Fukufuji debuts!

And so the day has arrived! Saturday, Janury 13th, 2007 will forever be remembered (excuse my pompousness) in the NHL annals as the day Yutaka Fukufuji, the first Japanese hockey player, took to the ice in a official NHL game.

His stats: one period of play [third], 19:17 minutes TOI, 5 shots faced, 1 GA, a ton of "you did great" cards, not only from Asian fans of his. In fact, here's a handful of quotes for you to enjoy:

"I was so nervous," the 24-year-old Fukufuji said. "This was my first time playing in the NHL. I was so nervous but I was excited, too."

"When the Japanese kid went into the net and he made that great save [against Weight]," Kings coach Marc Crawford said, "I thought we are really going to have something happen."