'TONY O' 1943-2021

TONY ESPOSITO

With NHL news curtailed to mostly late off-season free agent signings, the hockey world learnt of the passing of former Chicago Blackhawks legend, Tony Esposito, earlier this month at the age of 78.

"To the Blackhawks and the National Hockey League, Tony Esposito was a Hall of Fame goalie," began a statement from the Esposito family. "To us, he was a hall of fame husband, father, and grandfather. Chicago felt like home from the time Tony first arrived in 1969, thanks to the Wirtz family and those 18,000 Blackhawks fans who treated him like family every night at the Stadium win or lose or tie. As we mourn Tony's passing, we cherish the memories and the affection, when he was a player and later an ambassador. We are forever grateful for your support, and we feel blessed now to have your prayers at a difficult time. Tony was a private person, but he felt your love and he loved you back."

Prior to going the Chicago Blackhawks, Tony Esposito began his NHL journey with the Montreal Canadiens. He was signed by Montreal (Cleveland-AHL) in 1967. His pathway to Montreal included stops at Michigan Tech (1964 to 1967) and one season in 1967-68 with the Vancouver Canucks of the Western Hockey League.

At the Canadiens' training camp in September 1968, Esposito impressed new coach Claude Ruel, who took over from Toe Blake, by recording two shutouts in the first four practice scrimmages. With veteran Gump Worsley and Rogatien Vachon clearly established as the tandem between the pipes, Esposito was dispatched to the Houston Apollos of the Central Hockey League. His partner in the cage at Houston  was another Montreal prospect, Phil Myre.

On November 27, 1968, with Gump Worsley unavailable due to his fear of flying, Esposito was on the bench when the Los Angeles Kings hosted the Canadiens. On the way to Los Angeles, and unable to continue on the flight westbound, Worsley departed the plane in Chicago and boarded a train destined back to Montreal.

Montreal continued their west coast trip with a game in Oakland against the Seals on November 29. This contest marked Esposito's first appearance in an NHL regular season game. When Rogatien Vachon was felled by a shot that bruised an area above his right eye, Esposito entered the game at the 14:13 mark of the second period. He gave up Oakland's final two goals in their 5-4 upset over Montreal. 

With Tony Esposito now in the NHL, eyes were on the NHL schedule to see when the Canadiens next faced the Bruins. The dream matchup would feature the younger Esposito against his brother, Phil, a sniper with the Boston Bruins. At the conclusion of the season in 1968-69, Phil Esposito had racked up 49 goals in 74 outings. 

The stars were aligned on December 5, when Montreal and Boston tangled at the Garden. This was no ordinary game. Where else on the calendar could you find a contest which pitted one brother, a prolific goal scorer, against his sibling, who was starting his career as an NHL goalie?

When the game came to a close, the crowd went home having witnessed both Tony and Phil at their best. In a 2-2 tie, Phil scored both Boston goals against his brother, and Tony kept his team in the contest with several key saves.

Asked if he was nervous going head-to-head with his brother, Tony stated, "I was just worked up. I have to be that way all the time or I'm useless." 

During their post-game talk, Tony asked Phil, "What's the big idea? It's bad enough that you got one goal, but two, that's ridiculous."

Esposito's first notch in the victory column came on December 7, 1968, at the Forum. Fuelled by Bobby Rousseau's two goals, Montreal defeated Chicago by a score of 6 to 3. 

On January 27, 1969, Esposito was sent back to the Houston Apollos when Gump Worsley returned to the line-up.

Come playoff time, the Canadiens recalled Esposito and Myre to be available should Worsley or Vachon not be ready for action. The Habs were prepared for another extended run as they were defending Stanley Cup champions. 

After eliminating the New York Rangers in the quarter-finals, Montreal faced Boston in the semi-finals. In game three at Boston Garden, Worsley suffered an injury to his left hand. Down a goalie, the Canadiens went with Esposito as Vachon's back-up. Montreal advanced to the Stanley Cup final after taking the Bruins in six games. In the final, they swept the St. Louis Blues and Tony Esposito won his lone Cup as a player.

At the NHL draft in June, the Canadiens, with a full stable of netminders-Worsley, Vachon, Esposito, Myre-decided to expose Esposito. As a result, he was picked by Chicago in the first round. This allowed Montreal to put Peter Mahovlich back on their protected list. To make room for Esposito, the Hawks made goalie Jack Norris available. The last move in this chess match between Montreal and Chicago saw the Canadiens purchase Norris for the draft price of $30,000.

I wrote about Tony Esposito's first season with Chicago in a previous story in Hockey Then & Now. Here is the text:

In what only can be described as a spectacular rookie campaign, Esposito left little doubt he was ready for a starting job in the NHL. In 63 contests, he led the league with 38 wins to go along with 17 losses and 8 ties.

But the stat that jumps out of the page is Esposito's 15 shutouts. This set the modern record for most shutouts by a rookie NHL goalie. 

Tony Esposito's moment to enter the record book came on March 29, 1970, at Chicago Stadium. The visitors that night were the Toronto Maple Leafs. He only faced 23 shots in Chicago's 4-0 win, but as one newspaper story noted, "Tony Esposito, the rookie goaltender, included fantastic saves in his repertoire, on the few occasions that the Leafs made it necessary."

After the game, Esposito talked about his record breaking performance.

"It was a team effort. We controlled the game from the opening faceoff. My shutout was not significant."

Esposito was asked to recall when he became aware he was on the verge of making history. "Not until late in the game," he told reporters. The result is the important thing, not the score."

When the regular season came to a conclusion, Esposito was rewarded for his accomplishments between the pipes. He was named the winner of the Calder Memorial Trophy as the top rookie, the Vezina Trophy for fewest goals against, and was named the goalie for the First All-Star Team. His brother, Phil Esposito of the Boston Bruins, joined him on the First Team at centre.

*  * *

Tony Esposito tended goal for 15 seasons with Chicago, before hanging up his pads at the age of 41. The Hawks decided to go in another direction and didn't invite him to training camp in September 1984.

His combined totals with Montreal and Chicago shows Esposito was in the crease for 886 games (52585-minutes) and he finished with 423-306-151 record. Esposito posted 76 regular season shutouts and 2.92 goals-against-average. 

A list of Esposito's achievements reveals how vital he was to the Hawks. After his brilliant rookie campaign, Esposito went on to capture two more Vezina Trophies, and was named to the First-All Star Team an additional two-times, and was a Second Team All-Star twice. He played in a total of six All-Star Games. He led all NHL goalies in wins in 1969-70 with 38, and in 1970-71 with 35. In the category of shutouts, he was tops in 1969-70 with 15, in 1971-72 with 9, and in 1979-80 with 6. Between 1969-70 and 1975-76, Esposito recorded 30 or more wins. In 1971-72, he led the NHL with a goals-against-average of 1.77 (GAA)

In the post-season, Esposito backstopped his team to two appearances (1971 & 1973) in the Stanley Cup final. On each occasion, the Hawks fell to the Montreal Canadiens. Looking back, he said, "I just wish we could have won it all for these fans." In 99 playoff games with Chicago, Esposito went 45-53 with 6 shutouts and a 3.07 GAA.

One of the greatest thrills any player can experience is being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. There was little chance Esposito would be kept out of the exclusive club. On June13, 1988, it was announced that Esposito was voted into the Hall as an Honoured Member along with Guy Lafleur, Buddy O'Connor, and Brad Park. 

His induction meant Tony and Phil would be in hockey's shrine. Phil Esposito was part of the class of 1984. "I admire Phil very much, so it's very special for me to be in the Hall of Fame with him," stated Esposito at the time. Tony's dry sense of humour came through as he continued. "There was never any doubt that Phil would make it. I wasn't so sure about myself. In order to get in, you have to do something beyond the call of duty." 

Later that year, the Hawks honoured Esposito when his number 35 was retired in a ceremony held at Chicago Stadium on November 20, 1988. The number 35 was unique given the fact most goalies wore number 1 or number 30. Also, Glenn Hall's number 1 was retired during the event.

On February 6, 2008, Esposito was welcomed back to the family fold when Chicago named him a team ambassador. "I'm very proud of having played for the Blackhawks and happy to be back involved in this capacity," stated Esposito. "To me it's a great honour to be involved with the Hawks."

The next tribute for Esposito took place on March 19, 2008, when Tony Esposito was celebrated at the Stadium. With brother Phil in attendance, Tony wore his Hawks jersey and donned his goalie mask as the crowd saluted him. Made of white fibreglass, with white wiring protecting the eye area, the mask was unique and clearly identifiable with Esposito.

Any talk relating to Tony Esposito, the goalie, must include his distinctive style of play. Esposito used the butterfly to fend off opponents. The creator of this technique was Chicago legend, Glenn Hall. In this position, Esposito had two options to stop a shot. First, his stick was situated to block shots and with his skates/pads in a "V" shape (the butterfly), they were extended towards the goalposts to provide better coverage.

Recently acquired Blackhawks' goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury, noted Esposito's butterfly style when he posted a statement on Twitter. "Tony had a huge impact on the National Hockey League and fans of the Chicago Blackhawks as a legend in net. He paved the way for the next generation of butterfly goalies with his style of play and success stopping pucks. I hope the Espositos know I'm proud to be following in his footsteps as a Blackhawk netminder."

When selected to play for Team Canada in the 1972 Summit Series against the USSR, Esposito was solid in the four games coach Harry Sinden pencilled him in for action. After Team Canada's stunning 7-3 loss in game one at the Montreal Forum, Esposito got the call to replace Ken Dryden in game two. At Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, Esposito out duelled fellow goalie Vladislav Tertiak and sparkled in Canada's 4-1 victory. His next appearance was in game three at Winnipeg that ended in a 4-4 draw. Esposito's only loss happened in game five at Moscow's Luzhniki Sports Palace. After the visitors built up a 3-0 lead in the first forty-minutes, the USSR outscored Canada 5-1 in the final frame and collected a 5-4 win. His final turn in the net was in game seven, which Canada won 4-3. Esposito was on the bench when Team Canada captured what many call the greatest series of hockey played in game eight.

After becoming a citizen of the United States, Esposito suited up for Team USA in the 1981 Canada Cup. In five games, he won two contests and lost 3. 

In the management side of the business, Esposito served as general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins and as chief scout for the Tampa Lightning. In Tampa, Tony worked under Phil, who was the team's GM.

"I had played against Chicago and thought they had the makings of a real competitive team," said Esposito in 2008. "It seemed like a great opportunity, and it was." 

A great opportunity for Esposito and all those who followed our great game of hockey.

Tony Esposito was born on April 23, 1943, in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. "I lost a very close friend today and one of the best goalies ever-Tony Esposito," wrote former Minnesota North Stars defenceman, Lou Nanne, on Twitter. Nanne and Esposito were part of a close-knit group of friends from the Soo that went on to play in the NHL. "Our condolences go out to Marilyn (Tony's wife) and family."

Tony Esposito died on August 10, 2021. The cause of death was pancreatic cancer.