Felix the cat or cujo?

[Al14]

Best Leaf goalies in my lifetime, imo, in order:

1) Belfour
2) Palmateer
3) Joseph
4) Potvin

None of them were great for a long time (for us, anyway).

I would put Joseph, and possibly Potvin, ahead of Palmateer. JMHO.

 

[Mess]

I remember that series.. Potvin was incredible.

Wasn't that the one where he did that diving glove save across the net too?

Remember this ?

1994 - Maple Leafs @ Blackhawks, Gm 2 - Felix Potvin Penalty-Shot Save



That's how you wrap up a playoff series in fine fashion.

Some of our younger Leaf fans unfortunately never got a chance to see Potvin in action, but he gave the Leafs the best goaltending since Johnny Bower.

 

[Mess]

Potvin gets the nod alone for kicking the crap out of Ron Hextall.

 

[Porn*]

the cat no doubt about it

 

[Just Rude]

head to head Felix beat Cujo, and Cujo was a world class game 7 choker!!

No, he wasn't.

In Toronto, unless I am mistaken, he won 2 of 3 game 7's (lost to Jersey in '01).

And who can forget this save for the Oilers in OT of Game 7 vs Dallas?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEhrURDNFls

 

[KuleminFan41]

A major difference was Pat Quinn played OFFENSE while Pat Burns stressed DEFENSE.

"Defense wins Championships"

Yah because we had incredible offensive prowess back then with Sundin and......

 

[Patty Lee]

One team under Potvin was a contender the other under Cujo was a pretender in the pursuit of the Cup.

One team had a serious chance of winning it all thanks to their goalie in part.

Teams that try to simply outscore their mistakes and leave their teams goalies as sitting ducks seldom if ever succeed unless you're the Oilers of the 1980's.

small part. more to the d they had.

Potvin isn't in the same league as either Cujo or Belfour

 

[Pyrophorus]

Felix Le Chat!

 

[Mess]

Yah because we had incredible offensive prowess back then with Sundin and......

I guess you had to be there to truly appreciate the brilliance that was Potvin in the playoffs for the Leafs.

 

[Pyrolemur]

Potvin. Would have won the cup if not for Fraser. Cujo ditched a decent team to try and win a cup with the Wings. Only to come back to the Leafs with his head in shame.

This is what drives me nuts about some Leaf fans. Fraser, if anything, blew game 6 for us (up to debate, considering the Leafs played for another minute or three, and replaced the injured player on the ice). They played game 7 and lost. That loss was on the Leafs, not Fraser. Get your head out of your Blue-painted a**.

The fact of the matter was the Leafs couldn't beat Gretzky, who's one player on a team of players. If you can't beat a player, then you can't beat him plus his entire team and thus the better team won.


On topic, I started watching the Leafs in the Cujo era, so I never really got a chance to watch Potvin. That being said, even though I never watched him, I think I'd choose Potvin from what I hear about him. I consider a couple things from what I remember about Cujo:

The way he ditched the Leafs, he showed a lack of class, especially with him saying something along the lines of "wanting to win a Cup..." as he walked out the door. Poetic justice that his career went nowhere afterwards.

Not to mention my heart would skip a beat every time Cujo either left the net or puck-handled. The first Leaf game I ever went to, Cujo went behind the net and passed directly to a St. Louis player, who scored a goal on Cujo's empty net. What NHL goalie puts the net into his own crease without looking first? I never got anxious watching Belfour go get a puck, which sealed the deal on my opinion of Cujo.

 

[Nylanderthal]

This is what drives me nuts about some Leaf fans. Fraser, if anything, blew game 6 for us (up to debate, considering the Leafs played for another minute or three, and replaced the injured player on the ice). They played game 7 and lost. That loss was on the Leafs, not Fraser. Get your head out of your Blue-painted a**.

The fact of the matter was the Leafs couldn't beat Gretzky, who's one player on a team of players. If you can't beat a player, then you can't beat him plus his entire team and thus the better team won.


On topic, I started watching the Leafs in the Cujo era, so I never really got a chance to watch Potvin. That being said, even though I never watched him, I think I'd choose Potvin from what I hear about him. I consider a couple things from what I remember about Cujo:

The way he ditched the Leafs, he showed a lack of class, especially with him saying something along the lines of "wanting to win a Cup..." as he walked out the door. Poetic justice that his career went nowhere afterwards.

Not to mention my heart would skip a beat every time Cujo either left the net or puck-handled. The first Leaf game I ever went to, Cujo went behind the net and passed directly to a St. Louis player, who scored a goal on Cujo's empty net. What NHL goalie puts the net into his own crease without looking first? I never got anxious watching Belfour go get a puck, which sealed the deal on my opinion of Cujo.

Eddie the eagle was elite handling the puck; he was a 3rd defenseman back there almost. Only other guy even close to as good is Marty brodeur behind the net. Marty Turco had pretty good puck handling (Turco isn't in the same class as the other two overall obviously

 

[Mess]

small part. more to the d they had.

Potvin isn't in the same league as either Cujo or Belfour

A team doesn't go to the final 4 in back to back playoff years without outstanding goaltending, as Potvin did backstopping that effort in Toronto.

In fact Cujo was in the St. Louis net & losing end of a playoff serious when going heads up against Potvin during those playoff years in the 1990's. Eddie Belfour and his Hawks didn't fair any better stepping aside to Potvin and the Leafs also. So I agree the later two were not in the same league as the winning goalie of record Potvin when they went against each other. Curtis and Eddie could only shake Felix's hand to end their playoff series and wish him well before they turned to golfing season for themselves.

When Felix was in net it was never a worry that he would let the team down, whereas Cujo flipping and flopping around like a fish out of water made every save appear a challenge and you just never knew what was going to happen.

Belfour played a far more structured game which gave the team (and everyone) confidence he was going to stop the puck when called upon.

 

[Just Rude]

This is what drives me nuts about some Leaf fans. Fraser, if anything, blew game 6 for us (up to debate, considering the Leafs played for another minute or three, and replaced the injured player on the ice). They played game 7 and lost.

Totally agree. The Leafs were the better team, and had Game 7 at home. They blew it.

That said, I think it is just human nature to dwell on those defining moments, even if they are negative. All these years later, and Don Cherry's too many men on the ice penalty vs Montreal gets played over and over, Christie's missed FG for the Bills in the Super Bowl, Steve Bartman, Mitch Williams, etc....all those moments legendary, for all the wrong reasons, if you were a fan of that team.

 

[Nylanderthal]

A team doesn't go to the final 4 in back to back playoff years without outstanding goaltending, as Potvin did backstopping that effort in Toronto.

When Felix was in net it was never a worry that he would let the team down, whereas Cujo flipping and flopping around like a fish out of water made every save appear a challenge and you just never knew what was going to happen.

Belfour played a far more structured game which gave the team (and everyone) confidence he was going to stop the puck when called upon.

This. For every awesome cujo save (most looked harder than need be) Incan think of an almost ludicrously bad goal he'd let in.

 

[Just Rude]

A team doesn't go to the final 4 in back to back playoff years without outstanding goaltending, as Potvin did backstopping that effort in Toronto.

When Felix was in net it was never a worry that he would let the team down, whereas Cujo flipping and flopping around like a fish out of water made every save appear a challenge and you just never knew what was going to happen.

Belfour played a far more structured game which gave the team (and everyone) confidence he was going to stop the puck when called upon.

Yep. Having the Cat allowed us to dump Fuhr to Buffalo for Big Dave, who was obviously a huge factor in those playoff runs. I felt a sense of calm when Felix was in net.

 

[ShLou Foot]

I preferred Potvin and as for Cujo keeping St.Lou in that 1st rd series vs us, Potvin helped us win that series!
May 3 - St. Louis 1 Toronto 2 (2OT)
May 5 - St. Louis 2 Toronto 1 (2OT)
May 7 - Toronto 3 St. Louis 4
May 9 - Toronto 4 St. Louis 1
May 11 - St. Louis 1 Toronto 5
May 13 - Toronto 1 St. Louis 2
May 15 - St. Louis 0 Toronto 6

Potvin 11 GA
Cujo 22 GA

 

[grenade]

in my mind potvin for so many reasons.

 

[zeke]

Best Leafs goalies since expansion:

1) Belfour
2) Reimer
3) Potvin
4) Joseph
5) Palmateer

 

[FrozenJagrt]

Potvin. Would have won the cup if not for Fraser.

There was absolutely no chance in any form of hell that the Leafs would have won the cup that year, regardless of what was or wasn't called by Fraser. It annoys me so much seeing Leafs fans claiming that Fraser cost them the cup. Maybe he cost them a visit to the finals, but Patrick Roy was busy putting on one of the greatest playoff performances of all time that year, nobody was taking that cup from him.


To answer the OP, The Eagle> The Cat> Cujo.


In fact, Cujo is one of my least favourite Leafs of all time. Dude was a jerk.

 

[LeeIs]

Potvin easily for me.

Cujo was a bit of a traitor in my eyes. Bolted for chance to win somewhere else. Best thing was that him and his new Detroit Red Wings were swept in the 1st round

Oh and don't get me started on his little press conference were he was crying crocodile tears. I can never forget that. 'if we (meaning red wings) don't win it, I hope Toronto does'. Buzz off Cujo!

And people have a problem with Mats for not wanting to be traded.. And some of those people love cujo.. Go figure.



I loved Potvin.

 

[FrozenJagrt]

Potvin easily for me.

Cujo was a bit of a traitor in my eyes. Bolted for chance to win somewhere else. Best thing was that him and his new Detroit Red Wings were swept in the 1st round

Oh and don't get me started on his little press conference were he was crying crocodile tears. I can never forget that. 'if we (meaning red wings) don't win it, I hope Toronto does'. Buzz off Cujo!

And people have a problem with Mats for not wanting to be traded.. And some of those people love cujo.. Go figure.



I loved Potvin.

Pretty much. Such a slap in the face of the fans, team and management. They were as close as they'd been in a decade, considered legitimate contenders, and he said "You're not good enough, I'm going to Detroit"

 

[Srsly]

I'm gonna say Felix the cat, just because we went to game 7 against Gretzky and the kings. If we had of won that game it would of been a leafs Habs cup final. Actually, if we didn't run into Gretzky period in the conf finals that year we would of been in the cup finals!

More specifically, if Gretzky's stick didn't run into Gilmore's eye with zero repercussions...

Potvin in his prime out dueled Cujo in the Toronto/St Louis series of 93. I think Cujo was more consistent throughout his career but Felix gets the nod for me. He was my favorite Leaf growing up. I remember how excited I got when my parents got me a cheap knockoff version of his gear

 

[Christ]

Personally I preferred the "Eagle"...

 

[Starkiller]

Wow, its great to hear from the people who actually got to witness the Potvin era as it was happening. Those were some great years, the Cujo era was exciting as well, but i think the Potvin era was more exciting because you felt more like they were gonna do it!


So far i would say The Cat is winning this round

 

[Christ]

Best Leafs goalies since expansion:

1) Belfour
2) Reimer
3) Potvin
4) Joseph
5) Palmateer

While it would not surpirse me to see Reimer top this list one day, at the moment he has a bit of work to do before he should be mentioned in the same discussion as these other goaltenders.