Toronto Maple Leafs: Felix Potvin #3 All-Time

Felix Potvin is the third best goalie in the history of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

In the last article in this series, I talked about the fourth greatest goaltender in Toronto Maple Leafs history, Curtis Joseph . Today we will look at #3.

#3 Felix Potvin

Potvin was drafted by the Leafs 31st overall during the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. After honing his skills for the next two seasons in juniors, Potvin made his NHL debut during the 1991-92 season.

He played in four games, ending off with a GAA of 2.29 and a Sv% of .933. This was only the beginning of an outstanding career.

Trophies/Awards

While Potvin is one of the greatest goalies in Leafs history, he’s never won an award or trophy. In 1992-93 he was on the NHL All-Rookie Team. In 1993-94 and 1995-96, Potvin made it to the NHL All-Star Game. Despite the lack of hardware, Potvin was still a great goalie for the Leafs.

Best Season

His best season with the team was his rookie season. He would play 48 games, cementing himself as the Leafs starting goaltender. With a GAA of 2.29 and a Sv% of .910, Potvin finished third in Calder voting and fourth in Vezina voting.

His record of 25-15-7 backstopped the Leafs to the post-season. During the playoffs, he helped the Leafs win the Division Semi-Finals 4-3 against the Detroit Red Wings. Once again they would win 4-3, this time beating the St. Louis. Blues. The Leafs would play another game 7 in the Conference Finals but that time they lost against the Los Angeles Kings. Potvin’s GAA was 2.84 and he had a Sv% of .903, not amazing numbers but they were enough to get the Leafs as far as they did.

What Made Potvin so Special?

Potvin’s playing style was very special. While most goalies were still using the stand-up method, he utilized the butterfly method. Being one of the first goalies to do this, he set up the next generation of goalies to learn better stances (like the hybrid method which is used by most goalies currently). On top of that, Potvin also had a very quick glove. Known as “The Cat” because of his quick reflexes. He also had a very calm demeanor that limited him from making too many mistakes. Being able to keep his cool under any circumstance made him a key piece to the Leafs.

Overview

Potvin had a final record of 160-149-49 in 369 games with the Leafs over parts of seven seasons. Ranking third in games played with the team and in wins as well. Surprisingly, he only had 12 shutouts with the team, ranking him 11th overall in that category.

The Leafs have only been to four Conference Finals since their Stanley Cup win in 1967. Two of those wins were with Curtis Joseph and the other two were with Potvin.

Next: Toronto Maple Leafs: Current Contender Status

While Potvin never won the Stanley Cup or any other award, he still had an amazing career.

*stats from quanthockey.com & hockey-reference.com

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Maple Leafs Best Goalie Countdown #3: Felix Potvin

By Michael Joubran | Aug 24, 2017