Which NHL team has had the richest tradition in goal?

[ForsbergForever]

List of the HHOF quality goalies that have played regularly for the Montreal Canadiens 1917 to 2010.

Georges Vezina,George Hainsworth, Bill Durnan, Jacques Plante, Gump Worsley, Ken Dryden, Patrick Roy.

Add passing thru: Tony Esposito. Jaroslav Halak

The tradition continues...

 

[DaveG]

That's the thing though. They didn't really have all kinds. Historically Toronto lacks elite players at all position's, and even depth of really solid players. I think every original 6 team is better in an all time sense, except maybe the Rangers. On top of that many other teams who haven't been around as long seem to have comparable depth and better top end talent. I may start a thread.

This would be interesting to see. Definitely a few post-expansion teams that could make a strong push into the top 5. I'm thinking notably Edmonton and NYI with a possibility of Pittsburgh cracking that group depending on how much people believe in the current Crosby/Malkin crop from an all-time perspective.

Would probably have to do it around players that spent significant parts of their prime with the team rather then just great players that passed through (thinking of Shanny, Coffey and Pronger from a Canes/Whalers angle there).

 

[JackSlater]

That's the thing though. They didn't really have all kinds. Historically Toronto lacks elite players at all position's, and even depth of really solid players. I think every original 6 team is better in an all time sense, except maybe the Rangers. On top of that many other teams who haven't been around as long seem to have comparable depth and better top end talent. I may start a thread.

Toronto does have fewer great players than you would expect of the team with the second most Cups ever, but there is no way Pittsburgh can match Toronto's depth. Who would be on Pittsburg's third and fourth lines? Toronto would probably have guys like Keon, Gilmour, Sittler and Sundin. The top quality guys on Toronto are quite strong as well, and other than the top two players I would say Toronto has an advantage over Pittsburgh in this area as well at the moment.

I agree. I'm as big a leaf fan as you can find, but I don't see how the Leafs alltime could compete with the pens.

Sundin, Sittler and Keon vs Lemieux, Crosby and Jagr ?

Guys like Conacher, Kennedy, Apps, Jackson and Mahovlich are pretty impressive. I would say that after Lemieux and Jagr they would be the five best forwards on either team. Horton and Salming are much better than Pittsburgh's best defenceman. In an attempt to try and tie this in to the rest of the topic, Broda and Bower are better than Pittsburgh's best goaltender... who I guess would be Barrasso.

 

[Regal]

This would be interesting to see. Definitely a few post-expansion teams that could make a strong push into the top 5. I'm thinking notably Edmonton and NYI with a possibility of Pittsburgh cracking that group depending on how much people believe in the current Crosby/Malkin crop from an all-time perspective.

Would probably have to do it around players that spent significant parts of their prime with the team rather then just great players that passed through (thinking of Shanny, Coffey and Pronger from a Canes/Whalers angle there).

I was working on creating all the teams, and then putting them in a sim to see how it all worked out, but I got lazy and never finished the sim. There's some good expansion teams who could compete, but I'd still say the O6 franchises are the best, at least on paper.

 

[Tom Brady]

Montreal

 

[Fire Sweeney]

Detroit had a ton of good goalies too: Hasek, Osgood, Joseph, Rogie Vachon, Gilles Gilbert,Roger crozier, Terry Sawchuk, Glenn Hall, Harry Lumley, johnny Mowers, Tiny Thomson, Normie Smith

 

[TheDevilMadeMe]

I just gotta ask. Would anybody be able to stop an All Time Pens Power Play?

1st Unit) Mario, Jagr, Crosby, Coffey, Gonchar

2nd Unit) Francis, Mullen, Stevens, Malkin, Murphy

Montreal's All-Time Penalty Kill would sure come close:

1st Unit: Bob Gainey - Guy Carbonneau - Doug Harvey - Jacques Laperriere
2nd Unit: Claude Provost - Doug Jarvis - Larry Robinson - Serge Savard
3rd unit (why now?): Don Marshall - Pit Lepine - Guy Lapointe - Butch Bouchard

Jacques Plante or Patrick Roy in goal.

 

[MXD]

St. Louis( Could never find that number 1 goalie to lead them to the Cup), and Ottawa.

Well, St-Louis had Liut (but had no team).

 

[Johnny Engine]

Fair enough, only I would personally go Park = Savard, not giving Serge enough credit imo.

If you can give Chelios full career value, then you can count Park's time with the Rangers, in which case he blows Savard out of the water with his offense and All Star selections.

If not, then Park is still as good as Savard, and Chelios probably doesn't make the Habs team, and you're stuck comparing Savard to Bourque.

 

[Big Phil]

Well, St-Louis had Liut (but had no team).

They had a 107 point season in 1981, good for 2nd overall in the NHL. They were 2nd in goals with 3 players with 87 or more points. Sure thing they had a good team that year. But Liut gets enough against him.............

 

[goooal]

Buffalo needs more love here. They certainly don't stack up against O6 teams, but really, who does? O6 it's Montreal in my opinion, but post expansion? There's a good argument for the Sabres. I understand it's largely because of Hasek, but there are others too.

 

[DaveG]

I was working on creating all the teams, and then putting them in a sim to see how it all worked out, but I got lazy and never finished the sim. There's some good expansion teams who could compete, but I'd still say the O6 franchises are the best, at least on paper.

Heh damn man, worthy effort but I was thinking along the lines of individual fans of the various franchises coming up with the teams and posting them. Almost 100 years of NHL history, and quite a bit of pre-NHL history for some franchises (and quite a bit less for more then a few as well), is way too much for one person alone to handle unless they're doing it as a full time job.