Top 5 Leafs goalies since 1991-92
Jack Campbell has been an absolute revelation between the pipes for the Leafs since Kyle Dubas acquired him from the LA Kings. His tenure may not be long yet, but the level of excellence makes me wonder, where does Jack Campbell fit in among the best of the best for the Leafs in the past 30 years? So I took a walk down a painful memory lane to find out.
Starting from a familiar place, we have Frederik Andersen coming in at number 5, edging out James Reimer for a spot on the list based on tenure and wins. To be fair, Andersen had a MUCH better team in front of him "Optimus Reim". Alas, Fred backstopped the Leafs to their best regular season ever, but never really found it in the postseason. If he'd had even a smidge of playoff success, he may have been higher on the list.
4. Ed Belfour
I never fully forgave Eddie the Eagle for replacing Cujo in the Leafs net, but the truth is he was very good for the blue and white. 170 games played, 1 trip to the second round. Eddie was as solid as they come for the Leafs.
3. Jack Campbell
Yes, that's right. 3. I didn't put him here for shock value either. The numbers are there to back it up. At the time of this piece, Campbell is second all time in sv% for the Leafs, only beaten by Lefty Wilson, who played 1 game and stopped all 9 shots he faced in 1956. Campbell holds the best GAA of anyone in the top 5, and, incredibly, is second in goals saved above average (GSAA), which is a cumulative stat. Only Felix Potvin sits ahead of him in that category. What Campbell is doing here is unprecedented. We can only hope his agent isn't a reader here!
2. Curtis Joseph
To understand how loved Cujo was in Toronto, you need only look at the end of his tenure in Toronto. He left the Leafs like John Tavares left Long Island and somehow is still one of the most beloved Leafs of the last 50 years. No goalie since Joseph has gone as deep in the playoffs, and only Andersen has won more games for the Leafs since his departure. From his iconic mask to his consistently fantastic goaltending, Cujo earned every bit of 2nd place on this list.
1. Felix Potvin
If there's one mask more iconic than Cujo's, it's Felix «The Cat» Potvin's. Further to that, if there's one goalie who was better than Cujo for the Leafs in the past 30 years, it's Potvin. 160 wins is impressive, just ahead of Andersen's 149 and Cujo's 138. Most impressive however, is his GSAA. 107 goals saved above average, next in line at that stat is Jack Campbell with 29. That's how good Felix was for the Leafs - not to mention 3 trips to the conference finals, including one that could have been a Stanley Cup finals appearance if it weren't for one Kerry Fraser. As a massive Cujo fan it's very hard to admit, but Felix Potvin is the best Leafs goalie of the past 30 years, for now anyway.
The question now is, how long will it take for Campbell to move up this list, and what does he need to do? Well, he needs to re-sign in Toronto, continue to play at the ridiculous level we're becoming accustomed to and he needs to backstop the team to some playoff success. If he can take the Leafs on a run this season or next, he'll be climbing this list very quickly.
