Georges Vezina

Considered to be one of the greatest goaltenders of all time, Georges Vezina was born in Chicoultimi, Quebec, He joined the Montreal Canadiens in 1910-11 and for the next 15 years, he played a total of 328 consecutive games and 39 more in the playoffs. Nicknamed the "Chicoultimi Cucumber", for his grace and coolness under pressure, he comes from an era when there were no backup goaltenders on a team and goaltenders were not permitted to drop to their knees to stop a puck. He played a stand-up style of goaltending. He helped the Canadiens to five championship teams and to two Stanley Cup winning teams in the 1915-16 and the 1923-24 seasons. His last game was on November 28, despite severe chest pains, which were the first signs of tuberculosis and he had to retire after one period. Stories were that when he left the team, what he wanted to take with him, was his jersey he wore when he helped the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup. Tuberculosis took his life on March 26, 1926. In his honor, the Vezina Trophy is awarded to the top goaltender in the National Hockey League, as decided by the National Hockey League general Managers. The Trophy was presented to the NHL before the 1926-27 season by Montreal Canadiens owners Leo Dandurand, Leo Letourneau and Joseph Cattaranich. Vezina was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1945 as one of the first inductees. In addition, 11 others who were inducted into the Hall that year. That class includes, Art Ross, for whom the NHL's scoring title is named after and Lord Stanley of Preston, The "Father" of the Stanley Cup.