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Top 10 Best UFA Signings in Toronto Maple Leafs History

By Stephen Nixon

TORONTO, ON - OCTOBER 15: Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares #91 looks on against the Minnesota Wild during the second period at the Scotiabank Arena on October 15, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - OCTOBER 15: Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares #91 looks on against the Minnesota Wild during the second period at the Scotiabank Arena on October 15, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – APRIL 22: Curtis Joseph #31 of the Toronto Maple Leafs (Photo by Graig Abel/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON – APRIL 22: Curtis Joseph #31 of the Toronto Maple Leafs (Photo by Graig Abel/Getty Images) /

#3. Curtis Joseph

After a great career in St. Louis and Edmonton, ‘Cujo’ decided to sign with his hometown Leafs in 1998.

After missing the playoffs for the last two seasons, the Joseph signing couldn’t have happened at a better time. The Leafs never missed the playoffs in his four years with Toronto and ultimately made it to the Eastern Conference Finals two times in that stretch.

Fans fell in love with Joseph immediately as he finished runner-up to Dominik Hasek for the Vezina Trophy in his first season in Toronto.

The story of Joseph is a tough-tale and the fact that he even made it to the NHL was a miracle. As displayed in his book ‘Cujo: The Untold Story of My Life’, Joseph’s childhood was filled with neglect and overcoming the obstacles that he did was remarkable.

Despite his tough upbringing, in terms of goaltenders in Leafs history, Cujo is easily one of the top-five best goaltenders to ever play for the organization.

Similar to Mogilny, it’s a shock that he’s yet to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame because he’s currently seventh among all goaltenders with 454 career wins.

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