Welcome to our guide, we will show you the Most Famous NHL Goaltenders of all time. Let’s face it, you have to be pretty special to play the most unique position in all of sports. But as eccentric or quirky as some goalkeepers may be, they all share a common trait: the courage to compete. After all, the very idea of stopping a vulcanized rubber disc traveling at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour defines the absence of fear. It’s a wonder no one has ever lost their life in this position, especially in an era when goalie gear had the protective properties of wet cardboard.
In a sport with such a long and storied history and many different eras of play, it wasn’t easy. Of course, it’s understandable that many would disagree with this list, as it’s difficult to evaluate this position. The goalie is the most important and interesting position in field hockey. Without a good goalie who can handle pressure, a team will not progress as quickly. It has also produced some interesting people. People like Glenn Hall, who threw up before each of his games in hopes that it would help him play well. Below we mentioned the Most famous NHL goaltenders in history.
Here is the list of 10 Most Popular NHL Goaltenders of all time
Turk Broda
Canadian goaltender Turk Broda was only 5’7″ and became an instant fan favorite for his play and personality. Broda’s success is unconventional in that it is not the typical story of working hard to overcome adversity. Broda was often deemed overweight during his 14-year career, which led to friction with the owners that became known as the “Battle of the Bulge” in 1949.
Broda’s career GAA is 2.53, with a playoff average of 1.98. Broda won the first of his five Stanley Cups in 1942, when he led the Toronto Maple Leafs to victory over the Detroit Red Wings after trailing 3-0. Broda left hockey for two and a half years to serve in World War II before returning to the Maple Leafs. With Broda at the helm, Toronto became the first NHL team to win three straight Stanley Cups (1947-1949) and another in 1951, with all five Stanley Cup Finals going to overtime.
Grant Fuhr
Number 10 on that list is none other than our own Grant Fuhr. Fuhr, who will make his debut as 3ICE coach in the summer of 2022, is definitely a goaltender who has left a legacy. He was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in 1981 and spent the next decade in goal for one of the most dominant dynasties in NHL history. When he was on the ice with players like Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier, any goalie could look good, but Fuhr made a significant contribution to a team that won the Stanley Cup four times in five seasons.
Fuhr holds the NHL records for most career points by a goaltender (61), most assists in a single season by a goaltender (14) and most games played in a single season by a goaltender (79). Though his numbers weren’t always the best – he finished his 19-year career with a .887 save percentage and a 3.38 goals-against average – Fuhr was always there when his team needed him. He is a six-time NHL All-Star, Vezina Trophy winner and was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Martin Brodeur
Brodeur, the longtime New Jersey Devils goaltender, has the most wins (691), shutouts (125), games played (1,266) and saves (28,928) in NHL history. In his NHL career, which ended with seven games for the St. Louis Blues in the 2014/15 season – the only time he played for a team other than the Devils – he had a goals-against average of 2.24 and a .912 save percentage, while posting a 113-91 record in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 2.02 GAA, a .919 save percentage and an NHL-record 24 shutouts.
He is a three-time Stanley Cup champion (1995, 2000, 2003), was awarded the Calder Trophy as the NHL Rookie of the Year in 1994 and the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender four times (2003, 2004, 2007, 2008) and won Olympic gold twice with Canada (2002, 2010).
Mike Vernon
Mike Vernon never won a Vezina Trophy, but he did finish in the top four several times and was a regular goaltender on two different teams that won the Stanley Cup, including the Detroit Red Wings in the 1996/97 season when he was the playoff MVP and won the Conn Smythe.
He won his second Stanley Cup as a member of the Calgary Flames in the 1988/89 season. Sure, his career numbers are the result of a very long time where he was really good, but if you can put down a career like that, it’s an incredible accomplishment.
Ed Belfour
Ed Belfour played 963 games in his NHL career. He won 484 games in the league, which is the fifth most wins by a goalie in history. Belfour began his career with the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1988-89 season, winning two Vezina Trophies with the team in 1991 and 1993. He later played for the Sharks, Stars, Maple Leafs and Panthers.
Belfour won his only Stanley Cup in 1999 with the Dallas Stars, where he posted a 1.67 goals-against average and recorded three shutouts in the playoffs. His 88 playoff wins are the sixth most in NHL history. In 2011, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Terry Sawchuk
Ben Bishop was celebrated in the 2015 Stanley Cup Final for playing despite a torn groin. That sounds terribly painful, but the list of injury Terry Sawchuk suffered and played through at times during his career is impressive: a permanently damaged elbow that resulted in his left arm being shorter than his right, cuts and bruises that resulted in over 400 stitches on his face, a collapsed lung, a broken instep and severed hand tendons.
Savchuk led an eventful life, struggling with physical ailments as well as alcoholism and a depression that was never treated. Despite all adversity, Savchuk shone as one of the best goalkeepers of all time. He won four Vezina trophies, four Stanley Cups and set a record of 103 shutouts that stood for nearly four decades.
Johnny Bower
Bower got a late start in the NHL, despite being one of the best goalies in the AHL. He made the most of the time he had, however, and played until his mid-40s. Bower won four Stanley Cup championships with the Leafs, the last in 1967. Bower became an NHL starter after the Leafs took him in the 1958 Dispersal Draft at age 34.
Despite his age when he joined the team, he played 12 seasons for the Leafs. Bower played with a reckless abandon, though he never wore a mask. He checked a lot and was a rare breed as he came out of his goal to play the puck, which was extremely rare in his day.
Georges Vezina
It’s impossible to make a list of the best goalies without mentioning the person after whom the current goalie trophy is named. Georges Vezina led the Montreal Canadiens to five Stanley Cup finals, winning two of them, but his place in hockey history goes far beyond that.
He played 328 consecutive games for the Habs between the NHA and the formation of the NHL, a number surpassed only by Hall. Vezina scored the first shutout in NHL history at a time when goalies faced numerous disadvantages, including penalties for leaving their foot or passing the puck.
Glenn Hall
Glenn Hall is number eight on the team. Hall, or “Mr. Goalie,” nicknamed for his steadiness between the posts and development of the butterfly goalie style, almost never missed a game. With a 502-save goal record, Hall was a fixture in goal for the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1950s and ’60s.
Hall was known for throwing up before every game, believing it would help him play better. And apparently he did, because during his 18 seasons in the NHL, Hall was not short of trophies and awards. A He won the Calder Memorial Trophy, the Conn Smythe Trophy, the Vezina Trophy three times and was also a seven-time All-Star.
Dominik Hasek
Hasek was twice named Hart Trophy winner as NHL MVP (1997, 1998) and six times Vezina Trophy winner (1994-2001). He won the Stanley Cup twice with the Detroit Red Wings (2002, 2008). In 735 games for the Red Wings, Ottawa Senators, Buffalo Sabres and Chicago Blackhawks, he managed 389 wins, a 2.20 GAA, a .922 save percentage and 81 shutouts.
In the NHL playoffs, he posted a 65-49 record with a 2.02 GAA, .925 protection percentage and 14 shutouts. He was named to the NHL All-Star first team six times (1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001). Hasek won Olympic gold with the Czech Republic in 1998.
Final Words
We hope you like this article on Most Well known NHL goaltenders of all time. Ranking goalies in the history of the NHL is a difficult task. Several factors must be considered: sheer dominance, longevity, impact on the sport, etc. For some, the sheer numbers of wins and rings are more important than how those numbers were achieved. With all of these factors in mind, let’s attempt to rank the top goaltenders in NHL history.
I hope you understand this article, Most Famous NHL Goaltenders of all time.
