score with only the goalie to beat. Whether it be on a breakaway, a penalty opportunity or in a shootout, the skater isn't satisfied unless he finds the back of the net.

If he misses the goal altogether...

Best-Case Scenario

The goalie makes an amazing save on a shot that would've put your team up by four goals.

Worst-Case Scenario

The clock's winding down in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals and your team needs a goal to tie it.

6. Getting Destroyed in a Fight

While this clip can't necessarily be considered a fight, I'm sure it still didn't feel too good.

The NHL has its fair share of one-sided fights in which a particular player gets pounded and falls to the ice without striking a single blow.

It feels even worse if that player was the first one to drop his gloves and brought the shame upon himself.

Best-Case Scenario

Your team ends up scoring the game-winner on the ensuing power play after your fight.

Worst-Case Scenario

You leave the arena on a stretcher.

5. Taking a Stick to the Face

It's bad enough getting slashed in the face when you're on the ice, but when you take a stick to the face while resting on the bench, the positives are much harder to see.

Often times, the penalty doesn't make up for the cut you receive from an opponent's stick, when he purposefully or even accidentally smacks you in the kisser.

Best-Case Scenario

The penalty is just what your team needed to get the game-winning goal.

Worst-Case Scenario

The refs missed the high stick as you're on the ice clutching your head.

4. Missing an Empty Net

An empty net should always equal an easy goal and anything less can cause extreme embarrassment.

Depending on the distance a miss could be excusable, but if the shot's taken in the offensive zone, then the blame falls solely on the shooter.

Best-Case Scenario

It's really not a big deal if you miss an empty-net goal because the opposing goalie would be between the pipes if your team wasn't already winning.

Worst-Case Scenario

You're a goal short of your first career hat trick.

3. Taking a Puck to the Face

The face is the second-worst place to get hit on the male body.

Taking a six-ounce piece of hard rubber to the facial area is painful in the least. When the thing's flying at speeds near 100 mph, you'll be lucky not to lose a lot of blood or a few teeth.

Best-Case Scenario

The puck grazes your visor and you bounce right back up.

Worst-Case Scenario

You are assisted into the locker room by the trainer while the referees are busy picking up your pearly whites off the ice.

2. Whiffing on a Check or a Shot

It is downright hilarious when a player thinks he has a lights-out check lined up and then whiffs, flying into the boards instead.

If you flip into the opponent's bench, you might as well immediately travel to the induction ceremony for the Hall of Shame.

Whiffing on a shot is almost as funny, especially on a one-timer.

Best-Case Scenario

You miss the puck on a shot attempt, but the goalie is faked out and you put it past him on the second try.

Worst-Case Scenario

You miss a check and go unconscious after crashing head first into the boards.

1. An Own Goal

In almost every sport, the goal is to score and keep the other team from scoring. If you score on yourself, then you've become the definition of a failure.

If you put the puck in your own net, not only will you be mad at yourself, but the rest of the team—and especially the goalie—will not talk to you for days.

Some own goals are inadvertent deflections, but others make you scratch your head and say, "How in the world did he manage that?"

Best-Case Scenario

It was an ugly shot that bounced off your skate and the goal doesn't affect the outcome of the game.

Worst-Case Scenario

You are confused as to why the defense doesn't stop you from netting the game-winner behind your own goalie.