Favorite Oilers of All Time: #9. Curtis Joseph

Hey everyone, last week I had #10 of my personal favorite Oilers in Bill Guerin. Today, I move onto my #9 Edmonton Oiler being Curtis Joseph.

Joseph Recap

Curtis Joseph was the first true star goalie that I remember on the Edmonton Oilers. Originally an undrafted goaltender, Joseph took the NCAA route playing with the Wisconsin Badgers. Joseph would break into the NHL with the St. Louis Blues, playing there until 1995. It was there where he was a holdout and was dealt to Edmonton, along with good ol’ Mike Grier for a first round pick in 1996 (which turned out to be future Oiler, Marty Reasoner) and a first round pick in 1997.

As an Edmonton Oiler, Joseph played three years in Edmonton, including the magical 1997 and 1998 seasons where he lead the Oilers to first round upsets against the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche respectively (which I will talk more about further below). Yet, as a recurring theme of pre 2005 Lockout Edmonton Oilers, Joseph’s play became too rich for the small market Edmonton. He would leave after the 97-98 season for Toronto.

In Toronto he was outstanding, a key piece of the resurgence of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the early 2000s where the Maple Leafs would make two conference final appearances in three years. Afterwards, hoping ot win a Stanley Cup, Joseph would sign with the Detroit Red Wings in 2003. Unfortunately for Joseph, Dominik Hasek would un-retire to join the Red Wings. During the 03-04 season, Joseph would start backing up Hasek and would eventually become the starter as the Red Wings finished first in the west. However, it was not meant to be as they were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs.

After the lockout, in 2005 he would sign with the lowly Phoenix Coyotes. In 2007-08 he would sign with the Calgary Flames and play only 9 games. His final season would be the 2008-09 season where he finished as a backup with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Why Joseph?

Joseph was an absolute stud with the Oilers. As a young elementary kid, I knew about the heroics of Joseph while he was an Edmonton Oiler. While he was not my favorite Oiler at the time (ominous foreshadowing), Joseph definitely stood out. There is one moment that defined Joseph as an Edmonton Oiler and it was the main reason why he is on this list: the 1997 Quarter Finals Game 7 against the Dallas Stars. Now I’m trying to remember this as best as I can as nostalgia goggles can be foggy at times.

This was the case of David vs Goliath. The Dallas Stars were a powerful team: Look at that! They had two future hall of famers in Joe Nieuwendyk and Mike Modano . They had a young Jere Lethenen and Sergei Zubov, a fearsome Derian Hatcher and wily veterans like Andy Moog, Pat Verbeek and Guy Carbeneau and the Oiler Killer: Benoit Hogue. This was a team that was going to win a Stanley Cup in 1999. They were a legitimate power house and yet the plucky under dogs Edmonton Oilers forced a game 7.

That game seven went into Overtime and Joseph absolutely stood on his head. The save that defined him was the point blank robbery of Joe Nieuwendyk was in the slot and a diving Joseph saved the puck with his stick. It is one of the best playoff saves of all time! Not only that, later on the next whistle Todd Marchant would score, completing one of the biggest upsets that I witnessed as a kid.

While he is low in the top ten list (trust me, there’s a few characters where it’ll be questionable), Joseph gave me one of my favorite childhood memories when it came to hockey. That deserves a spot.

Curtis Joseph was nothing short of phenominal as an Edmonton Oiler. Here’s the save and the goal posted below.

Next: Favorite Oilers of All Time: Bill Guerin

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