by Travis Mitchell

Created on: December 15, 2009

The NHL has seen its share of good goalies, but only a select few can be considered as truly great at stopping pucks.

Dominik Hasek:

Drafted 199th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in 1983, The Dominator (as he would eventually become known) never saw NHL action until the 1990-91 season, where he played just 5 games but posted a respectable .914 save percentage.

It wouldn’t be until his 4th season however that Dominik finally started posting the numbers that would mark his career. He played 58 games that year and posted a league leading 1.95 GAA and a .930 save percentage. Coupled with 7 shutouts, this was enough to win him the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender.

During his career, Hasek would win the Vezina a total of 6 times, and would also receive the Hart Trophy twice, as well as the Lester B. Pearson Award twice, as the league’s most outstanding player by popular vote.

In 2002, Hasek led the Detroit Red Wings to a Stanley Cup victory as their starting goaltender, and would win a second cup in 2008 as their backup.

He currently holds several NHL records, including highest career save percentage (.922) and posting the most shutouts in one month during the regular season with 6.

NHL Totals:

GP - 735
W - 389
SO - 81
SV% - .922
GAA - 2.20

Ken Dryden:

Ranked as the 25th best player of all time by The Hockey News, Ken Dryden played the entirety of his short career with the Montreal Canadiens.

An imposing figure, Dryden stood well over 6 feet tall and has been described as “taking up the entire net”.

He played only 6 games in his 1970-71 rookie season, but he won all 6 of them and posted an impressive 1.65 GAA. This earned him the position as starting goaltender for the playoffs and he led the Canadiens to a Stanley Cup victory that year, his first of 6.

He would also collect the Conn Smythe that year as playoff MVP. Add 5 Vezina Trophies and one Calder to that, and you have a Hall of Famer.

NHL Totals:

GP - 397
W - 258
SO - 46
SV% - N/A
GAA - 2.24

Patrick Roy:

“St. Patrick” Roy was drafted 51st overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 1984, playing only 1 game the entire season. He posted a win however and was off to a good start.

The following year Patrick played 47 games and managed to clinch the position of starting goaltender for the playoffs. He would prove to be a true star that year, as he led his team to a Stanley Cup victory with a Conn Smythe winning performance.

Roy would enjoy continued success with Montreal and would win another

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