Absurd Goalie Monday: Emile Francis

While last instalment had the last of a breed, this week's AGM was the first of a breed in equipment. Not only did he get fed up with what he had, he was surprised at the outcry against it to begin with. He stuck by his guns and was able to help get it worked into the goalie lexicon, which I'm sure many of the goalie fraternity are indebted for. This week, the profile of Emile Francis.

Francis first started his journey with the North Battleford Beavers in the North Saskatchewan Junior League in the 1941-42 season, playing in four games, all losses. The 1942-43 season had Francis play eight games with North Battleford (no record given).

A move east is what happened next for Francis, as he would join the Philadelphia Falcons for the 1943-44 season, playing in 14 games in the Eastern League, while he would spend the 1944-45 season with the Washington Lions in the same league, taking home league MVP honors for his stellar play in the 35 games there.

Francis was called for military duty, but would play the 1945-46 season back in the Saskatchewan Junior League, this time the South Division playing for the Moose Jaw Canucks and going 18-0-0 in 18 games, helping the Canucks move to the Memorial Cup, where he would go 4-4 in eight games of tournament play. Francis also spent time with the Regina Capitals, though he would play only one game with them.

Francis would be in Regina for the start of the 1946-47 season, but with a bit of a newer look. During the end of the 1945-46 season, Francis took a piece of his other favorite sport-- baseball-- and worked into the hockey lexicon, but using a first baseman's mitt and adding a wide cuff to it as a catching glove rather than using the same gloves his teammates wore. It helped Francis that next season in Regina, playing in 32 games, while then getting picked up by the Chicago Blackhawks, playing in 19 games and finishing with a 6-12-1 record.

The bulk of the 1947-48 season, Francis played with the Blackhawks-- posting a 18-31-5 record in 54 games, but he would also spend time with the Kansas City Pla-mors of the USHL-- going 3-2-2 in seven appearances.

Before the 1948-49 campaign, Francis was traded with Alex Kaleta to the New York Rangers for Jim Henry. Francis would only spend two games with the Rangers that season (2-0-0) and spend the bulk of his time in the AHL with the New Haven Ramblers, finishing with a 15-27-7 record in 49 appearances. The 1949-50 season had Francis back in New Haven, playing in 68 games and putting up a record of 22-36-10; all while losing the only game he played for the Rangers that season.

The Rangers changed AHL affiliation in the 1950-51 season to the Cincinnati Mohawks, where Francis would put up a 20-26-7 record in 53 games, while going 1-1-2 in five appearances for the Rangers. The 1951-52 season was much better for Francis in Cincinnati, as he would go 24-22-5 in 51 games and then 3-3 in six playoff appearances; as well as going 4-7-3 in 14 games for the Rangers.

Francis moved to the WHL in the 1952-53 season, playing of the Vancouver Canucks for 70 games, posting a 32-28-10 record, then going 4-5 in nine playoff games. For the 1953-54 season, Francis left the WHL and signed onto the AHL's Cleveland Barons, going 37-28-0 in 65 games and went 7-2 in the playoffs, as the Barons won the Calder Cup. Francis returned to Cleveland for the 1954-55 season, putting up a 28-26-3 record in 57 games and then 1-2 in three playoff games.

With the 1955-56 season, Francis would return to the WHL, but with the Saskatoon Quakers-- where he would go 27-33-8 in 68 games and 0-3 in the playoffs. Francis moved out west to the Seattle Americans in the 1956-57 season, posting a 35-26-7 record and 2-4 in six playoff games. The Victoria Cougars took Francis's services for the 1957-58 season, where he finished with an 18-47-2 record in 67 games. For the 1958-59 and 1959-60 season, Francis was playing for the Spokane Spokes, going 25-37-6 (1-3 in the playoffs) and 19-46-3 in those respective years. Francis was also loaned out to the Seattle Totems for a game in the 1959-60 season, winning that game. After that season, Francis would retire from playing.

Francis didn't stay away from the game long, as he would be the head coach of the OHA's Guelph Royals before the New York Rangers would hire him as head coach from the 1965-66 season until the 1974-75 season and would coach the St. Louis Blues in the 1976-77 season and parts of the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons, finishing his coaching career with a 388-277-117 record. Francis was also the GM of the Blues from 1976 until 1983 and GM of the Hartford Whalers from 1983 until 1989.

Francis was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder in 1982 and has a trophy named after him in the AHL for the champion of the North Division.

While his NHL career lasted only 95 games, the innovation he brought to the goaltending position was a great leap forward and probably staved of injury for future generations coming up through the ranks. Add that to his ability to work in the front office, Franics's legacy stretched out further than his playing career could have imagined.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Al Smith

While the last name is a common one, the person and career of the AGMs wasn't. From playing with two teams in a single playoffs to getting picked up in two Intra-League Drafts to moving to the WHA to becoming a taxi driver and writer post-playing career; the term "renaissance man" is very valid. This week, the profile of Al Smith.

Smith started his journey with the Toronto Midget Marlboros in the 1961-62 season, also playing time with the Marlboros' Junior A squad. Between the 1962-63 and 1964-65 seasons, Smith played for the Junior B Lakeshore Maroons. Part of the 1964-65 season, Smith went back to the Marlboros' Junior A squad, as well as spending most of the 1965-66 season with the Marlies.

At the end of the 1965-66 season, Smith was called up to the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he would play two games (1-0-0). The 1966-67 season would be a while one, playing one game for Toronto (a loss), but spending most of his time with the Victoria Maple Leafs of the Western League. With Victoria, Smith played 56 games and finished with a 24-26-5 record. The playoffs in the WHL were wild for Smith, as he would play for two teams-- neither were the Victoria team he played for in the regular season. Smith played in six contests for the Vancouver Canucks (1-4-0) and one contest for the California Seals (a loss) in that 1967 playoff season.

The 1967-68 season, Smith moved to the Central League's Tulsa Oilers, finishing with a 23-12-5 record in 40 games, then 2-2 in four playoff games. Smith would only play eight games for Tulsa in the 1968-69 season (no record of note), while playing seven games to Toronto (2-2-1), but would spend most of the season in the AHL for the Rochester Americans, compiling a 13-12-7 record in 34 games.

During the 1969 Intra-League Draft, the Pittsburgh Penguins claimed Smith from the Leafs. Smith played in 46 games during the 1969-70 season for the Penguins, finishing with a 15-20-8 record. Smith also played three games for the Baltimore Clippers of the AHL that season. In the 1969-70 season, Smith stayed in Pittsburgh for the full campaign, going 9-22-9 in his 46 games.

Smith was claimed in the 1971 Intra-League Draft by the Detroit Red Wings, spending the 1971-72 season with Detroit and finishing with a 18-20-4 record.

The WHA came onto the scene in the 1972 and Smith was selected by the New England Whalers. Not happy with his position in Detroit, Smith joined the Whalers for the 1972-73 season, going 31-19-1, while finishing with a 12-3 playoff record to help the Whalers win the first ever Avco World Trophy, despite the trophy not being completed yet. Smith returned to the Whalers in the 1973-74 season, putting together a 30-21-2 record in 55 games and only a 3-4 playoff record. The 1974-75 season has Smith play in 59 contests and record a 33-21-4 record and 2-4 playoff mark.

The Red Wings traded Smith's rights to the Buffalo Sabres at the trade deadline in 1975, but Smith wouldn't play for the Sabres until the 1975-76 season; going 9-3-2 in only 14 games. The 1976-77 season saw Smith play only seven games and an 0-3-0 record.

Becoming a free agent, Smith moved back to the WHA and the New England Whalers starting in the 1977-78 season, playing in 55 games and putting up a 30-20-3 record, but an 0-2 playoff record. Smith would win the Ben Hastkin Trophy for WHA Best Goaltender and named to the WHA First All-Star Team. The 1978-79 season would be a little rougher for Smith, playing in only 40 games with a 17-17-5 record and then a 1-2 playoff record.

As the WHA and NHL merged, Smith followed the Whalers to Hartford and would play 30 games in the 1979-80 season, going 11-10-8. Smith also played two games with the AHL's Springfield Indians and would put up a 1-1-0 record.

Smith would be traded to the Colorado Rockies for cash before the 1980-81 season, where Smith would go 9-18-4 record in 37 games with the Rockies. After that season, Smith would retired from the NHL.

Post playing days, Smith went to BC to sell cars and pick fruit as well as trying to sell the Reuters news service to various clients. When he moved back to Toronto, Smith wrote "Confessions to Anne Sexton", which was turned into a small performance piece. Smith also was a taxi driver while he was writing to make ends meet. While working on another piece called "The Tragedy of Lake Tuscarora", Smith fell ill with pancreatic cancer, which he would succumb to in August of 2002.

While he bounced around a lot of places, Smith finally found his niche in the WHA. While he did only play there for five years-- he revitalized a career that may have ended a lot sooner if it wasn't for a new league to help him out.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Ed Staniowski

This week's AGM was a guy who battled for a spot when it came to getting game time and being able to actually get a spot. After his career was done, he took on another battle that was entirely different. This week, the profile of Ed Staniowski.

As a junior, Staniowski played for the Regina Pats in the WHL from the 1971-72 season until the 1974-75 season, being the starter in those days, winning the Memorial Cup with the Pats in the 1973-74 season. Staniowski also played in the 1975 World Junior tournament, going 2-0-0 for Canada, as they would get silver in that tournament. Staniowski was the inaugural CHL Player of the Year in the 1974-75 season and was selected 27th overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 1974 NHL Draft.

Staniowski started his pro-career in the 1975-76 season with the Providence Reds of the AHL for 29 games, finishing with a 15-11-1 record, but got called-up to St. Louis for 11 games and compiling a 5-3-2 record, then going 1-2 in the playoffs. The 1976-77 season had Staniowski spend some time in the Central League, playing for the Kansas City Blues for 17 games (8-9-0) before being recalled to St. Louis, where he would play in 29 games and finish with a 10-16-1 record, before going 0-2 in three playoff appearances. The 1977-78 season had Staniowski start in St. Louis, but after going 1-10-0 in 11 games, he was sent to the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the Central League, where he would go 18-13-0 in the regular season and 2-4 in the post-season. The 1978-79 season had Staniowski play in 39 games with St. Louis, but only going 9-25-3 before being shipped back to Salt Lake, where he'd go 2-2-1 in five games. Staniowski also played for Canada in 1979 World Championships, going 1-1-0 in three games. The 1979-80 season saw Staniowski play the majority of time in St. Louis, going 2-11-3 in 22 appearances, while getting sent back to Salt Lake for a 3-1-0 record in four games there. In the 1980-81 season, Staniowski had his best season in St. Louis, going 10-3-3 in 19 games that season, sticking with the big club the entire season.

However, in the summer of 1981, Staniowski was traded from St. Louis to Winnipeg. With the Jets in the 1981-82 season, Staniowski went 20-19-6 in 45 games, then 0-2 in the playoffs. The 1982-83 season saw Staniowski get much less playing time, going 4-8-0 in only 17 games with Winnipeg before being sent to the AHL's Sherbrooke Jets, playing 10 games there, going 1-7-0. The 1983-84 season saw Staniowski play only one game for the Jets, a no-decision.

Staniowski was traded to the Hartford Whalers in November of 1983 for former AGM Mike Veisor. Staniowski would go 6-9-1 in 18 games in that 1983-84 season. Staniowski would play only one game for Hartford in the 1984-85 season (a no-decision), before being sent to the AHL's Binghamton Whalers, where he would go 4-4-2 in ten games. Also, that season saw Staniowski play in nine games with Salt Lake again, going 4-5-0 in those games. After that season, Staniowski hung up the pads.

Immediately after retiring, Staniowski answered the call for his country, but not in a hockey sense. Staniowski joined the Canadian Forces Reserves in 1985 and has made many tours overseas-- including Afghanistan, Africa, Bosnia, and the Middle East. He served as the Senior Advisor to the Armed Forces in Sierra Leone and is now the Director of Primary Reserve training in Kingston, Ontario. Staniowski was going to enroll in the Royal Military College in Kingston before he was drafted by the Blues.

For a guy who braved the shots in the NHL, there's probably nothing more braver for Staniowski than to put himself into the Armed Forces and serve his country like he has been doing for almost three decades. While he may have never left his mark much on the NHL, he has beyond that to people who need it.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Daryl Reaugh

I'm quite surprised I haven't gotten to this week's entry sooner. He has a bigger presence in his post-career life than he did during his career. Even so, if not for the experience in the pros that he had, he may not be as good on the mic as he is now. Yet, one big injury shortened his career, though allowed him to get to the booth sooner than usual, which benefits fans ten-fold. This week, the career of Daryl Reaugh.

Reaugh started it off with the Cowichan Valley Capitals in the BCHL starting in the 1982-83 season, but would move to the WHL's Kamloops Jr. Oilers starting in the 1983-84 season; putting together a 34-10-0 record in 55 games, then going 14-3 in 17 playoff games, helping the Jr. Oilers to the WHL Championship. Reaugh went 1-2 in the Memorial Cup, as well. During the 1984 Draft, the Edmonton Oilers selected Reaugh in the second round; but he would play again in Kamloops, posting a 36-8-1 record in 49 games and 10-5 in the playoffs, losing in the Finals. Reaugh was awarded First All-Star Team honors for the WHL West.

During that 1984-85 season, Reaugh played one game with Edmonton, a loss, and would join the organization in the 1985-86 season with the Nova Scotia Oilers of the AHL. Reaugh had a 15-18-4 record in that first year while playing 38 games. The 1986-87 season saw Reaugh get into 46 games and finishing with a 19-22-0 record and 0-2 in two playoff appearances. The 1987-88 season had Reaugh bouncing everywhere. He would play in Nova Scotia for eight games (2-5-0) and for the IHL's Milwaukee Admirals for nine games (0-8-0), but would spend the majority of his time in Edmonton with the Oilers, dressing for 60 games, but playing in only six (1-1-0).

Reaugh dressed enough for the Oilers that year that he received a Stanley Cup ring for the Oilers' victory and was included in the team picture, but did not get his name engraved on the Stanley Cup.

The 1988-89 season was an interesting one for Reaugh. First, he started out with the Cape Breton Oilers, but would move over to Finland to play with Karpat Oulu for 13 games and going 7-5-1, then returned to Cape Breton. With Cape Breton, Reaugh went 3-10-0 that entire season.

Reaugh signed with the Hartford Whalers in the summer of 1989, but would spend most of the 1989-90 with the Binghamton Whalers of the AHL, playing in 52 games and ending with a dismal 8-31-6 record for the season. Reaugh would split his 1990-91 season between Hartford and with the Springfield Indians, who relocated from Binghamton. In Springfield, Reaugh went 7-6-3 in 16 games, while in Hartford-- Reaugh went 7-7-1 in 20 games, but would have his season end abruptly as his catching hand was skated over by an opponent's skate. Reaugh was back in Springfield for the 1991-92 season, playing on 22 games and finishing with a 3-12-2 record.

There was little work for Reaugh in the 1992-93 season, as he would play only one games with the Hershey Bears of the AHL that season, which was a no-decision. The 1993-94 season had Reaugh in the ECHL wth the Dayton Bombers for four games (1-3-0) before a severe hamstring injury would end his career at age 28.

Yet, Reaugh was able to get back into the game easily, first contributing to the play-by-play spot in Dayton after his injury Then, he would become the Dallas Stars color commentator in 1996, a position he still holds today; as well as blogging for the team's site.. Along with that, Reaugh has been a contributor for the Versus Network, NBC, ESPN, ABC, Fox, and EA Sports. This season, Reaugh will also contribute to CBC's Hockey Night in Canada for the late broadcasts. Reaugh has great comedic timing in the booth, as well as being a very articulate broadcaster with catch-phrases for days....whatever that means.

While severe injuries cut his time in the pros short, at least he was able to get back on his feet just after his career did end. There was a lot of promise, but it just seemed fate wasn't there for him. He did have a couple championships to his credit, though, and you can't take that away from him.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Jacques Caron

With this week's AGM, we go for a guy who had to take part in two changes that involved the old school NHL Reverse Draft; all leading to very new teams, just happened out of expansion. Even though he didn't see much NHL time, his post-career hockey life has seen him work with the greatest in the NHL and get some hardware in the process. This week, we look at the career of Jacques Caron.

Starting in the Ontario Hockey Association Junior League in the 1956-57 season, Caron played with the Toronto Marlboros, playing in 10 games before moving onward to the Peterborough Petes in the 1957-58 season, where he would play in 31 games. Caron stayed with the Petes for the 1957-58 season, going 24-14-4 during 43 games; then went 9-3-1 in 13 playoff games, as well as going 0-2 in Memorial Cup qualifications.

The 1959-60 season saw Caron move to the Eastern League with the Washington Presidents, where he would play in 55 games with three shutouts. However, the 1960-61 season saw him go back to Canada to play for the Senior League Rouyn-Noranda Alouettes, were he would help them get to the Allan Cup, though he would be 0-3 in the tournament.

With the 1961-62 season, Caron would move back to the States; starting in the Eastern League in five games with the Charlotte Checkers before moving to the AHL with the Springfield Indians, where he would go 4-1 in five games. Caron would stick with the Indians for the 1962-63 season, going 12-14-7 in 38 games that season. Sticking Springfield again for the 1963-64 season, Caron would play in 31 games and finished with a 12-14-1 record on the year. Caron saw more time for the Indians in the 1964-65 season, where he would play 55 games and go 21-29-4 for the year. Caron's would only see 33 games in the 1965-66 season, where he went an even 15-15-1, but then would move up to 35 games in the 1966-67 season, though with an 11-17-5 record to show for it.

For the 1967-68 season, Caron's contract was purchased by the Los Angeles Kings, as the Kings bought the Springfield AHL franchise. Caron would stick with the Springfield Kings for most of the season, going 19-18-4 in 42 games, then heading to Los Angeles for a game, which was a loss. Caron played in the Western League for most of the 1968-69 with the Denver Spurs, finishing there with a 7-21-3 record in 31 games, but still got the call to Los Angeles to go 0-1-0 in three games the Kings.

In June 1969, Caron was picked up by the St. Louis Blues in the NHL Reverse Draft, where NHL teams would pick from minor league teams and vice-versa. In any case, the 1969-70 season saw Caron back with the Spurs, where he'd go 8-16-4 in 31 games. Caron saw 30 games in 1970-71 season with a 10-13-4 record, then 0-2 in the two playoff appearances he saw. While Caron went back to Denver for 20 games for the 1971-72 season (15-3-0); he got the call up to St. Louis for 28 games, where he'd end up with a 14-8-5 record, then went 4-5 in nine playoff games that season. Caron stuck with St. Louis for the 1972-73 season, playing in 30 games behind Wayne Stephenson, which saw Caron go 8-14-5, then 0-2 in three playoff games.

The Reverse Draft struck again, as the Vancouver Canucks claimed Caron before the 1973-74 season. Caron actually stuck with the Canucks and played in 10 games, finishing with a 2-5-1 record in that season.

Caron was traded by the Canucks to the Buffalo Sabres before the 1974-75 season. That season, Caron played in the AHL with the Syracuse Eagles, where he'd play in 50 games and finish with a 16-21-9 record.

The 1975-76 season had Caron stay in Syracuse, but with the North American League; playing in 32 games with three shutouts and was awarded First-Team All-Star honors for that year. Also that season, Caron played with the WHA's Cleveland Crusaders, going 1-0-1 in two games. The 1976-77 season saw Caron with Syracuse for 22 games with a shutout before Cleveland traded Caron to the Cincinnati Stingers; playing in 24 games with a 13-6-2 record with three shutouts.

The 1977-78 season saw Caron play one minutes with the Binghamton Whalers of the AHL, before he would go into a small retirement. Caron would return for 19 minutes with the Whalers in the 1980-81 season, then he'd actually hang-up the pads for good.

Post-playing career, Caron was an assistant coach for the Hartford Whalers, before moving onto the New Jersey Devils. With the Devils, Caron is the goaltending coach for Martin Brodeur; which allowed Caron to get Stanley Cup rings in 1995, 2000, and 2003. Caron is a Special Assignments Coach now.

Though he held it down in the minor leagues, his many travels through the NHL and dealing with all assortment of leagues got Caron pretty prepared for his coaching career. Whether or not the knowledge he had was past onto Brodeur, but the experiences probably aided him along.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Ken Holland

This week's AGM is a guy people all know very well in many hockey circles, yet don't really remembered that he played in the NHL. While the greatness of his hockey mind can't be matched, his career as a goalie is one that's often overlooked. This week, the profile of Ken Holland.

Holland started his march with his hometown Vernon Vikings in the BCJHL, where he played 16 games in the 1973-74 season. The 1974-75 season had Holland move onto the WHL and the Medicine Hat Tigers where he would go 23-10-4 in 37 games for the Tigers. Holland was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1975 Amateur Draft, but stayed with the Tigers for the 1975-76 season. Holland would go 22-11-1 in 41 games with the Tigers.

Holland jumped to the professional ranks in the 1976-77 season with the North Amercian League with the Binghamton Dusters, playing in 48 games with a 3.80 GAA and taking home Second-Team All-Star honors that season.

Holland and the Dusters moved to the AHL for the 1977-78 season, where Holland would go 12-19-3 in 39 games in Binghamton. The 1978-79 season had Holland in 41 games a finishing the regular season with a 19-17-3 record, then going 5-5 in ten playoff games. Holland moved onto the Springfield Indians for the 1979-80 season, where he would go 15-14-5 in 37 games.

Holland signed with the Hartford Whalers in July of 1980, but would spend most of the year in the AHL with the Binghamton Whalers, compiling a 15-25-4 record in the regular season and 0-2 in the post-season. Holland played in one game for Hartford, which was a loss. Holland enjoyed a better season for the 1981-82 season, going 27-13-4 in 46 games, then going 8-7 in 15 playoff games; both enough to have him garner Second-Team All-Star honors. Holland would play 48 games in the 1982-83 season for Binghamton and finish off with a 23-18-5 record, then 1-2 in the playoffs.

Holland would then sign with the Detroit Red Wings in the summer of 1983, but the 1983-84 season had Holland playing with the Adirondack Red Wings for most of the season, going 19-15-6 in those 42 games; then 3-4 in seven post-season games. However, Holland would play three games with Detroit, but only have an 0-1-1 record to show. Sticking with Adirondack for the 1984-85 season, Holland finished with 13-22-6 in 43 games before hanging up the pads.

After retirement, Holland stayed with the Red Wings organization-- first as a scout for the Western side of North America, then move all the way up the ladder before being named General Manager in 1997. Since then, Holland has had quite the run; building up talent from deep in the Draft and winning three Stanley Cups as a GM.

He may not have had the chance to prove himself as a player in the league, he has made himself a player in the management side of things in the NHL. Many have considered him to be one of the best GMs to ever be in the game and you'd be hard pressed to fight that argument.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Mike Veisor

It seems that there's many times where a goalie often gets lost in the shuffle and will get bounced around, not because he's not good enough, but because he just didn't fit the needs of the team. This week, we have a guy who had solid footing in net, but because he didn't have the best team around him and got there at the wrong time-- he was slighted. This week, the career of Mike Veisor.

Veisor's trek to the NHL started in Junior "A" with the Hamilton Red Wings, playing in 96 games with no record on record because it seems they didn't like to keep them up to date back in 1969 through 1971. Veisor then moved onto playing with the Peterborough Petes for the 1971-72 season, playing in 49 games (again, no record there) and helping the Petes win the OHA, going 11-2-2 in the playofs; then going 2-1 in the Memorial Cup, where the Petes would lose the Cornwall Royals in the Final.

Following his performance, the Chicago Blackhawks selected Veisor in the 3rd Round of the 1972 Amateur Draft and he would immediately go to the Central Hockey League Dallas Blackhawks for the 1972-73 season, playing in 39 games with four shutouts and a 2.75 GAA. Those numbers would get Veisor on the CHL's First All-Star Team, fewest goals against, and the Ken McKenzie Award for Rookie of the Year.

Veisor was called up onto the Chicago Blackhawks for the 1973-74 season, where he would play 10 games, going 7-0-2 backing up the workhorse of Tony Esposito. Veisor was the second goalie of Jewish decent to play in the NHL, though he wanted to be first-- yet, he was beaten out a year earlier by Boston's Ross Brooks. That great debut didn't last for Veisor, as he went 1-5-1 in nine games with Chicago in the 1974-75 season, which would get him sent back to Dallas. In Dallas, he would play 16 games, bouncing back with an 11-5-0 record, then going 6-4 in ten playoff games.

The 1975-76 season had Veisor back in Dallas, where he would get the starting gig and go 28-22-9 in 62 games with five shutouts. Again, Veisor would get CHL First All-Star Team honors and fewest goals against honors for the year. Veisor would stay in Dallas for the bulk of the 1976-77 season, playing in 40 games and compiling a 17-15-6 record, then going 0-2 in two playoff games. Also, Veisor would be called up for three games with Chicago, going 1-2-0.

Veisor would be given another chance as the Chicago back-up to Tony Esposito for the 1977-78 season, playing in 12 games and going 3-4-5. It would get a bit better for Veisor in the 1978-79 season, playing in 17 games and having a 5-8-4 record, but the 1979-80 season had him going 3-5-3 in only 11 games.

In June of 1980, the Blackhawks traded Veisor to the Hartford Whalers for a 2nd Round pick in the 1981 Draft. Veisor would play behind John Garrett in the 1980-81 season, appearing in 29 games with a 6-13-6 record. Veisor would only be in Hartford for 13 games in the 1981-82 season (5-5-2), as he was pushed out by the acquired Greg Millen. Veisor spent some of the 1981-82 season in Binghamton with the AHL team there, also named the Whalers; going 13-8-1 in 22 games. That was enough to have Veisor back in Hartford for the 1982-83 season, playing in 23 games, but with a dismal 5-16-1 record, as well as being a part of the Canadian World Championship team that spring, but never playing.

The 1983-84 season was a well-traveled one for Veisor, starting in Hartford for only four games (1-3-0) before he was dealt to the Winnipeg Jets for Ed Staniowski. Veisor would first report to the AHL's Sherbrooke Jets, playing in five games with a 1-4-0 record before being called up to Winnipeg for eight games, posting a 4-1-2 record before he would hang up the pads.

As last check-in, Veisor was the rink manager at Avon Old Farms School, an all-boys prep school in Avon, Connecticut.

Being nicknamed "The Worm" because of his quickness and agility, Veisor never seemed to get his niche in the NHL right away. He was thrown into the minors and adjusted nicely to the style, but always was second-banana in the NHL couldn't break through. Even so, he was almost in on a history making situation for his heritage, if he could have only made it a year earlier.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Peter Sidorkiewicz

We'll kick off the new year with a tongue-twister of a last name in order to get this out of the way and get a clear head after the kick off to 2011. This goalie was well known for being the first goalie for the Ottawa Senators, which could be the last time they had a solid goalie. In any case, this week, the profile of Peter Sidorkiewicz.

Born in Dabrowa Bialostocka, Poland; Peter's family moved to Oshawa, Ontario when he was at a young age. Sidorkiewicz actually started playing goalie by happenstance as no one wanted to play goalie on his club team, so he volunteered. Sidorkiwicz would get into the Oshawa minor hockey system, playing junior B with the Oshawa Legionnaires in the 1980-81 season playing 22 games before getting called up to the Oshawa Generals of the OHL, playing seven games that season and going 3-3-0 and 2-2 in five playoff games. Seeing him as an investment, Sidorkiewicz was picked in the 5th Round of the 1981 Entry Draft.

For the 1981-82 season, Sidorkiewicz would split time in Oshawa with Chris Smith and Shawn MacKenzie. Sidorkiewicz would play 29 games that season, going 14-11-1 with two shutouts. In 1982-83, it was a banner season for Sidorkiewicz, as he would be the starter; playing in 60 regular season games with a 36-20-3 record and capturing the Dave Pinkney Trophy for best GAA in the league. The playoffs is where Sidorkiewicz shined, as he went 15-1 in 17 playoff games, leading the Generals to the J. Ross Robertson Trophy for OHL Champion and headed to the Memorial Cup. Sidorkiewicz went 3-2 in the Memorial Cup, losing in the final game to the Portland Winter Hawks, who was the first American team to win the Memorial Cup. Despite that, Sidorkiewicz was named to the Memorial Cup All-Star team. The 1983-84 season wasn't as good for Sidorkiewicz, as he would play 52 games with a 28-21-1 record, while going 3-4 in seven playoff games.

The 1984-85 season had Sidorkiewicz turn professional, heading to the IHL and the Fort Wayne Komets, where he would play for 10 games with a record of 4-4-2. After that, he would get the call to the minor league affiliate of the Washington Capitals, the Binghamton Whalers, whom the Caps split with the Hartford Whalers. Sidorkiewicz would play 45 games in Binghamton with a 31-9-5 record for the season, then going 4-4 in eight playoff games.

Midway through the 1984-85 season, the Whalers liked what they saw in Sidorkiewicz that they traded for him and Dean Evason for David Jensen. Sidorkiewicz would stay in Binghamton for the 1985-86 season, where he would play 49 games, but had a letdown from the prior season, going 21-22-3 with a short playoffs of only four games with a 1-3 record. There was a bounce-back year for Sidorkiewicz in 1986-87, appearing in 57 games with a 23-16-0 record, then going 6-7 in 13 playoff games that post-season. For the 1987-88 season, Sidorkiewicz felt a bit of pressure to succeed, but had a so-so 19-17-3 record in 42 games. Yet, he was able to get a call-up to Hartford for a game, a loss.

After a stellar camp, Sidorkiewicz was able to make the cut for Hartford and would split plenty of time with Mike Liut in the 1988-89 season, ending up with a 22-18-4 record on the season in 44 appearances. Canada would pick Sidorkiewicz for the World Championship, but saw only a fill-in role for 25 minutes, as well as being named to the All-Rookie Team. With him playing so well, Sidorkiewicz allowed the Whalers to look to the future in the 1989-90 season, which saw Sidorkiewicz split time before Liut was traded to Washington and had Sidorkiewicz take over the reigns. That season, Sidorkiewicz would go 19-19-7 in 46 appearances, then 3-4 in the playoffs. The 1990-91 season had the new era of Sidorkiewicz as the starter of the Whalers, which saw him play in 52 games and put up a 21-22-7 record, then playing six playoff games with a 2-4 finishing spot. Sidorkiewicz had a shaky 1991-92 season, seeing former AGM Kay Whitmore taking more of his ice time, as well as being hampered with an ankle injury late in the season, which made the Whalers trade for another AGM; Frank Pietrangelo. Sidorkiewicz had his spot usurped, only playing in 35 contests and finishing with a 9-19-6 record. With expansion happening, Sidorkiewicz was left unprotected for the 1992 Expansion Draft.

Sidorkiewicz was the first player chosen in the Expansion Draft and became the first member of the Ottawa Senators. As with any expansion team, they would have issues-- the Senators more than usual in the 1992-93 season, which Sidorkiewicz felt mightily. While he was able to get the first win for the Senators, Sidorkiewicz would go winless in 17 games after that first win. At the end of the year, Sidorkiewicz would go 8-46-3 in that season. The one bright spot of the year was when Sidorkiewicz played in the All-Star Game as the only representative for the Senators and picked up the win in net.

That next summer, Sidorkiewicz was traded to the New Jersey Devils for another AGM, Craig Billington and Troy Mallette, plus a fourth round pick. The 1993-94 season, Sidorkiewicz would bounce around between the IHL's Komets for 11 games (6-3-0), the AHL's Albany River Rats for 15 games (6-7-2), then getting three games with New Jersey (0-3-0, all in relief). The 1994-95 season had Sidorkiewicz play in Fort Wayne, but behind many goalies-- which saw him play only 16 games, with him sporting a 8-6-1 record when all was said and done and a 1-2 record in the playoffs. Sidorkiewicz would be back in the AHL for the 1995-96 season with the River Rats, backing up Mike Dunham and getting in 32 appearances; though with some success with a 19-7-5 to get back on track. That showed when he was able to take the starter's spot in the 1996-97 season, which saw him play 62 games, finishing with a 31-23-6 record, then a 7-8 playoff record in 16 games. The 1997-98 season was the last kick at the can for Sidorkiewicz, as he would play for Albany yet again, going 21-15-5 in 43 games; while getting a call-up to New Jersey to play in one game, a no-decision.

After that season, Sidorkiewicz would retire from hockey. He held the all-time wins record in the AHL at 171 wins, but has been broken many times over. Sidorkiewicz has moved into coaching, being a coach to the OHL's Erie Otters for the past 12 seasons, including a season and a half behind the bench from 2006 to 2008. In 2002, Sidorkiewicz was named to the Binghamton, New York Hockey Hall of Fame.

For a goalie who was once called "Peter Alphabet" by an announcer, he didn't do too shabby for a career in the minors and in juniors, despite getting into goaltending on a whim because no one else wanted to play in net. He made a decent NHL career in some of the less than ideal situations-- especially in Ottawa. Take that one expansion year out of the mix and who knows if he could have bounced back from a rough end of his Hartford era.

Absurd Goalie Monday: John Garrett

With the "Mo-vember" celebration almost at an end, I figured I go with a guy who is known for his moustache during the hey-day in the 70's and in even now as we see him appear on TV for broadcasts. In the end, his aura of being a quick-witted, light spirited fella allowed him to be a friend in the media and then dive right into that fraternity afterwords. This week, we'll look at the career of John Garrett.

The first exposure of Garrett is when he started in the OHA with the Peterborough Petes, which was headed by Roger Nielson starting in the 1969-70 season. Between that season and the next, Garrett played 99 games with the Petes and would be loaned out to the Montreal Jr. Canadiens for the 1970 Memorial Cup, which he would go 7-1 in nine games played on way to helping Montreal to a Memorial Cup championship.

Garrett was picked in the third round of the 1971 Draft by the St. Louis Blues and would spent the 1971-72 season with the Kansas City Blues of the Central League. Garrett would get most of the time in net with 35 games over the season, but sported a mediorce 13-14-7 record in the process. For the 1972-73 season, Garrett would go over to the Western League with the Portland Buckaroos for 17 games (6-8-2) before he would be moved to the AHL and play 35 games with the Richmond Robins, as well as three playoff games-- all losses.

Not seeing much of a chance of getting to the NHL in the 1973-74 season, Garrett tried his luck with the WHA after getting picked up by the Minnesota Fighting Saints. Garrett would split time with Mike Curran in the year, playing 40 games with a 21-18-0 record as well as going 4-2 in seven playoff games. Remaining Minnesota for the 1974-75 season, Garrett would get increased time, with 58 games under his belt and a 30-23-2 record on the season and 6-6 in the post-season, losing out in the semi-finals. In the 1975-76 season, Garrett would play 58 games with the Saints, going 26-22-4 before the Saints folded mid-season.

To finish out the 1975-76 season, Garrett signed with the Toronto Toros, where he would go 3-6-0 in his nine games there. The Toros would move to Birmingham, Alabama and become the Bulls for the 1976-77 season, which saw Garrett play 65 games and go 24-34-4. Garrett would have the most losses by a goalie that year and give up the most goals at 224, even though he led the league in shutouts with four. It wouldn't get much better in the 1977-78 season, with Garrett playing 58 games, going 24-31-1, which was the most losses again and gave up 210 goals-- another league high. The Bulls would only be in the first round of the playoffs, losing in five games with Garrett playing all five games (1-4).

Garrett was traded from Birmingham to the New England Whalers, and although he was claimed by the Chicago Cougars in the expansion draft, the Whalers got him back as a priority selection before the 1978-79 season. Garrett would play 41 games with the Whalers that season, going 20-17-4 and then 4-3 in eight playoff games, losing in the semi-finals.

The Whalers would be one of the team absorbed by the NHL when the WHA closed up shop and Garrett would make the move over. Garrett would have the starting gig for the 1979-80 season, playing in 52 games with a 16-24-11 record and losing the only playoff game he played. Garrett would continue with the Whalers in the 1980-81 season, playing in 54 games sporting a disappointing 16-24-11. Garrett would go over to the World Championships with team Canada, playing in three games and giving up eight goals, as Canada finished 4th. The 1981-82 season saw Garrett play with the Whalers for 16 games, going 5-6-4 before his departure.

Garrett was traded from Hartford to the Quebec Nordiques for Michel Plasse and a fourth-round pick in the Draft. Garrett would play 12 games behind Dan Bouchard, with a 4-5-3 record. He would also get five games in the playoffs, going 3-2. Garrett would stay with Quebec for the 1982-83 season, playing 17 games with 6-8-2 record before he was on the move again.

Garrett was traded from Quebec to the Vancouver Canucks for Anders Eldebrink, as Garrett would play 17 games in the 1982-83 season and go 7-6-3 and play one playoff game, which was a win.

However, that 1982-83 season had an interesting twist, as Garrett played in the 1983 All-Star Game to replace the Canucks only representative, Richard Brodeur-- who was injured. Garrett played lights-out and was about to be named the MVP of the game. However, Wayne Gretzky scored four time in the last 10 minutes of the game, which caused a re-vote and Gretzky taking over the MVP honors.

The 1983-84 season had Garrett playing behind Brodeur, getting in 29 games and going 14-10-2 for the season, though he would get only relief duty in the playoffs. Garrett would start out with Vancouver in the 1984-85 season, playing only ten games and going 1-5-0.

Garrett was then sent to the AHL's Fredericton Express for the 1985-86 season, though he would only play three games (2-1-0) before hanging up the pads. He wasn't out for long, as Garrett was named the assistant GM of the Canucks for the remainder of the season; but would get out of the management game after that.

After hockey, Garrett went into broadcasting; first with CBC's Hockey Night In Canada from 1986 until 1998 and then onto Rogers Sportsnet, color commentating on the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks, which is where he stays to this day.

A guy who was always good for a quote and put in interesting situations, but would always step up to the table. One story is that when the Canucks had injury issues, a player chimed in that Garrett (oddly nicknamed Cheech, for....I can only imagine) could fill-in for the deplete Canucks front line, though it never came to be. While many people are hot-and-cold to Garrett commentary (mostly cold), but he's been through a lot of aspect of the hockey lexicon and has a lot of stories to tell....even if people don't want to hear it.

Connecticut Whale?? More Like Connecticut Fail

This announcement was made on Monday, and we all know I've got breaking news covered like a jimmy hat, but the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL was sold to Howard Baldwin, founder of the Hartford Whalers, and the team will change it's name from the Wolf Pack to the Connecticut Whale starting in the mid-season "between US Thanksgiving and Christmas" with a new logo and jerseys on February 19th, 2011.

Now, the first thing that is annoying to me is the fact that they aren't committing to the whole "Whalers" theme like people want them to. Whether it's a logistics thing or if it's a reason to keep the name reserved should the Hartford area get a NHL team in the future; I can see why they may not want to go all-in with it; but with that a while away-- why not put the Whalers name to it?? Even if it's the Connecticut Whalers, you may as well get the most out of the Whalers fever and not let the NHL and the OHL's Plymouth Whalers get all the bank because of it. The Whale...I don't know, doesn't have the pizazz of other names out there. However, the headlines of a team when they lose, like the classic "Fail Whale Last Night" and "Beached Whale" if they lose to the Norfolk Admirals; would be epic.

However, the second thing is the real thing that bugs me. Why are they waiting until the season is almost done to roll out a new identity?? While I'm sure it's too close to the season to get everything ready for the identity to roll out for the 2010-11 campaign, but why not wait until the next season rather than flip the script mid-to-late season?? They want to make the bank, sure, but you really should do it immediately before the season starts, and let's face it-- a month isn't too quick for everything to be switched up, I'm sure. To do it that late in the season, while great for PR purposes if people get disinterested in the team, just seems like a silly move and ruins the Wolf Pack identity that just gets killed swiftly like that.

While it's great to have the heritage and following that the Hartford Whalers have, you almost wouldn't want the history of that name and team to be diminished with nothing less than a NHL team. The close proximity to the name may tarnish the name that many hold dear to their hearts and could cool the fandom that the Whalers have created since they left Hartford in 1996. I understand why the fans would want the Whalers to come back, but this may be an issue of flying too close to the sun with paper wings....or something. The point is that while there's heat on the Whalers now because they have merchandise freedom now, you can only milk the cash cow for so long before it all goes to hell.

In the end, it'll be interesting to see how this will all take. Sure, you have a lot of fans who are used to the Wolf Pack identity, but it would probably be killed by the fans very quickly; which could be a shame for those who actually enjoyed that for the team. You can bet you'll have a lot of Hartford Whalers garb in the stands to start.....probably more than usual, of course. And while the Whalers are the trendy logo now, how long before it's over-saturated and unbearable?? Only time will tell, now.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Jeff Reese

From the word go, this goalie was the perennial third-stringer due to teams being completely stacked from top to bottom on their depth charts for netminders. However, his time from the bench and press box allowed him to garner enough knowledge about the game and its angles that he took the usual path into coaching after his career was finished. This week, we tell the tale of Jeff Reese.

When he was growing up, Reese started for the Hamilton Kitty B's in midget hockey and showed himself off well enough to get picked up by the London Knight in the OHL for the start of the 1983-84 season. The Knights trusted Reese so much, they threw him right into the starting role and Reese adjusted well enough to salvage a 18-19-1 record in 43 games. The Knights rode Reese into the playoffs but lost in the second round.Reese was seen as a "work in progress" for his draft year, as he was selected 67th overall in the 1984 Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Reese learned enough from that previous year to take into the 1984-85 season where his record improved to 31-15-1 with a 3.88 GAA. Though in the playoffs, Reese couldn't get the Knights past the quaters thanks to the messed up scoring system the OHL had. Reese went 5-2-0, but still wasn't enough. His last year in junior for the 1985-86 season was less than memorable as in 57 games, Reese went 25-26-3, even with a decent 3.93 GAA. It would be Reese's last year for the Knights.

With the start of the 1986-87 season, Reese moved onto the AHL with the Newmarket Saints, the affiliate of the Maple Leafs. Reese didn't get much of a break, as he was thrown into the starting role quick playing 50 games and getting a 17-29-2 record for his troubles. There started to be quick a logjam in ever aspect of the Leafs goaltending, but Reese did start his season on top in Newmarket for the 1987-88 season, with a brief call-up in the middle of the year to Toronto. With the Saints, Reese saw his time dwindle after his call-up; splitting with Tim Bernhardt and Jim Ralph; Reese compiled a 10-14-3 record with the Saints and 1-2-1 record for the Leafs in his five games. One last split year that focused on Reese's AHL development in the 1988-89 season, with 37 games in Newmarket (17-14-3) and 10 games in Toronto (2-6-1).

Reese would finally move up to the Leafs as a third wheel in the 1989-90 season behind Allan Bester and Mark LaForest, but injuries would rear it's ugly head, as Reese dealt with injuries to his knee-cap; breaking it in the first month of the season which saw him sidelined until December. Reese would come back to play for Newmarket for seven games at a 3-2-2 record before moving up to Toronto and going 9-6-3 in his 21 games. For the 1990-91 season, there seemed to be a set-back thanks to the knee-cap injury. Former AGM Peter Ing took over Reese's spot and Reese struggled, as he went 2-7-1 to start the season and it got him sent to Newmarket for retooling. Reese would only get three games in with the Saints because of the stacked goaltending, but we went 2-1-0 in those games. Reese got recalled in the new year and went 4-6-2 before he broke his transverse processes, which is used to attach muscles in the vertebrae, and was out the rest of the year. The 1991-92 season started off rough again for Reese, as he went 1-5-1 in his first eight games. He would then be involved one of the biggest moves in NHL history.

On January 2, 1992; Reese, along with Alexander Godynyuk, Gary Leeman, Michel Petit, and Craig Berube were traded to the Calgary Flames for Doug Gilmour, Jamie Macoun, Kent Manderville, Ric Nattress and former AGM Rick Wamsley.

Reese would finish the 1991-92 season backing up Mike Vernon in Calgary going 3-2-2 in his games. In the off-season, Reese had more bad luck; cutting his hand before the season, which saw him miss three games at the start of the season. Reese did see 23 games behind Vernon, going an astonishing 14-4-1. Reese would also set a record for most assists by a goalie in a game. On February 10th, 1993; during a 13-1 romp of the San Jose Sharks, Reese had three assists for his team-- not bad for a guy up and down through the system. Reese would only play one game for the Flames in the 1993-94 season (a no-decision) before he was on the move again.

In November of 1993, the Flames sent Reese and future considerations to the Hartford Whalers for Dan Keczmer. Reese would be back into a logjam in Hartford playing behind Sean Burke and two former AGMs, Frank Pietrangelo and Mario Gosselin. Because of that, Reese would only see 19 games, but went 5-9-3 for the year. Thanks to the work stoppage, Reese would only have to deal with Burke, but thanks to struggle-- his record was a less than desired 2-5-1 in 11 games. With yet another AGM, Jason Muzzatti, waiting in the wings, Reese only got seven appearances with the Whale in the 1995-96 season (2-3-0) before he set sail again.

The Whalers traded Reese to the Tampa Bay Lightning for a ninth-round pick in the Draft. Reese was the back-up to another AGM, Daren Puppa, and played in 19 games with an even 7-7-1 record. It was very short-lived as Reese was traded in the off-season to New Jersey for Corey Schwab. The 1996-97 season saw Reese play only three games (0-2-0) with the Devils before being send down because of yet another logjam in net. He would then spend most his time in the IHL with the Detroit Vipers, playing 32 games and going 23-4-3 with a 1.87 GAA. His played helped the Vipers in the playoffs where they won the Turner Cup for the season. Reese would share the James Norris Trophy for lowest GAA with Rich Parent that season. It would be another year for Reese in the IHL for the 1997-98 season, as he played again for the Vipers and Reese shined more with a 27-9-8 record and was able to help the Vipers to the IHL Championship again, but lost to the Chicago Wolves.

Reese was a free agent for the duration for the 1998-99 season before signing again with where he started in Toronto in January of 1999. Reese would only play two games with Toronto (1-1-0) before being sent to the AHL and the St. John's Maple Leafs where he would keep his minor league magic alive, going 17-7-3. Reese would be traded in the off-season to the Tampa Bay Lightning, again, but Reese would call it a career before he ever played again for the Bolts.

However, after his career, Reese would go on to coach the Bolts starting in the 2001-02 season, as a goalie/assistant coach. Reese had a helping hand in the Bolts 2004 Stanley Cup victory. Reese spent eight seasons with the Bolts before getting into the Philadelphia Flyers organization this summer as goalie coach-- for which he obviously has his hands full in his first year.

With all the beating and banging, Reese found his spots when he needed and was able to do the job when called upon. While he did bounce around the league and between the minors and pros, he didn't seem to give up when he could have easily faded away into the background. With all the knowledge took from training and grinding to get his playing time, he uses now to mentor the other goalies coming up through the ranks and to help them with some logjam issues they may face. Plus, with his six interactions of other AGMs; he takes over Vincent Riendeau for most interactions of this series.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Mario Gosselin

While there are many common names in hockey (lest we forget about the two Petr Sykoras in the NHL at the same time), this one name is shared by a NASCAR Truck Series driver and at the head of a Quebec Governmental Position. While that is nothing more than a "factoid," it links up to this AGM as trying to find research on him is rather jumbled...as you see from the intro. Yet, this guy has plenty of history behind him, like playing for two now-defunct teams and having two teams still established. Whether it's a kiss-of-death or not-- another "factoid." This week, we welcome Mario Gosselin to the AGM ranks.

Starting off in the midget ranks, Gosselin played for Montreal East in AAA, going 19-8-6 for them in the 1979-80 season. It was good enough for him to get the nod from the Shawinigan Cataractes of the QMJHL. His style was acrobatic and quick reflexes as an underager, which garnered him 21 games in his first year with a 4-9-0 record and got him bypassed in the 1981 Draft. With more time, Gosselin set his role with the Cataractes playing 60 games in 1981-82 with a 33-25-2 record, while going an even 7-7 in the 14 playoff games. That attention, along with his second-team All-Star nod, finally got Gosselin drafted by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1982 Draft. Gosselin went one more year with Shawinigan, playing 46 games and going a stellar 32-9-1, which was enough to get him on the First-Team QMJHL All-Star squad at season's end.

While the jump to the NHL seemed to be the next step, back in those days; professionals couldn't participate in the Olympics, so teams had national teams specifically for the Games. Gosselin was select to be a part of the Games and was pulling duty alongside of Darren Eliot and Wendell Young, for which Gosselin became the go-to goalie for the National Team. Pre-Olympics, Gosselin played 36 games, but almost didn't get to go to the Olympics because he signed a professional contract. The IOC had a dispute with the Canadian team, but got resolved before the Games. It was something that sparked Gosselin, who was the starter for the Canadians and got the underdog Canadians to win their first four games. Gosselin became the stand-out of the tournament and got him the nickname "Goose" which was coined by coach Dave King. Even though the Canadians lost the three games in the medal round, Gosselin was said to be the story for the Canadians.

After the Olympics, Gosselin went to the Nordiques to the end of the 1983-84 season going 2-0-0 with one shutout in his three appearances. The 1984-85 season brought about Gosselin's first full season, but he had to battle it out in a three way dance with Dan Bouchard and Richard Sevigny for time in the Nords net. Gosselin got the majority of starts in the end with a 19-11-3 record in his 35 games, as well as getting 17 games in the playoff run with the Nords, going 9-8. The 1985-86 season saw Gosselin batting for time with Sevigny and Clint Malarchuk, which also saw Gosselin being sent to the AHL's Fredericton Express for five games (2-2-1), while he got 31 games and getting a 14-14-1 record. That season, Gosselin was picked to play and started in the 1986 All-Star Game and got a no-decision for the Prince of Wales Conference in a 4-3 overtime win and only allowing one goal in his 31 minutes of play. The 1986-87 season saw Gosselin settle into the back-up role behind Malarchuk, playing 30 games goalie 13-11-1, but really shined in the playoffs. When Malarchuk faltered, Gosselin got in to play 11 games and went 7-4 in those games.

At the 1987-88 season, Malarchuk departed to the Caps in a trade which included a draft pick that would turn out to be Joe Sakic, and that gave Gosselin the starting job in Quebec. The Nords, however, didn't have the firepower they once had and Gosselin went 20-28-4 in his 54 games of the season, with the Nords missing the playoffs. The workload took its toll for the 1988-89 season, as Gosselin saw himself take some stints in the AHL with the Halifax Citadels for three games (3-0-0), thanks to the emergence of young Ron Tugnutt and newly acquired Bob Mason. However, Gosselin did play in 39 games, though he only went 11-19-3.

With a logjam in net, Gosselin was deemed expendable and we let go as a free agent. Gosselin was picked up by the Los Angeles Kings in the summer of 1989. Gosselin battled with Ron Scott in order to back-up Kelly Hrudey, but Gosselin got the best of Scott in the regular season, with 26 games, even though he went 7-11-1. One of his losses, though, was a peculiar one. You see, on November 30th, 1989; Gosselin replaced Kelly Hrudey when the score was 6-5 against the Edmonton Oilers due to an injury to Hrudey. Gosselin was pulled in favor off an extra-attacker and the Oilers scored into the empty-net. Gosselin got back in and the Kings scored a late-marker making the final 7-6. Gosselin was hung with the loss because he was the goalie of record when the Oilers scored their game-winner, even though he wasn't in net. He was the only goalie to lose a regulation game without giving up a goal.

The 1990-91 season saw Gosselin demoted to the IHL's Phoenix Roadrunners after the Kings got Daniel Berthiaume in the off-season. In his first full non-NHL season, Gosselin went 24-15-4 with the Roadrunners. It was his last season in the Kings organization.

The summer of 1991 saw the Hartford Whalers pick up Gosselin for depth. First, in the 1991-92 season, the Whalers placed Gosselin in the AHL with the Springfield Indians. With the Indians, Gosselin went 28-11-5 in his season. During the training camp before the 1992-93 season, Gosselin suffered a serious back injury, which could have ended his career. Gosselin battles and rehabbed his back in order salvage half of the season. He played for Spingfield for 23 games going 8-7-7, while being called up to the Whalers towards the end of the season for 16 games going 5-9-1. After being extended to another contract, the 1993-94 season would be Gosselin's last. Injuries to his knees forced him out of the game after seven games in Hartford (0-4-0) and two in Springfield (2-0-0) before calling it a career.

Currently, Gosselin resides in Quebec where he spends his time with his family and teaches at the Energie Hockey School in Quebec.

While he played on some really good team and some really bad teams-- Gosselin did what he could to make himself look better and carry his team along with him. Though, it's telling how your career is going when you get collared for a loss and didn't even let up a goal. Gosselin could have gone further if he didn't have the injuries he suffered, which really hampered what he could have done.

Thanks to the Unofficial Mario Gosselin Page for help in researching the career of the Goose.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Kay Whitmore

There's an old adage that goaltenders become commentators after their playing days are over because they can oversee the ice better and anyone. Especially if they are back-ups, but either way-- the adage holds true in this case, as we go into depth about a goalie turned broadcaster turned NHL liege. This week, we'll look at the career of Kay Whitmore.

Whitmore started out with the Sudbury Legionnaires in Junior "A" hockey in Ontario, playing 42 games and posting four shutouts out of those games in the 1982-83 season. For the 1983-84 season, Whitmore went onto major juniors, playing for the Peterborough Petes. He didn't see much times in the first season, only getting in 29 games, but showed off his skill with a 17-8-0 record for the year. Whitmore would see more time as the starter for the Petes in the 1984-85, getting in 53 games with a 35-16-2 record and heading into the OHL Playoffs, but falling to the powerhouse Sault St. Marie Greyhounds in the finals. Even so, Whitmore went 10-4 in his 17 playoff games.

With his great performance, it gave him the ability to be drafted in the second round, 26th overall of the 1985 Draft by the Hartford Whalers. Even with that, Whitmore stayed with the Petes for the 1985-86 season, seeing less time with the emergence of Ron Tugnutt, but Whitmore would still go 27-12-2 in his 41 starts, which was good enough to get OHL First All-Star honors. The combination of Whitmore and Tugnutt got the Petes to the top in the OHL, but they only got as far as the OHL semi-finals before being eliminated. The tandem again would split starts, but Whitmore getting the most out of the two. It was a dismal season for Whitmore, who went 14-17-5 for his 36 games played.

Whitmore would make the jump to the pros in the 1987-88 season with the Binghamton Whalers, playing behind Peter Sidorkiewicz. It was a good start to his pro career, getting 38 games and going 17-15-4. Once Sidorkiewicz went up to Hartford for the 1988-89 season, Whitmore became head man in Binghamton, but had a rough go about it. Whitmore would see 56 games of action, but only went 21-29-4. However, Whitmore was called upon for three games with the Whalers late into seasons, going 2-1-0 in his three regular season games and going 0-2 in his two post-season starts. Whitmore would start off the 1989-90 season in Hartford before going back and forth between Hartford and Binghamton. Yet, his experience in Hartford was much better than the Binghamton. In the nine games in Hartford, Whitmore went 4-2-1, but when in Binghamton-- he had an abysmal 3-19-2 record in 24 games in the AHL, which was to no fault of Whitmore-- as the B-Whale only had 11 wins on the season. Whitmore would again be between Hartford and the AHL, but the Whalers moved their affiliate to Springfield. It was a much better year in the AHL for Whitmore, who went 22-9-1 in his 33 games down on the farm, yet when called upon in the NHL, Whitmore went 3-9-3. During the 1991 playoffs in the AHL, Whitmore was amazing, going 11-4 in his 15 games played and helped the Indians win the Calder Cup, as well as getting Playoff MVP honors along with it.

The 1991-92 season saw some better fortune for Whitmore, as he stayed in Hartford for the whole season, getting the starting role from Sidorkiewicz, even if his record didn't seem like a big deal. 45 games Whitmore would play, he went 14-21-6 for the season.

Even though his ups and downs, Whitmore would be pushed out due to the logjam coming from the minors. Whitmore would be traded before the start of the 1992-93 season to Vancouver for Corie D'Alessio and cash money. Whitmore would be behind Kirk McLean for most of that season, but saw a 31 games and put up an 18-8-4 record and helped the Canucks win the Smythe Division title. The next season, Whitmore got one more game in at 32 and still have 18 wins, but also 14 defeats and no ties. While he never got into the playoffs, he was along for the ride where the Canucks came up one goal short of a Stanley Cup title in the 1994 playoffs. Whitmore would have one last season with Vancouver during the shortened 1994-95 season, seeing 11 games and going 0-6-2 in those games.

The 1995-96 saw Whitmore go throughout the minors, as the Canucks sent him down to the farm. Whitmore played in the IHL for the Detroit Vipers (3-5-0 in 10 games) and the Long Beach Ice Dogs (10-9-7 in 30 games) before heading to the Syracuse Crunch in the AHL (6-4-1 in 11 games). Whitmore would then be traded to the New York Rangers in March of 1996 for Joey Kocur, but he would never see time on Broadway, heading back to Binghamton for the Binghamton Rangers, but only saw two games of playoff time, losing both games. With no teams interested in him for the 1996-97, Whitmore went over to play in Sweden for Sodertalje SK and saw 26 games, but no record can be found....or that I could find.

Whitmore would come back to North America, as the San Jose Sharks signed him as a free agent, but Whitmore would once again be IHL bound and back again with the Long Beach Ice Dogs for the 1997-98 season. Whitmore would see 48 games in the LBC, getting to winning form going 28-12-3. Whitmore had a 2.60 GAA, which was enough to win the James Norris Memorial Trophy for lowest GAA in the IHL, a title he shared with Mike Buzak.

It was a wild summer of 1998, with the Sharks traded Whitmore, as well as a second and fifth round pick to the Buffalo Sabres for Steve Shields and a fourth round pick. Whitmore then became a free agent, where he again signed with the New York Rangers. Yet, the 1998-99 season would see Whitmore in the minors, with both the Hartford Wolf Pack in the AHL (8-8-2 in 18 games) and the Milwaukee Admirals of the IHL (10-6-4 in 22 games).

Whitmore would then sign with the Boston Bruins in the summer of 1999, but would spend the majority of the 1999-2000 season with the Providence Bruins of the AHL. Even when he was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in December of 1999, Whitmore stayed in Providence. In 43 games that year, Whitmore went 17-19-3 for the year. Whitmore started off again in Providence for the 2000-01 season (13-8-2 in 26 games) , but was trade from the Oilers to the Bruins in December of 2000. He played five games in Boston, but went 1-2-0 in those games.

Whitmore would make one more kick in the can in North America, signing with the Calgary Flames in the summer of 2001, but was again sent to the minors for the Saint John Flames. In 36 games, Whitmore had a 10-16-8 record and actually got the call from Calgary for one games, losing it against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Whitmore would then become the goalie coach of the Peterborough Petes from 2002 until 2004, but would come out of retirement for three playoff games with the Nuremberg Tigers of the German League in the 2005 playoffs. Following his un-retirement, he retired again and went on to be an analyst for the NHL Network and Versus. After a three year stint, Whitmore became a goalie consultant for the NHL in terms of pad size and what-not.

Whitmore had plenty of ups and downs during his career, but kept at it hoping for one more shot at the big time. Of course, it's all about spirit and it seemed Whitmore had plenty of that, even with all the craptastic times he had with it.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Steve Weeks

In this episode, we will look at a guy who; oddly enough, was able to play both major junior hockey and NCAA hockey in his career. That's something you couldn't do nowadays, but his time in college got him the buzz, but once he got to the pros, he was never able to stick with a team for a length of time. However, much like other AGMs, he's in the coaching realm after his career-- it's time for Steve Weeks.

Weeks first started out on the scene in the 1974-75 season in the Ontario Midget leagues with the Markham squad before heading to the OMJHL with the Toronto Marlboros. Weeks only saw 18 games with the Marlies, with a 5.02 GAA. It didn't seem to be enough for the young Weeks, who made a move to the NCAA in the 1976-77 season with the Northern Michigan University Wildcats. It was a shaky year for Weeks, as he would go 7-7-0 in his 16 appearances for NMU. After he was more accustomed to the game, Weeks settled into his own for his sophomore season going 10-5-2 with a 3.31 GAA in 19 appearances. For his junior year, Weeks would start to get more appearances and take over the starter's helm with 25 games and went 13-8-2, enough to garner him CCHA second-team all-star honors and it set the stage for Weeks to make a big jump the next season.

For the senior season of 1979-80, Weeks put the Northern Michigan team on his back, going 29-6-1 with a 2.95 GAA for the season. It didn't hurt that NMU had five players over 50 points, including one Bill Joyce who had 96 points in 40 games, as well as Atlanta Thrashers' GM Don Waddell who had 50 points in 37 games. The spirited effort helped the Wildcats to the NCAA Championship game, where they lost to the University of North Dakota. Weeks had such a year that he was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team for the Frozen Four, as well as CCHA first-team all-star squad for the year.

It was a great starting point for his pro career with the New York Rangers, who had picked him in the 11th round of the 1978 Draft. Weeks would have to start the 1980-81 season with the New Haven Nighthawks in the AHL and played 36 games with them. It was a rough start, as Weeks went 14-17-3 in his rookie year and went 0-1-0 in his only appearance with the Rangers in that season. However, for the 1981-82 season, thanks to some crazy fate, Weeks was thrown into a starters role, as he made 49 appearances for the Rangers, in front of Eddie Mio, and Weeks did well for himself with a 23-16-9 record. It helped the Rangers get into the playoffs, but Weeks would only see four games (going 1-2-0), as Mio stepped up to take over the role for the playoff run. With Mio's big run, plus the acquisition of Glen Hanlon-- Weeks was splitting time between New York and the Tulsa Oilers of the CHL in the 1982-83 season. In the 19 games in Tulsa, Weeks sported and 8-10-0, but had a spiffy 9-5-3 record when called up by the Rangers for 18 games. While the 1983-84 season brought better NHL fortune with 26 games with the Rangers, Weeks only went 10-11-2, so he had to be sent back to Tulsa. In his three games, Weeks went a perfect 3-0-0.

Before the start of the 1984-85 season, the Rangers traded Weeks to the Hartford Whalers for the ever popular future considerations. Weeks started off in Hartford, but got off to a mediocre 2-5-0 start and got him a trip to Binghamton to play in the AHL. While in Binghamton, Weeks went a perfect 5-0-0 with a 2.57 GAA. Weeks went back up to Hartford, finishing 7-7-2 for the rest of the season and 9-12-2 for the year. His play was good enough to get him in Canada's World Championship team, going 3-1-1 and getting a silver medal for it. The 1985-86 season saw Weeks up in Hartford backing up Mike Liut and getting 27 games of action, going 13-13-0 for the season. More of the same in the 1986-87, but with less games and a better record (12-8-2 in 25 games). The 1987-88 season saw Weeks play 18 games with Hartford going 6-7-2, which turned out to be an audition to be traded.

At the trade deadline in 1988, Weeks was shipped to the Vancouver Canucks for Richard Brodeur. Weeks was able to get nine games end out the season with a 4-3-2 record. The 1988-89 season would see Weeks split some time with Kirk McLean on a subpar Canucks team. Weeks went 11-19-5 in his 35 games played. The struggles continued in the 1989-90 season for the Canucks and Weeks, who got less time with only 21 games and went 4-11-4 for the season. The 1990-91 season saw Troy Gamble push out Weeks to the IHL and the Milwaukee Admirals. With Milwaukee, Weeks went 16-19-0 for the year and 0-1-0 in his only appearance with the Canucks in November of 1990. The Canucks traded Weeks to the Buffalo Sabres for more future considerations, but Weeks never played in Buffalo.

In the off-season, Weeks was able to catch on with the New York Islanders as a free agent for the 1991-92 and he would spent just a half-season with the Islanders before being a casualty to a logjam where former AGM Mark Fitzpatrick and Glenn Healy won out. With the Islanders, Weeks went 9-4-2, but was dealt to the Los Angeles Kings for a seventh round pick in the draft. Weeks would only spend seven games in LA, going 1-3-0.

That summer, Weeks signed with the Washington Capitals, but never played a game, as he was left unprotected in the Expansion Draft and then was traded Ottawa Senators afterwords for future considerations. Weeks would spent a small time in Ottawa, going 0-5-0 in his seven games on the rosters and was sent down to a familiar place, New Haven, this time a member of the New Haven Senators. In New Haven, Weeks lost all six appearances-- which led Weeks to retire after that season.

Weeks didn't stay long away from the rink, as he went back to Hartford to be the goaltending coach for the Whalers starting in the 1993-94 season. Weeks spent eight season with the Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes with various positions-- like goalie coach, assistant coach and scout. Weeks was signed up by the Atlanta Thrashers as a goalie coach in 2001 and still with them to this day.

Weeks had plenty of ups and downs and was mostly a casualty of too many goalies being in the same place and Weeks not being able to deal with the pressure of it and faltering. He's moving along to the coaching side and seems to have good enough results to having longevity in the position that he's in, especially with one organization or another.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Jason Muzzatti

This week's inductee could have played with the most teams and log the most frequent flier miles out of the rest of the AGMs. However, he made big headlines during the 2006 Olympic Games with his heart and soul play for his adopted home country. This week, we look at Jason Muzzatti.

Though he got limited time with the St. Michael's Buzzards in Toronto through his midget (6-3-0) and Junior A (10-5-2) career, Muzzatti's play was something that got noticed by the Michigan State University team. For his troubles, Muzzatti got thrown into the fray of the Spartans net as a starter in his freshman year. While going 19-9-3 in his first year, Muzzatti was just getting started, as shown by his CCHA second-team selection. That summer, Muzzatti's potential was seen by the Calgary Flames who picked him in the first round in the 1988 Draft. Not to show it was a fluke, in his sophomore year in 1988-89, Muzzatti went 32-9-1 with a 3.03 GAA, which was his best record in his four years. Yet, even with the record, the most accolades were achieved in his third year at MSU, where he went 24-6-3 and was named to the first-team CCHA All-Star team and NCAA West Second-Team All-American for the year. However, his senior year was struggle for Muzzatti, as he went 8-10-2 and split his time with Mike Gilmore.

After his last year, Muzzatti had nowhere to go but the pros, where Muzzatti went to the Salt Lake Golden Eagles, the Flames IHL affiliate. He held his own as a first-year pro, playing in 52 games and going 24-22-5 for the season with a 3.30 GAA. In the 1992-93 season, it was a split between three teams for Muzzatti as he played in the IHL between Salt Lake (5-6-1) and the Indianapolis Ice (5-6-1), as well as playing for the Canadian National Team for 13 games (6-9-0).

For the 1993-94 season, the Flames moved their affiliate to the AHL and to Saint John, New Brunswick. Muzzatti got accustomed to the move, as he spent most of his time there, going 26-21-3 in his 52 games. Also that season, Muzzatti made his NHL debut, which was a horrific 8-4 loss against the Los Angeles Kings. It was back to Saint John for the 1994-95 season, but he was put to a lesser role with a young Dwayne Roloson being the Flames top prospect netminders now. Muzzatti only got 31 games in with a dismal 10-14-4 record for the year. Muzzatti did get 10 minutes back into the NHL, but it was to replace Trevor Kidd in a game.

While the Flames wanted to keep Muzzatti, the Hartford Whalers pluck him off of waivers before the start of the season. Muzzatti was sent down to the Springfield Falcons of the AHL to start the season, and he played strong going 4-0-1 in his five games there. That was good enough to get the call-up to back-up Sean Burke. Muzzatti got 22 games in for the season, but went a disappointing 4-8-3 even with a 2.90 GAA and .911 save percentage. It was good enough to keep him up the entire 1996-97 campaign, again backing up Burke, but getting 31 games in. Yet, even with more of a chance, Muzzatti disappointed with a 9-13-5 record and a 3.43 GAA and .888 save percentage.

Interesting note of his tenure in Hartford-- on two game in his two year there, Muzzatti racked up 12 PIMs even though he did not play a minute. One game in March of 1996, Muzzatti got 12 PIMs from the bench, while in April of 1997, Muzzatti played one second and was able to rack up 12 PIMs as well. Quite a feisty player, eh??

In the summer of 1997, the Whalers moved to Carolina to become the Hurricanes. Before Muzzati had the chance to don the Hurricanes colors, he was traded to the New York Rangers for a fourth-round pick. Muzzatti started out with the Rangers, but went 0-3-2 in his games, which sent him back to Hartford, but this time playing for the WolfPack of the AHL. He calmed down a lot in Hartford, posting an 11-5-1 record. However, Muzzatti was on the move again as he was traded to San Jose at the deadline. It moved Muzzatti to Kentucky with the Thoroughblades of the AHL for seven games, going 2-3-2 in those games. Muzzatti was also recalled by the Sharks and played a few minutes as Mike Vernon attended to family matters.

Muzzatti couldn't get a contract in the NHL for the 1998-99 season, which sent him over to Europe to play for Eisbaren Berlin; but that only last for four games. Muzzatti had to have heart surgery, which limited his playing time for obvious reasons. Once healthy, Muzzatti put up a 3.00 GAA, but no record seems to be around to web. In the 1999-2000 season, Muzzatti went up to Finland to play with Tappara Tampere and did well in his 41 games going 26-9-5 with a 2.28 GAA in that season. Once again, it was back to Germany for Muzzatti in the 2000-01 season for the Ausburg Panthers. Muzzatti played 43 games with a 3.59 GAA, but once again-- no record provided.

Yet, the most contribution Muzzatti had to the game was going back to the "Motherland" of Italy to play hockey there. It started in the 2001-02 season, playing for HC Milano to start off with. Muzzatti played for Milano until the end of the 2003-04 season. For the 2004-05 season and 2005-06 season, Muzzatti played with HC Bolzano Foxes. During that time, Muzzatti got his duel citizenship status, which allowed him to play for Italy in International competitions, like in the World Championships, where Muzzatti helped Italy get into Division 1 after the 2005 tournament.

The greatest moment of Muzzatti though may have come when he played for Italy in the 2006 Olympics in Torino, Italy. It was a big moment for the country in ice hockey, but more for Muzzatti who's first game was against his other country-- Canada. While the Italians were the vast underdog, they tried to give hope, even have a tie of 1-1 for a short time. Muzzatti made 43 saves in the 7-2 lost and garnered a lot of attention from the game. The restof the tournament was a bit of a wash with Italy getting skunked 6-0 to Finland (Muzzatti did not play), tying Germany 3-3 (31 saves), losing 4-1 to Czech Republic (18 saves in relief), and tying 3-3 to Switzerland (22 saves). However, the ties to the borderline teams of Germany and Switzerland caught the attention of most thinking that Italian hockey wasn't anything to worry about.

After the 2005-06 season was complete, Muzzatti got lured back to North America by the UHL's Flint Generals. Muzzatti split time with Bryan Worosz, with Muzzatti getting one more game and going 18-15-6 for the season, which would end up being his last pro season playing. After that season, took a few years away from hockey before the Generals called Muzzatti to make him an assistant coach in the 2008-09 season in the newly formed IHL and eventually named him Head Coach for the 2009-10 season.

While he didn't pan out like the Flames had wanted to, Muzzatti made his mark in other ways through the pipe of international hockey. He made headline in a somewhat meaningless game, but made headway for one country to be a viable option for consideration in the hockey realm. Now, he's taking what he learned to the other young kids out there as a coach.

So Long Shanny

The big knock on Brendan Shanahan when he was drafted 13th overall in the OHL draft was that he couldn't skate. He silenced critics when playing with the London Knights with 154 points in 115 games in junior, enough to be drafted 2nd overall by the New Jersey Devils in 1987. And while his first year was a disappointment, the rest of his career was something legends were made of.

After 21 seasons, however, Shanahan put his family first and has decided to hang them up. The only player to score over 600 (656) goals and have over 2,000 (2,498) PIMs in their career, Shanahan could be one of the most underrated goal scorers out there. While he only had one season of over 100 points, he had 12 seasons of 30 + goals, two 50 goal seasons, but somehow always got overshadowed by other stars on the team or was on a team that never got much credit due to the market they were in. He played over 1,500 games for five NHL teams (New Jersey, St. Louis, Hartford, NY Rangers), as well as the first Canadian Olympic team to win a gold medal in over 50 years.

And while we can talk about the goals he scored, the intimidation he brought to his game, the three Stanley Cups he won; but I think the legacy he built for himself was being part of a lot of the changes to the game during the lockout that were implimented after the work-stoppage was over. The "Shanahan Summit," as it was deemed, took place in Decemeber of 2004 and was headed up by Shanny to think of ideas on how to make the game-play in the league better when it starts back up.

The Summit was unique as it gathered up people from all walks of the hockey life, with GMs, players, and some media types there in order to get a wide array of responses in order to figure out how the ideas would be received. It must have gotten some decent response, as many of those ideas were brought into the NHL. Rules like creating a Competition Committee, streamlining goalie equipment, the "Delay of Game" call for puck going over the boards, shootouts to break ties, more access to media rights holders, and reducing obstruction. While other rules like wider lines and no-touch icing weren't introduced, they were amongst topic. Of course, some of these rules aren't as well received as others, but they were put out there to the forefront and for the most part, they have worked well to make the game better since the work-stoppage.

Above all, his reason to retire makes him a class act. Shanny didn't want to uproot his family and when a team in the area (NY, NJ, Philadelphia) didn't want to sign him up, he decided that it was time to go. For a guy who was in a pretty stable area for most of his career, to put his family first when it was time to go. He had accomplished all he needed to. Three Cups, an Olympic Gold Medal, and ticket punched to the Hall of Fame in a couple of years' time. For Mr. Shanahan, his game, his personality, and his class will all be missed.

Absurd Goalie Monday: Frank Pietrangelo

While we started the college hockey goalies going into the pros, we continue this week....but with a twist. This goalie was recruited from outside the college's usual recruiting area and performed well enough to get into the NHL, though it took some time to get to a team. And in all of this....he had a fantastic 'stache to boot. This week's inductee is Frank Pietrangelo.

Starting his career off in the Ontario Junior Hockey League "B" league, Pietrangelo did well when playing in his hometown of Niagara Falls in both 1979-80 and 1981-82, with a stop off in Brampton in the OJHL "A" league for the 1980-81 season. However, after that was done, Pietrangelo decided to go to the University of Minnesota, a place that didn't usually look outside of the state to find players. It made Pietrangelo the only Canadian on the team when he joined the squad. In his freshman season, Pietrangelo did well enough as the starter, going 15-6-1, that it got the eye of the Pittsburgh Penguins-- who picked him in the fourth round, 63rd overall in the 1983 Entry Draft. Rather than making the jump to the NHL, Pietrangelo decided to stay with the Golden Gophers and finish out his college career.

While he would never see as much playing time as he would in the his freshman year, Pietrangelo did very well when he was called upon. In his sophomore season, Pietrangelo split time with three other goalies, but it went well going 13-7 for that year, but got beat out the next two seasons by youngster John Blue, only playing 17 games his junior year (8-3-3), but was able to bounce back in his last season going 15-7 as he rounded out his career with the Gophers. And while he got his education in all of this, he could have screwed up his playing career in the process.

Though he was drafted, Pietrangelo was never signed by the Penguins and couldn't get a try-out with any team whatsoever. However, thanks to some fate as his brother-in-law (Rick Ley) was the coach of the Penguins affiliate in the IHL, Pietrangelo was able to score a try-out with the Muskegon Lumberjacks. In that season with the Lumberjacks in 1986-87, Pietrangelo went 23-11-0 and was good enough to get a contract from the Penguins that summer.

From 1987 to 1990, Pietrangelo was bouncing from Pittsburgh to Muskegon on a regular basis. In those years, he played decently in Pittsburgh with a 22-20-2, while he was lights-out in Muskegon with a 30-6-4 record in that time span. Yet, though he enjoyed success in the IHL, Pietrangelo didn't like being bounced back and forth without really any resolved to his issue. As he was looking at options to go play hockey in Italy, Pens' GM Craig Patrick intervined and gave Pietrangelo a guaranteed NHL contract for the 1990-91 season, which turned out to be a minor move at the start, but turned into a god-send later in the season.

Pietrangelo was the back-up to Tom Barrasso, who helped the Pens succeed to the heights they were at, contending for a Cup title. It was a mediorce 25 games for Pietrangelo during the regular season with a 10-11-1 record, but it was the post-season which got him the most acclaim. The Pens were down three games to two in the first round of the 1991 playoffs, Barrasso went down to injury and it was all put onto Pietrangelo's shoulder. He responded amazingly, shutting down the Devils in Game Six and Seven, including a shut-out in Game Seven to push the Pens along. He lost Game One to the Capitals in the next round, but did come back with a win in Game Two. By Game Three, Barrasso was back in play and Pietrangelo stayed on the bench. He wasn't called upon again until Game Five of the Stanley Cup finals against the Minnesota North Stars when he came in to replace Barrasso and was able to help the Penguins to a win and put them to the brink. The next game, the Pens skunks the Stars and won the Cup. Pietrangleo was able to get his Cup ring through great clutch performances down the stretch.

The next season was odd for Pietrangelo, as he started out with the Penguins, playing five games and going 2-1-0, but at the trade deadline; he was dealt to the Hartford Whalers for a third and seventh rounder in the 1994 Entry Draft. Pietrangelo only played five more game for the Whale going 3-1-1 with a solid 2.35 GAA and .923 save percentage. The 1992-93 season was horrible for Pietrangelo, as he played 30 games and went 4-15-1 with a 4.85 GAA and a dreadful .858 save percentage. That caused Pietrangelo to move between Hartford (5-11-1) and the Springfield Indians (9-10-2) of the AHL. In the 1994-95 season, Pietrangelo spent the year with the Minnesota Moose of the IHL going 3-8-1 in 15 games. That caused Pietroangelo to go into semi-retirement for a season as he recollected his thoughts.

Pietrangelo returned to hockey in the 1996-97 season in Italy playing for Balzano HC with the next season being spent in Asiago with Asiago HC. He moved from Italy to Germany in the middle of the 1997-98 season, to play with the Kaufbeuren Eagles, but for the 1998-99 season, Pietrangelo went to England to play for the Manchester Storm for three seasons and became a small cult icon while in Manchester. His first season in Manchester was his best with a 1.92 GAA and .931 save percentage in 42 "Super League" games. That whole 1998-99 season, 56 games, Pietrangelo had a 2.02 GAA and .928 save percentage. It was a career year in '98-'99 with a championship with the Storm, goaltender of the year, and made a name for himself with the organization.

His next two season with Manchester were riddled with injury, going through some bumps, bruise, and a knee surgery. Pietrangelo was never able to recapture the magic he had in the 1998-98 season. He had to finally retire from play in the middle of the 2000-01 season after playing only nine games thanks to a reoccuring groin injury.

It's unknown what's going on with Pietroangelo, but his tale is one of having to pay your dues and usually working extra hard to achieve what you want to. Of course, in Pietrangelo's instance, he got to the pinnacle, but then got screwed around too much in his latter days and decided to go where he would be wanted and where he would play. Though he had his ups and downs, he was clutch when it counted the most. Who knows what could have happened if given a solid chance.