His job responsibilities occasionally included maintenance and operating an ice resurfacer, which gave him the "Zamboni driver" moniker used in news articles about his NHL debut.

[1] On February 22, 2020, both of the Carolina Hurricanes' goaltenders, James Reimer and Petr Mrázek, were injured during a game against the Maple Leafs.

Ayres entered the game during the second period as the emergency backup goaltender, after signing a one-game contract with the NHL.

[6] Donning Kasimir Kaskisuo's old Toronto Marlies helmet and pads,[7] and wearing a Maple Leafs t-shirt under his equipment,[8] he entered the game at 8:41 left in the 2nd period with a 3–1 lead.

Ayres also became the oldest goaltender (at 42 years, 194 days) to win his NHL regular-season debut, and for this, the Hockey Hall of Fame was given his game-used goalie stick.

[15] Carolina Hurricanes' forward Sebastian Aho stated teammates pooled together and gave Ayres a little bit of money.

While in North Carolina, Governor Roy Cooper declared Ayres, a Canadian citizen, an honorary citizen of the state of North Carolina,[19] and Raleigh honoured him by naming February 25, 2020, "David Ayres Day" in the City of Raleigh.

[21] On October 26, 2021, the Carolina Hurricanes announced that James Corden would produce a movie based on David Ayres’ story that would become a Disney feature film.