NHL Goalie: John Vanbiesbrouck Quiz

Answer: New York Rangers

John Vanbiesbrouck played the first game of his NHL career in the 1981-82 season as a member of the New York Rangers. In that game, he played against Colorado. He stopped 29 of 30 shots in a winning effort.

Answer: Detroit

Vanbiesbrouck was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1963. John never played minor hockey in Detroit, nor did he ever end up with the Detroit Red Wings. He played most of his junior hockey with Sault Ste. Marie of the Ontario Hockey League, before being drafted in 1981.

Answer: Pittsburgh Penguins

Vanbiesbrouck played for the Rangers for the first 449 games of his career. He was picked up by the Florida Panthers in the expansion draft of 1993, and played with them until the 1997-98 season. In the 1998-99 season John joined the Philadelphia Flyers and played there for two seasons. He then joined the New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils before retiring in the summer of 2002.

Answer: True

Vanbiesbrouck achieved the improbable by recording three consecutive shutouts in the early part of the 1999-00 season. The first shutout came in a 5-0 victory over the New York Rangers on 20th October 1999. The next two shutouts were dual 2-0 victories over the New York Rangers and Florida Panthers on 22nd and 24th October.

Answer: Vezina Trophy

John Vanbiesbrouck was voted the best goaltender in the entire NHL, in the 1985-86 season. In that year, John played 61 games for the NY Rangers recording a 31-21-5 record with 3 shutouts, a 3.32 goals against average and a 0.887% save average. The closest he ever came to winning that trophy again was sixth place and seventh place votes in 1995, 1996, and 1997 respectively.

Answer: He was the first player to have all five vowels in his last name.

If his amazing goaltending wasn't enough, John had the privilege of having an "a","e","i","o" and a "u" in his last name, an unintentional and unique accomplishment in the NHL. In the NHL, most goalies averaged around two or three vowels in their name. The length of his last name was also the longest for a goalie, in NHL history.

Answer: Inverted-V

Inverted-V was the most uncommon style of goaltending. Goalies who implemented the inverted-v style stood with their feet apart and knees together. When done, it created what seems like a letter 'v'. Lateral movement and five-hole coverage was greatly reduced with the style. Other than John, other goalies with the same style included Ed Belfour, Grant Fuhr and Felix Potvin.

Answer: 300

After a 6-2 victory against the NY Islanders, John was finally among the elite in goaltending. Tom Barrasso was the first American goaltender to reach three-hundred victories. Other goalies which have had over three-hundred victories include Dominik Hasek, Martin Brodeur, Patrick Roy, Mike Vernon, and Ed Belfour.

Answer: Uwe Krupp

Uwe Krupp was a defenseman drafted 223rd overall in the 1983 draft. He only played six games in the regular season of the 1995-96 campaign, but played his heart out in the playoffs, amassing an impressive sixteen points in 22 games. Vanbiesbrouck was hot and cold in the final against Colorado, losing 3-1 in game one, 8-1 in game two, 3-2 in game three, and a heartbreaking 1-0 decision in the third overtime of game four to complete the sweep. With Vanbiesbrouck screened, Krupp unloaded from 70 feet out, and managed to beat John on the low right, clinching the Stanley Cup.

Answer: Finland

John's only real international start was during the 1991 Canada Cup. He played in a game against Finland, letting in three goals in an impressive 4-3 victory. The only other international game to his credit was a span of one and a half minutes he played in relief of Mike Richter on February 18, 1998, in a losing effort against the Czech Republic.