"What pitching is in a short series in baseball, goaltending is in the Stanley Cup playoffs." ~ Jack Adams

"The man in the net makes the difference. Without the goaltender, you don't have diddly." ~ Art Berglund, Director of National Team for USA Hockey

"I just made up my mind I was going to lose teeth and have my face cut to pieces. It was easy." ~ Johnny Bower, on deciding to be a goalie.

"He's got two legs, two arms, and a mask." ~ John Brophy, Maple Leafs coach, asked if he did any scouting of goalie Jeff Reese before calling him up from the minors.

"It's like a tradesman. You don't see too many cabinetmakers anymore these days. It's an art. It's a unique trade." ~ Doug Carpenter, Maple Leafs coach, discussing the effect of NHL expansion on the overall quality of goaltending

"We goaltenders tend to be very proud bastards." ~ Gerry Cheevers

"Yeah, I figure if I read enough about myself, my head will get bigger and I'll be able to stop more shots with it." ~ Tim Cheveldae, Red Wings goalie, asked if he was reading about himself in the paper.

"All of us in Washington can appreciate what goalies do -- we have so many shots taken at us. I wish that as well as a gift jersey, you'd lend me a face mask for the next year or so." ~ President Clinton, receiving a jersey from the Rangers after they won the Stanley Cup

"Gamble has faced more shots then you see at last call." ~ John Davidson, after Canucks goalie Troy Gamble faced 42 shots in a game

"He was younger, so he had to be the goalie." ~ Phil Esposito, on his brother Tony

"The pressure is unreal. Most of the goalkeepers, they feel the pressure. The only ones that don't worry are the ones too dumb to understand what's happening to them." ~ Tony Esposito

"Well, at least it's a good way to break in equipment." ~ Grant Fuhr, on giving up a lot of goals after joining the Maples Leafs.

"It's a good news -- bad news type of situation. The good news is that we won; the bad news is that my average is 9.00." ~ John Garrett, Canucks goalie after winning the first game of the season, 10-9.

"Quit while there is still time - at about 12 or 13 years of age." ~ Gilles Gratton, advice to kids who want to be goalies

"Sixty minutes of hell." Glenn Hall, on goaltending

"If you're thinking three or four or five plays ahead, you're not finding goaltending interesting." ~ Glenn Hall

"Playing goal is a winter of torture for me. I often look at the guys who can whistle before a game and shake my head. You'd think they didn't have a care in the world. Me? I'm just plain miserable before every game." ~ Glenn Hall

"Only Dunlop has seen more rubber then I have." ~ Dominik Hasek

"It's like the parting of the Red Sea. He gives them an opening, but most of the scorers wind up drowning." ~ Paul Halmgren, on a hot streak of Sean Burke

"The quintessential bad-luck position. Pucks can go off bodies, skates, bounce into the net." ~ Mike Liut

"No, but I considered putting both in at once." ~ Barry Long, Jet's coach asked after a bad loss if he considered changing goalies

"Goatenders not only have to stop the shots, but players flying at them as well." Harry Neale, on the hazards of the job

"Trying to get him to make the first move is like pushing over the Washington Monument." Lester Patrick, on Frank Brimsek

"In hockey, a goalie does nothing that other people do. Except for his sweater, he even dresses differently, right down to his skates." ~ Muzz Patrick

"If a goaltender makes a mistake, the red light goes on over him. And believe me, some nights you get sunburned out there with the lights, burning so much over you." ~ Pete Peeters

"Goaltending is a normal job. Sure! How would like it in your job if every time to made a small mistake a red light went on over your desk and 15,000 people stood up and yelled at you." ~ Jacques Plante

"I got one thing to say, gentlemen. I didn't have a good night." ~ Terry Sawchuck, after giving up six goals in the first game of the 1967 Stanley Cup finals

"Goaltending is to hockey like putting is to golf. It really has no relationship to the rest of the game." ~ Harry Sinden

"There is no position in sports as noble as that of goaltending." ~ Vladimir Tretiak, legendary Russian goalie

"In hockey, goaltending is 75 percent of the game. Unless it's bad goaltending. Then it's 100 percent of the game, because you're going to lose." ~ Gene Ubriaco

"Yes, and I also like jumping out of tall buildings." ~ John Vanbiesbrouck, asked if he liked facing 51 shots in a game.

"The only job worse is a javelin catcher at a track-and-field meet." ~ Gump Worsley, on goaltending

"Being a goaltender is not a job that would interest any normal, straight-thinking human." ~ Gump Worsley

"I'd like to hear them be more creative, though. I've heard, 'You're a sieve, you stink,' my whole life and you can tell it's obviously affected me." ~ Ryan Miller on fan heckling.