Best Unorthodox Goalies of All Time

[nyranger61494]

Just saw Thomas flopping around in Montreal and was wondering which goalies have been stellar despite not having a textbook technique? Hasek comes to mind right away with his sprawling saves in Buffalo and his dropping of his stick to cover the puck with blocker hand. Anyone else?

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[Pwnasaurus]

At the time Glenn Hall's style was "unorthodox" but as we know it actually ended up being revolutionary.

 

[Nalyd Psycho]

Hasek and Clint Benedict are probably the best example of unimitated but successful goalies.

 

[Spitfire11]

Bill Durnan is another. He used 2 blockers and would switch his stick between hands.

 

[nyranger61494]

Bill Durnan is another. He used 2 blockers and would switch his stick between hands.

This is why I come to these boards. Rangers goaltender Dan Blackburn suffered a pinched nerve in his left shoulder and attempted to come back with two blockers, something I thought of new, but obviously not...

 

[Weztex]

Bill Durnan is another. He used 2 blockers and would switch his stick between hands.

Durnan had 2 gloves.

 

[raleh]

haha...I was under the impression that he had two blocker-gloves.

 

[pitseleh]

haha...I was under the impression that he had two blocker-gloves.

Yeah, that's pretty much what they were. He was ambidextrous so he would switch hands based on the player coming in on him.

Sawchuk and his gorilla crouch was pretty unusual, but not as out there as some of the others.

 

[Wetcoaster]

Jacques Plante - on so many different levels - mask, puck handling leaving the net, knitting as hobby, etc.

 

[Sens Rule]

Hasek

Hasek is like Gumby. And mentally he is the Wayne Gretzky of goaltending. He does things no one would even think of doing. He tosses his stick away all the time, makes intentional saves with his mask. He is so incredibly unorthodox and yet so unbelievably great.

 

[Big Phil]

Hasek was the first one I thought of. He had the caged mask like few others and the flopping around as well as the Roy-like temper tantrums. I'll never know how he made some of the saves he did. If not for him Buffalo would have had some VERY high draft picks year after year.

 

[LapierreSports]

Just saw Thomas flopping around in Montreal and was wondering which goalies have been stellar despite not having a textbook technique? Hasek comes to mind right away with his sprawling saves in Buffalo and his dropping of his stick to cover the puck with blocker hand. Anyone else?

I really like Thomas...he looks like an old school goalie.
Gump Worsley comes to mind.

 

[Melrose Munch]

Pat Roy

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

George Vezina, he wasn't allowed to go down on his knees to stop pucks during his time.

 

[pappyline]

I always thought that Sawchuk had an unorthodox style back in his day. He crouched so that his upper body was parallel to the ice.

 

[Wetcoaster]

Pat Roy

How was he unorthodox?

 

[MXD]

Roy was unorthodox for his time...

And I wonder if Arturs Irbe has something to do in this discussion...

 

[dabid]

Esposito. Not that his style was unorthadox, but some of the things he did. Like when he had the cage tied to his pants so his five hole was covered.

 

[EatSleepJeep]

How was he unorthodox?

He played with his rings in his ears.

 

[Nalyd Psycho]

George Vezina, he wasn't allowed to go down on his knees to stop pucks during his time.

But that was the same for every goalie at that time, until Clint Benedict, who broke the rules by dropping to his knees in prayer to stop pucks. And, lets face it, without a mask, do you really wanna play low?

 

[Wetcoaster]

Roy was unorthodox for his time...

And I wonder if Arturs Irbe has something to do in this discussion...

How specifically was he unorthodox?

 

[jiggs 10]

Roy was unorthodox for his time...

And I wonder if Arturs Irbe has something to do in this discussion...

Patty Roy did not do anything unorthodox (unless you count adding spider-webbing under his armpits to be unorthodox. I call it cheating). He used outragously large equipment, but so did many other goalies before and after. That's it. Unless you count his LOSING more Game 7's than any goalie in history....THAT'S unorthodox!

 

[12# Peter Bondra]

Patty Roy did not do anything unorthodox (unless you count adding spider-webbing under his armpits to be unorthodox. I call it cheating). He used outragously large equipment, but so did many other goalies before and after. That's it. Unless you count his LOSING more Game 7's than any goalie in history....THAT'S unorthodox!

Isnt he the goalie with most playoff games though? If you have more games, you are bound to have more losses too.

 

[Belamorte]

Probably because he was the first goalie to truley use the butterfly as the main method to stop the puck. While some goalies went down, not before Roy was it the main method. Stand-up goaltending was the taught and practiced that way until Roy, and to a lesser degree, Felix Potvin and the influx of French-Canadian goaltenders came along. As well; using the "paddle/stick" on the ice was also revolutionized by Roy.

 

[Nalyd Psycho]

But is innovative the same as unorthodox?

No one imitates Durnan, Hasek or Benedict. But, they were all elite goalies and arguably the best of their day. That's unorthodox to me...