Tom Brady and Tiger Woods attended a Winnipeg Jets practice recently.
Full disclosure: Neither GOAT was actually in attendance. But two actual goats named in the sports legends’ honor by their owner, Jets star Mark Scheifele, made their presence known.
“They were buzzing around on the ice, so that was pretty cool. I don’t think the trainers were too happy. They kind of pooped everywhere,” Scheifele said on Monday.
The Jets center has been a goat owner for a month and a half. He has farmland locally in Winnipeg — with its own Instagram — and Tom and Tiger have roamed the open spaces and chowed down on grass since late April.
Why is an NHL player raising goats?
“They’re just pets. They’re fun,” he said. “They’re best friends with [my dog] Oliver. They’re fun little guys. They’re energetic. They’re fun to hang out with.”
Scheifele said he didn’t know much about goat ownership before Tom and Tiger joined his life. When he’s not on the road, he said his daily routines have been adjusted to goat life.
“You wake up in the morning, you bring them their alfalfa pellets. You open the door and they instantly ‘bah’ at you,” he said. “It’s like they’re saying, ‘Daaaad!'”
The Jets open their run in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs on Wednesday, beginning a North Division series against the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers are favored, but Winnipeg may prove to be a difficult, nay, stubborn opponent.