Tom Barrasso

[Hockeyholic]

When we look at his playing career as a whole ( Putting aside the off ice stuff), how do y'all remember him?

Personally, I think of two halves if you will. There's the guy from about 84-92 or so who was a Vezina winner, top ten goalie, and money in the postseason.

Then...there's the 93 Series, game 7 vs Islanders. Dude was brutal in that game , and series as a whole. I also think of game 7 vs Florida. Pens tie it up at 1-1. Then..Fitzgerald scores from about the blue line....Pens were done.

How do you remember his playing career?

Click to read more...

 

[Michael Farkas]

It was up and down...some years he was gold, some years he was rust...I would have gone with Wregget in the '96 ECF, but that's easy to say in retrospect...

He was huge in '92...he made a nice little resurgence late under a very defensive-minded Kevin Constantine in...hmmm...1998? Something like that...

Like most goalies who aren't elite, he ebbed and flowed with the quality of defense being played in front of him (like '93 and, if memory serves, '98 was the Constantine boot camp)...had a very good, albeit inconsistent career...once threw a chair at Jean-Sebastian Aubin, but like most things, it beat him glove side high...

 

[Jim MacDonald]

When we look at his playing career as a whole ( Putting aside the off ice stuff), how do y'all remember him?

Personally, I think of two halves if you will. There's the guy from about 84-92 or so who was a Vezina winner, top ten goalie, and money in the postseason.

Then...there's the 93 Series, game 7 vs Islanders. Dude was brutal in that game , and series as a whole. I also think of game 7 vs Florida. Pens tie it up at 1-1. Then..Fitzgerald scores from about the blue line....Pens were done.

How do you remember his playing career?

I just learned about/watched a summary of the Florida/Pittsburgh semifinals in 96......that blueliner softie in game 7 was a killer....another fan mentioned Benoit Hogue had a long one in that same game 7 in 1993 vs the Islanders.

 

[Hockeyholic]

I just learned about/watched a summary of the Florida/Pittsburgh semifinals in 96......that blueliner softie in game 7 was a killer....another fan mentioned Benoit Hogue had a long one in that same game 7 in 1993 vs the Islanders.

He did. It gave the Isles a two goal led. Pens tied it..before Volek. But, the Pens scored a bunch in that series. They had multiple leads in game 6. Barasso just couldn't make a save.

 

[Jim MacDonald]

He did. It gave the Isles a two goal led. Pens tied it..before Volek. But, the Pens scored a bunch in that series. They had multiple leads in game 6. Barasso just couldn't make a save.

lol...after watching the Volek goal on youtube one time, I scrolled down to look at the comments....an obviously upset Penguin fan typed "Way to adjust your mask AFTER the goal Barasso!!" After Volek scores the CBC camera goes to Barasso for a minute as he's leaving the net and he's adjusting his mask on his face....the timing of it didn't look very good lol..

 

[Hockeyholic]

lol...after watching the Volek goal on youtube one time, I scrolled down to look at the comments....an obviously upset Penguin fan typed "Way to adjust your mask AFTER the goal Barasso!!" After Volek scores the CBC camera goes to Barasso for a minute as he's leaving the net and he's adjusting his mask on his face....the timing of it didn't look very good lol..

He always did that. I think he did it after every goal as a matter of fact.

 

[Jim MacDonald]

He always did that. I think he did it after every goal as a matter of fact.

lol oh boy....that makes it even funnier ha ha..wow!

 

[FerrisRox]

Then...there's the 93 Series, game 7 vs Islanders. Dude was brutal in that game , and series as a whole.

I think that's a little unfair

The first goal of that game came when Ulf Samuelson, from behind his own net, put the puck right on the stick of Benoit Hogue, I believe, who was alone in front of the net and wired it just wide but it bounced back out to Steve Thomas who stuffed it in the net. Zero chance for Barrasso on the goal and an absolutely atrocious play by his defender to create the situation.

The second goal, which was by David Volek, was one I'm sure he'd like to have back, beaten low and through the legs from the dot, but the third goal, which looked terrible, is not his fault. It was a shot from the blueline that a defensemen tipped ever so slightly so the bottom dropped out of it. It looked absolutely awful, but it was a fluke shot that got tipped in the worst possible way so that it looked like a standard shot, but was actually a bit of a knuckleball. The overtime goal was a one-timed snapshot with him coming across the crease ... what's he supposed to do there?

Saying he was brutal in a game where one goal should be blamed on him is a gross exaggeration, IMO.

 

[Hockeyholic]

I think that's a little unfair

The first goal of that game came when Ulf Samuelson, from behind his own net, put the puck right on the stick of Benoit Hogue, I believe, who was alone in front of the net and wired it just wide but it bounced back out to Steve Thomas who stuffed it in the net. Zero chance for Barrasso on the goal and an absolutely atrocious play by his defender to create the situation.

The second goal, which was by David Volek, was one I'm sure he'd like to have back, beaten low and through the legs from the dot, but the third goal, which looked terrible, is not his fault. It was a shot from the blueline that a defensemen tipped ever so slightly so the bottom dropped out of it. It looked absolutely awful, but it was a fluke shot that got tipped in the worst possible way so that it looked like a standard shot, but was actually a bit of a knuckleball. The overtime goal was a one-timed snapshot with him coming across the crease ... what's he supposed to do there?

Saying he was brutal in a game where one goal should be blamed on him is a gross exaggeration, IMO.

He wasn't his normal self. That is the game that really turned the fans and media against him. But it wasn't just that game. It was the series. He couldn't hold a lead.

But that Fitzgerald goal was the letdown of all letdowns. They tie it at 1...then ...bam. Sure, it was tipped. But...it broke the Pens backs.

 

[The Panther]

Has any NHL goalie EVER been as lauded as Barrasso in their first season or two? (I guess Roy, in terms of the '86 playoffs, alone, and before him Dryden but also mainly in the playoffs.) Barrasso was drafted in '83, in that period when Bobby Carpenter and Brian Lawton were seen as the new studs of American hockey. I don't think Barrasso was as highly regarded as them, but here's how he made out his first two NHL seasons, when he was still young enough to be in high school:
- 1st team All Star
- 2nd team All Star
- Calder trophy
- Vezina trophy
- Jennings trophy
- Lowest GAA in the NHL and most shut-outs (second season)
- 51W-30L-13T record

 

[quoipourquoi]

Has any NHL goalie EVER been as lauded as Barrasso in their first season or two?

Carey comes close, I suppose, but if we're looking at all of history, I'd say Bill Durnan - albeit at an older age.

 

[tony d]

He was a solid goalie, never among the game's best though (Due more to competition than anything else) but still a guy that could win you a few games when needed.

 

[The Panther]

He was a solid goalie, never among the game's best

What about c.1983 to 1985?

 

[Mayor Bee]

[deleted]

 

[MS]

The most erratic goalie in NHL history.

Had about 5 seasons where he was legitimately elite and one of the top 3 goalies in the sport. And about 10 or 12 where he was a liability to his team either through injury or awful play. Basically no middle ground.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Carey comes close, I suppose, but if we're looking at all of history, I'd say Bill Durnan - albeit at an older age.

belfour? calder, vezina, 1st and 3rd team all-star, jennings, scf

brodeur? calder, cup, 7 playoff rounds won

matt murray?

 

[Marotte Marauder]

Barrasso, straight from US High School to NHL-NO OTHER GOALIE HAS DONE THAT

Barrasso youngest goalie to win a Vezina.- NO OTHER GOALIE HAS DONE THAT

Barrasso youngest goalie to win the Calder- NO OTHER GOALIE HAS DONE THAT

Barrasso back to back Cup wins.- A SCANT FEW GOALIES HAVE DONE THAT.

Brodeur was 3.5 years older than Barrasso.

Belfour was 7 years older than Barrasso.

 

[quoipourquoi]

belfour? calder, vezina, 1st and 3rd team all-star, jennings, scf

brodeur? calder, cup, 7 playoff rounds won

I was thinking both of them (and Sawchuk) but they all had an abbreviated season before they hit the ground running - and in Belfour and Brodeur's cases, an entire season passed in-between their debut season and their rookie year.

Obviously it was among the weaker Vezina shares to win the trophy, but Barrasso was didn't even have to dip is toe in to test the water.

 

[Big Phil]

It would have been nice to see the Pens win three in a row in 1993. Heck, if you were to predict it I think we all had our money on them to do it. I was as convinced they were winning in 1993. Remember, Barrasso was a 2nd team all-star that year. He had a very good year despite Mario being the big story with his comeback.

The thing with him is that if he had a decent relationship with the press he's in the HHOF. I think you can forgive his lows for his highs but the fact of the matter is he was never painted in a good light. Is this the media's fault? I think much of it is. I might have the same patience with the media if I were Barrasso too, so for that I don't blame him. But he did hold grudges and that is something you will never win with.

Still, a very feast or famine type of career. I think now that Vachon is in he is the best goalie on the outside.

 

[Newsworthy]

Great player. Very underated.

 

[frisco]

I'm biased as Barrasso is probably my favorite player. That being said, here goes:

-Came in as an 18-year old goalie and not only made it (can't think of anyone but Fuhr who jumped in at that age before or since), but started, won the Calder, and the Vezina. If you're talking unique and brilliant seasons in NHL history this ranks in the top 25. Already controversial as he pulled out of the U.S. Olympic training camp to join the Sabres which was highly criticized.

-369-277 mark all-time. That is despite missing practically all of his age 24, 29, and 31 seasons (daughter's cancer, injuries). Those are three prime years.

-61-54 in the playoffs. Two Cups (back-to-back) arguable the Pens best player sans Lemieux in those runs. Kevin Stevens was devastating but if you say Barrasso was the second most valuable Penguin on those teams nobody in Pittsburgh is going to give you an argument.

-5x top-three finishes for the Vezina (one win). Guys that get mentioned with Barrasso: Vernon 1x , Richter 1x, Fuhr 4x, Joseph 3x, Osgood 1x. Hasek with 6x and Roy with 7x are ahead of him in this regard but are surefire HOFers, too.

-14 seasons with 35+ games. A winning record in 12 of those years. The last overall 1987 Sabres was one of those losing seasons. I don't think the hot/cold argument works here. He was either great or consistently good. Notwithstanding the injury seasons.

-Three top-ten Hart seasons.

-Speaking to some of the comments. The 1996 series he was 3-3 with a .932 save percentage in that matchup with the Panthers. Yeah, he let in a tipped shot from inside the blueline but I would put that all on him. In 1993, he let in a soft one against the Islanders but the Volek GWG was a one timer off a 2-on-1 that was labelled.

-Really, two main peaks. 1983-1988, arguably the best goalie in the league. Then the Cup years with Pittsburgh. Also, comeback player of the year in 1998 (3rd in Vezina).

-IMO, best player (and easily goaltender) not in the Hall.

My Best-Carey

 

[Chili]

Some of his numbers don`t look impressive but he played on a run and gun team, late 80's, early 90's.

He was great with the puck, he was big, mean and could fire a pass up ice. He was a third dman back there.

He stopped talking to the media early in his career which may have cost him image wise. If I had a vote, it would have went to him for the Conn Smythe in 1992 (it went to Mario who missed most of the key series against the Rangers).

One of the best of his era, in my humble opinion.

 

[The Panther]

He stopped talking to the media early in his career which may have cost him image wise.

Yeah, I think this is the thing that's going to keep him on the outside looking in, though it shouldn't.
(Remember there were people -- including media -- who used to call him "Tom Barr-a**hole").

 

[MXD]

Carey comes close, I suppose, but if we're looking at all of history, I'd say Bill Durnan - albeit at an older age.

Funny, the first name that came to mind was Frank Brimsek.

 

[Big Phil]

Yeah, I think this is the thing that's going to keep him on the outside looking in, though it shouldn't.
(Remember there were people -- including media -- who used to call him "Tom Barr-a**hole").

Here is the thing with Barrasso, do we know the "real" Tom? The media made him sound like such a horrible person all these years and let's face it, the public eats it up. If they want to paint an athlete a certain way they will. I can understand how that can enrage a player. Barrasso at one point had a sick daughter and I can understand just not wanting to take to a bunch of vultures all of the time. The media drove Phil Kessel out of Toronto and they can easily shape the fans' opinions of you.

But my question is what do the players say about him that played with him?