Ranking all-time greats, no matter the sport, is a near-impossible task. Almost
 every era is drastically different from the next and the game of hockey is no
different. With that in mind, we decided to break down our look at the greatest
 goaltenders to have played the game by decade and see how each one fared
against their contemporaries

In the first of our four-part series, Glenn Hall who finished atop our list for
 the decade of the 1960s but it appeared as though things were only going
to get more complicated from here on out.  So we shift our focus to the men
who were considered to be the "best of the best" during the 1970s.#1 - Ken
Dryden

His career may not have lasted long but one would be hard-pressed to find an
individual who did more in such short period of time than Ken Dryden. During
his seven-plus seasons in the league, the Cornell grad helped lead the Montreal
 Canadiens to six Stanley Cup Championships and won five Vezina Trophies over
said period of time. He was also awarded the Calder Trophy as the NHL';s top
rookie following his impressive 1971-72 campaign and came on the heels of his
Conn Smythe Trophy winning performance as playoff MVP during the Habs
surprising run to the 1971 crown.MONTREAL, CANADA - CIRCA 1975: Ken Dryden #29
of the Montreal Canadiens looks on during a game at the Montreal Forum circa
1975 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Denis Brodeur/NHLI via Getty
Images)

For those of you unfamiliar with his story, Dryden carried the Canadiens to the
 hockey's grand prize with a grand total of six career games under his heading
into the post-season and followed it up with a ridiculous showing during his
"official" rookie season. After taking the hockey world by storm over the first
 two-plus years of his career, the Hamilton proceeded to sit out the 1973-74
campaign due to a contract dispute and used his year away from the game to get
his law degree from McGill University.

From the HHOF archives - Ken Dryden of the Montreal Canadiens strikes his
familiar pose. pic.twitter.com/8ztwxFW5mM

- Hockey Hall of Fame (@HockeyHallFame) July 23, 2016

Not exactly the traditional way to go about getting things done but there was
nothing traditional about what Dryden was able to accomplish during his brief
stint in the NHL. His 2.24 GAA was tops among all goalies during the decade and
 despite playing only 397 games, his 258 wins and 46 shutouts trailed only Tony
 Esposito (304 and 56) but the latter put those numbers together over the
course of 635 appearances. At 6' 4" he was quite literally a giant compared to
his fellow netminder of that era but it was the ability to stop pucks that made
 him both different and so special.#2 - Bernie Parent

If nothing else, the 1970's were an interesting time for one Bernie Parent. Two
 separate stints with the Philadelphia Flyers, one season with the Toronto
Maple Leafs, a brief stay in the WHA with the Philadelphia Blazers,
back-to-back Conn Smythe winning performances and a neck injury that took away
any possibility of consistently being the dominant goaltender he once was.
However, what he was able to accomplish was still plenty good enough to put
second on the list of the top performers in the decade.1973: Goalie Bernie
Parent #00 of the Philadelphia Blazers defends the net during an WHA game circa
 1973. (Photo by Melchior DiGiacomo/Getty Images)

After being bombarded on a nightly basis during his 63 appearances with the
Blazers, what Parent managed to do in his return to the NHL has arguably never
been duplicated. His second tour of duty with the Flyers saw the Quebec native
put together back-to-back seasons in which he played 141 games, posting a
91-27-22 record with a 1.96 GAA and 24 shutouts. As absurd as those numbers
look, he was arguably even better when it mattered most, 22-10 with a 1.96 GAA
and six shutouts, in helping Philadelphia to Stanley Cup Championships in 1974
and 1975.

#RememberWhen @Bernieparent won the Vezina and Conn Smythe in back-to-back
seasons? @NHLFlyers @NHL pic.twitter.com/kXQaUoLntL

- LeatherSkates Hockey (@leatherskates) May 7, 2013

Unfortunately for both the Flyers and Parent, there would be no run at a
three-peat as their star goalie was limited to just eleven games in 1975-76.
Though he would go on to play three more seasons, one in which he partially
turned back the clock, he was never the same but his body of work speaks for
itself. Parent finished the decade second in GAA (2.34), third in shutouts
(45), fourth in wins (210) and played in just 393 games…four fewer than Ken
Dryden.#3 - Vladislav Tretiak

For someone who never played a single game in the league considered to be the
best of its kind in the world, it would seem almost impossible for a player to
even be considered for an all-time great list. However, like most things in
life, there are always exceptions to any rule and when it comes to Vladislav
Tretiak all bets are off. The viewings may have been limited for those of us in
 North America but there is no question had the Russian legend had been given
the opportunity to play in the NHL, he would have likely gone down as one of
the very best to ever play the game.

In the minds of many, Tretiak is already on said list and it is awfully
difficult to argue against his inclusion. Though his numbers with CSKA Moscow
(aka Red Army) and national team speak for themselves, it was the level he
seemed to routinely reach against NHL opposition that was even more impressive.
 Did he benefit from having a heck of a team in front of him? Of course but it
was no different than Dryden and those great Montreal teams of the mid-to-late
seventies. However, what was so special about No. 20 was his style.MONTREAL,
CANADA - CIRCA 1972: Jacques Plante poses for a photo with Vladislav Tretiak of
 the Soviet Union prior to the start of the Summit Series circa the 1972 in
Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Denis Brodeur/NHLI via Getty Images)

Tretiak used a hybrid stand up - butterfly style like no one we had ever seen
before and the quickness with which he moved his feet was second to none. Time
and time again, he would frustrate one NHL great after another and did it with
such ease, it must have felt like a lost cause to guys who usually saw those
pucks routinely hit the back of the net against almost any other goalie. To no
great surprise, it was a style we started to see many young NHL up and comers
adopt and much of it can be attributed to the three-time Olympic gold
medalist.#4 - Tony Esposito

No matter the era, there always those goaltenders who are considered to be
workhorses. When it comes to the 1970';s that list included one name. From
1970-71 to 1979-80 the Chicago Blackhawks had Tony Esposito take part in 635 of
 their 800 regular season games, playing nearly 37,637 minutes. To put that
into perspective, the only goaltender who has come close to such a workload
since was Martin Brodeur during the 2000';s but even he fell short on both
fronts. Though the Hawks were good during the first half the decade, the same
could not be said over the last five years.

Esposito would be the only goalie to eclipse the 300-win plateau during the
seventies, topping the 30-win mark on seven separate occasions, and also lead
the league with 56 shutouts. His 2.70 GAA was good enough for fourth best among
 netminders who appeared in at least 115 games, he made the year-end All-Star
team four times and won two Vezina Trophies for good measure (1971-72 and
1973-74).  Perhaps the most telling thing of all was the fact his two
first-team all-star nods came a mere eight years apart (1971-72 and 1979-80).

1971: Tony Esposito stops 36/38 shots, and @NHLBlackhawks get past @NYRangers,
4-2, in Game Seven of their series.  https://t.co/tGinv4wZft
pic.twitter.com/bct5aotUJK

- Doug Norris (@GoalieHistory) May 2, 2017

Though never considered to be the premier goaltender in the game for any length
 of time, Esposito was always in the conversation. Where the Ontario native
lagged behind the rest of his counterparts, was when it came to team success.
Outside of Tretiak, who never played a game in the NHL, every other name on
this list won at least one Stanley Cup during the decade but the Blackhawks No.
 35 was kept off the board completely. Despite his lack of team success, few
were more entertaining to watch play the position and he was one of the true
pioneers of the butterfly.#5 - Gerry Cheevers

Of all the goaltenders who played during the 1970';s, no one had their overall
numbers affected more by the WHA than Gerry Cheevers. After backstopping the
Bruins to a pair of Stanley Cups over a three year period (1969-70 and 1971-72)
 the fan favourite decided to bolt to the Cleveland Crusaders, signing a
seven-year pact for $1.4 million. Though he would only play three and half of
those years in the WHA before returning to Boston, it roughly cost him a third
of the decade in counting stats.

Cheevers finished 23rd in games played among goaltenders during the seventies
but still landed seventh on the wins list with 149. Despite never being named
to a year-end All-Star team or a serious contender for the Vezina, the man who
was affectionately known as "Cheesey" was considered among the best at his
position during much of his career. Outside of his 32-game unbeaten streak in
1972, a record that still stands to this day, there is nothing on his resume
that stands out.

Yet his ability to repeatedly make key saves when the Bruins needed it most,
led many to suggest he was among the best "big game" goaltenders to have ever
played...a tag that has stayed with Cheevers to this day. Add the killer mask,
his unique style of play and combativeness on the ice to the equation and it
becomes next to impossible to the leave him off the list and his induction into
 the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1985 only further solidifies that way of thinking.

The post Top 5 Goaltenders of the 1970';s appeared first on The Hockey Writers.

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheHockeyWrite...
--- SBBSecho 3.05-Win32
 * Origin: TequilaMockingbird Online - Toms River, NJ (1:266/404)