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NHL goalies who carried their teams to the Stanley Cup Final
Brian Bahr/Getty Images Sport

NHL goalies who carried their teams to the Stanley Cup Final

Big goals are the big standouts when it comes to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but to make it all the way to the Final, it also takes an out-of-this-world performance from the player between the pipes. Sometimes, the goaltender ends up being the leader of a championship run. 

Here are 16 netminders who carried their teams to the Stanley Cup Final.

 
Ed Belfour, Dallas Stars
J. Giamundo/Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Belfour posted consecutive playoff masterpieces between the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 campaigns. In the 1999 playoffs, after which he hoisted the Stanley Cup, Belfour posted a .930 save percentage and 1.67 goals-against average for the Dallas Stars.

 
Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils
Brian Bahr/Getty Images Sport

With all the accolades and records, it is no wonder that Martin Brodeur also had some killer postseasons under his belt. In winning his third Stanley Cup with the New Jersey Devils in 2003, he set the single playoffs record for shutouts at seven.

 
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Gerry Cheevers, Boston Bruins

Gerry Cheevers, Boston Bruins
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Cheevers and his legendary goalie mask had a heck of a Boston squad playing in front of him in the early 1970s. He kept up his end of the bargain by keeping the puck out of the crease, especially in 1970 when he posted 12 playoff victories. 

 
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Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens

Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens
Steve Babineau/ National Hockey League/ Getty Images

Ken Dryden is another netminder who had an amazing team that played in front of him, but that doesn't take away from the six Stanley Cups he helped the Canadiens win — particularly in 1977 when he tallied four shutouts.

 
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Charlie Gardiner, Chicago Blackhawks

Charlie Gardiner, Chicago Blackhawks
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Gardiner remains the last goalie to be captain of a Stanley Cup winning team, leading the Chicago Blackhawks to victory in 1934 with a 1.33 goals-against average and two shutouts. Sadly, Gardiner had been playing sick through the entire playoffs due to a tonsil infection. The condition resulted in a coma and fatal brain hemorrhage just two months after Chicago won the Cup. 

 
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Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Anaheim Ducks

Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Anaheim Ducks
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Of all the numbers that Giguere put up in the playoffs, his stat line from 2003 is still the most impressive. Although he won a Cup with Anaheim in 2007, it wasn't the same as the 1.62 goals-against average, .945 save percentage and five shutouts he registered for the Ducks in '03. It's no wonder he won the Conn Smythe despite his team losing. (Heck, he had to battle Martin Brodeur at the other end of the ice!)

 
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Glenn Hall, Chicago Blackhawks

Glenn Hall, Chicago Blackhawks
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Glenn Hall's playoff repertoire spanned almost two decades. Of all of his appearances, the most impressive came in the 1961 playoffs when he allowed only 26 goals in a 12-game stretch on his way to winning the Stanley Cup with Chicago.

 
Dominik Hasek, Detroit Red Wings
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Hasek's name is remembered in the long stretch of playoff appearances for the Detroit Red Wings mostly for the six shutouts he registered in the 2002 postseason en route to winning it all.

 
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Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights

Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights
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A former No. 1 overall pick, Fleury was no stranger to playoff success before heading to the desert for the Golden Knights' inaugural season. A three-time Stanley Cup winner already with the Penguins, Fleury was brilliant in 2008, posting a .933 save percentage and 1.97 goals-against average with three shutouts. As dominant as that showing was, it wasn't as remarkable as Fleury's first season away from Pittsburgh was. In getting Vegas to the Stanley Cup Final in his first season with the club, Fleury posted an absurd .947 save percentage and 1.68 goals-against average with a 12-3 record, posting four shutouts in romping through the Western Conference.

 
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Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers

Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers
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Parent often shined bright for the Philadelphia Flyers, but his performance in the 1975 postseason — going 10-5 with four shutouts — was possibly his finest. He remains one of only three players to win back-to-back Conn Smythe Trophies. (The others are Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby).

 
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Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens

Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens
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Plante is mostly remembered for being the first goalie to wear a mask, in 1959 — and for then being ridiculed for refusing to play without the face gear. However, Plante silenced those who called him weak when he led the Canadiens to a Stanley Cup victory.

 
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Bill Ranford, Edmonton Oilers

Bill Ranford, Edmonton Oilers
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The Edmonton Oilers had a heavy burden to carry after Wayne Gretzky departed for Los Angeles. They rose to the occasion and won the Cup in 1990 with MVP Ranford leading the way with a 16-win playoff run in which he made 613 saves.

 
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Mike Richter, New York Rangers

Mike Richter, New York Rangers
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With 16 victories and racking up 574 saves and four shutouts during the playoffs, Richter led the New York Rangers to a championship in 1994. The Pennsylvania native is considered one of the best American-born goaltenders in the history of the sport.

 
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Pekka Rinne, Nashville Predators

Pekka Rinne, Nashville Predators
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The Predators rode the stone wall that was Pekka Rinne to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final. While Nashville lost to the Penguins, Rinne posted a .930 save percentage, 1.96 goals against and recorded two shutouts in the playoffs.

 
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Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche
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The 2001 Stanley Cup-winning Colorado Avalanche were a pretty stacked team, but they wouldn't have gone all the way without Roy's incredible contribution. The Hall of Famer posted a .934 save percentage and four shutouts during the run.

 
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Terry Sawchuk, Detroit Red Wings

Terry Sawchuk, Detroit Red Wings
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Of all the playoff stat lines in the history of the league, Sawchuk's performance in 1952 stands above the rest. He not only posted eight wins in eight games, but he also notched shutouts in four of those starts and allowed only five goals in the entire stretch.

 
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Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins

Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins
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The 2011 postseason was a big one for the Boston Bruins, who avenged missing the playoffs the previous season by winning a Stanley Cup. At the helm of that effort was Tim Thomas, who clobbered the competition with a 1.98 goals-against average and .940 save percentage, plus four shutouts.

 
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Mike Vernon, Detroit Red Wings

Mike Vernon, Detroit Red Wings
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Vernon hoisted two Stanley Cups in his career, but his second with Detroit came after the superior performance. In that 1997 playoff run, Vernon led the Red Wings by registering a 1.76 goals-against average in those playoffs.

Chelena Goldman grew up on a street where the boys played street hockey and yelling at baseball and football over the radio was a standard -- making life as a sports geek the perfect fit. She believes in dominance on the blue line, good red wine, and the theory that you can never be too overdressed for any occasion. You can find her gabbing away on Twitter at @ChelenaGoldman.

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