| Grant Fuhr | |
| |
| Position | Goaltender |
| Catches | Right |
| Height Weight |
5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 184 lb (84 kg) |
| Teams | Edmonton Oilers |
| Nationality |  Canadian
|
| Born | September 28,1962, Spruce Grove, ALTA, CAN |
| NHL Draft | round 1, 8th overall, 1981 Edmonton Oilers |
| Pro Career | 1981 – 2000 |
| Hall of Fame, 2003 | |
Grant S. Fuhr (born September 28, 1962), is a former goaltender in the National Hockey League and currently the goaltending coach for the Phoenix Coyotes. In 2003, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Born of biracial parents, Fuhr was adopted as a baby and raised in Spruce Grove, Alberta.
Career
In 1979, at the age of seventeen, Fuhr joined the Victoria Cougars of the WHL. After two stellar seasons in Victoria, which included the league championship and a trip to the Memorial Cup in 1981, Fuhr was drafted 8th overall by the Edmonton Oilers in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft. He played for the Oilers for ten seasons, where he teamed up with Andy Moog for several of them to form one of the most formidable goaltending tandems in history, and won 5 Stanley Cups. He was the team's starting goaltender on the first four teams, but was injured and did not play in the 1990 playoffs, when the Oilers won for the fifth time. Fuhr played in the National Hockey League All-Star Game in 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1989. In 1987, he played in goal for the NHL All-Stars in both games of the Rendez-Vous '87 series against the Soviet National Team. In 1987-88, Fuhr backstopped Canada to a victory at the Canada Cup, playing in all nine games, then played in 75 regular season and 19 playoff games. He won his only Vezina Trophy as the NHL's top goaltender that year and finished second in voting for the Hart Memorial Trophy as league MVP, behind Mario Lemieux and ahead of teammate Wayne Gretzky. He remained with the Oilers for the remainder of his career
Hall of Fame induction
Grant Fuhr was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 2, 2003. In the press at the time, it was frequently noted that Fuhr was the first black person inducted into the hall. Fuhr himself found the insistence on his race surprising for two reasons. Firstly, Fuhr never experienced any racism during his formative years in Spruce Grove, Alberta, or within the NHL. Secondly, Fuhr was adopted and raised by a white Canadian family.
Arguably, the focus on race took away from a ceremony remembering one of the greatest goaltenders in the history of hockey.
International play
Fuhr was named to the 1984 Canada Cup team but saw limited action during the tournament. Grant was again selected to represent Canada for the 1987 Canada Cup. It was here that he cemented his reputation as one of the best goaltenders in the game. Playing against a tough Soviet Union squad, Fuhr turned away shot after shot during the three-game final. He also played for Canada at the 1989 IIHF World Championships.
Awards
- Named to NHL Second All-Star Team in 1982
- Stanley Cup Champion 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990
- Canada Cup Champion 1984, 1987
- Named to NHL First All-Star Team in 1988
- Won Vezina Trophy in 1988
- Won William M. Jennings Trophy in 1994 (shared with Dominik Hašek)
- Participated in NHL All-Star Game in 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986 (MVP), 1988, 1989
- In 1997, he was ranked number 70 on List of 100 greatest hockey players by The Hockey News
Transactions
- Traded to Toronto by Edmonton with Glenn Anderson and Craig Berube for Vincent Damphousse, Peter Ing, Scott Thornton and Luke Richardson, September 19, 1991.
- Traded to Buffalo by Toronto with Toronto's 5th round choice (Kevin Popp) in 1995 Entry Draft for Dave Andreychuk, Daren Puppa and Buffalo's 1st round choice (Kenny Jönsson) in 1993 Entry Draft, February 2, 1993.
- Traded to Los Angeles by Buffalo with Philippe Boucher and Denis Tsygurov for Alexei Zhitnik, Robb Stauber, Charlie Huddy and Los Angeles' 5th round choice (Marian Menhart) in 1995 Entry Draft, February 14, 1995.
- Signed as a free agent by St. Louis, July 14, 1995.
- Traded to Calgary by St. Louis for Calgary's 3rd round choice (Justin Papineau) in 2000 Entry Draft, September 4, 1999.
- Officially announced retirement, September 6, 2000.
Career statistics
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | T | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979–80 | Victoria Cougars | WHL | 43 | 30 | 12 | 0 | 2488 | 130 | 3 | 3.14 | .911 |
| 1980–81 | Victoria Cougars | WHL | 59 | 48 | 9 | 1 | 3448 | 160 | 4 | 2.78 | .908 |
| 1981–82 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 48 | 28 | 5 | 14 | 2847 | 157 | 0 | 3.31 | .899 |
| 1982–83 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 32 | 13 | 12 | 5 | 1803 | 129 | 0 | 4.29 | .868 |
| 1982–83 | Moncton Alpines | AHL | 10 | - | - | - | 604 | 40 | 0 | 3.98 | - |
| 1983–84 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 45 | 30 | 10 | 4 | 2625 | 171 | 1 | 3.91 | .883 |
| 1984–85 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 46 | 26 | 8 | 7 | 2559 | 165 | 1 | 3.87 | .884 |
| 1985–86 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 40 | 29 | 8 | 0 | 2184 | 143 | 0 | 3.93 | .890 |
| 1986–87 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 44 | 22 | 13 | 3 | 2388 | 137 | 0 | 3.44 | .881 |
| 1987–88 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 75 | 40 | 24 | 9 | 4304 | 246 | 4 | 3.43 | .881 |
| 1988–89 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 59 | 23 | 26 | 6 | 3341 | 213 | 1 | 3.83 | .875 |
| 1989–90 | Cape Breton Oilers | AHL | 2 | 2 | - | - | 120 | 6 | 0 | 3.00 | .919 |
| 1989–90 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 21 | 9 | 7 | 3 | 1081 | 70 | 1 | 3.89 | .868 |
| 1990–91 | Cape Breton Oilers | AHL | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 240 | 17 | 0 | 4.25 | .870 |
| 1990–91 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 13 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 778 | 39 | 1 | 3.01 | .897 |
| 1991–92 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 65 | 25 | 33 | 5 | 3774 | 230 | 2 | 3.66 | .881 |
| 1992–93 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 29 | 13 | 9 | 4 | 1665 | 87 | 1 | 3.14 | .895 |
| 1992–93 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 29 | 11 | 15 | 2 | 1694 | 98 | 0 | 3.47 | .891 |
| 1993–94 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 310 | 10 | 0 | 1.94 | .935 |
| 1993–94 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 32 | 13 | 12 | 3 | 1726 | 106 | 2 | 3.68 | .883 |
| 1994–95 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 180 | 12 | 0 | 4.00 | .859 |
| 1994–95 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 14 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 698 | 47 | 0 | 4.04 | .876 |
| 1995–96 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 79 | 30 | 28 | 16 | 4365 | 209 | 3 | 2.87 | .903 |
| 1996–97 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 73 | 33 | 27 | 11 | 4261 | 193 | 3 | 2.72 | .901 |
| 1997–98 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 58 | 29 | 21 | 6 | 3274 | 138 | 3 | 2.53 | .883 |
| 1998–99 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 39 | 16 | 11 | 8 | 2193 | 89 | 2 | 2.44 | .892 |
| 1999–00 | Saint John Flames | AHL | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 99 | 10 | 0 | 6.05 | .839 |
| 1999–00 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 23 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 1205 | 77 | 0 | 3.83 | .856 |
| NHL totals | 868 | 403 | 295 | 114 | 48,924 | 2,756 | 25 | 3.38 | — | ||
External links
| Preceded by Ron Hextall |
Winner of the Vezina Trophy 1988 |
Succeeded by Patrick Roy |
| Edmonton Oilers first-round draft picks | |
|---|---|
| WHA: Rogers • Soetaert • Dean • Chapman • Federko • Crossbeen NHL: Lowe • Coffey • Fuhr • Playfair • Beukeboom • Odelein • Metcalfe • Issel • Soberlak • Leroux • Soules • Allison • Wright • Rucinsky • Hulbig • Arnott • Stajduhar • Bonsignore • Smyth • Kelly • Devereaux • Descoteaux • Riesen • Henrich • Rita • Mikhnov • Hemsky • Niinimaki • Pouliot • Dubnyk • Schremp • Cogliano • Gagner • Plante • Nash
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