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Carolina Hurricanes: Ghosts of Goaltenders Past

By Jeb Bohn

27 Nov 2001: Goaltender Tom Barrasso #35 of the Carolina Huricanes guards the net during the NHL game against the Toronto Malple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada. The Hurricanes defeated the Maple Leafs 5-2. Mandatory Copyright Notice: 2001 NHLI Mandatory Credit: Dave Sandford/Getty Images/NHLI
27 Nov 2001: Goaltender Tom Barrasso #35 of the Carolina Huricanes guards the net during the NHL game against the Toronto Malple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada. The Hurricanes defeated the Maple Leafs 5-2. Mandatory Copyright Notice: 2001 NHLI Mandatory Credit: Dave Sandford/Getty Images/NHLI /
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20 Nov 1997: Eric Fichaud #1 of the New York Islanders in action during a game against the New Jersey Devils at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Devils defeated the Islanders 5-1. Mandatory Credit: Al Bello /Allsport
20 Nov 1997: Eric Fichaud #1 of the New York Islanders in action during a game against the New Jersey Devils at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Devils defeated the Islanders 5-1. Mandatory Credit: Al Bello /Allsport /

Eric Fichaud

Eric Fichaud (drafted 16th overall by Toronto in 1994) was traded before he played a single game on NHL ice.  Ten months after he was drafted, the Maple Leafs sent Fichaud to the New York Islanders where he spent three unremarkable seasons before landing in Nashville.  He went 0-6 with the Predators, posting a sub .900 save percentage.

In the summer of 1999, Fichaud was on the move yet again, dealt to the Carolina Hurricanes for a 4th round pick.  I would say that it was a drastic overpayment, but the player that Nashville took with that pick (Yevgeny Pavlov) never played a game in the NHL.

While Fichaud pitched a shutout in a 4-0 win against the Islanders, his short tenure with the Hurricanes had more lows than highs.  The best example of this was a 6-0 thumping at the hands of the team that had drafted him, a game where Fichaud surrendered 6 goals on 26 shots (that’s a .769 SV% for those of you keeping score).

Fichaud was placed on waivers in early 2000 and grabbed by the Montreal Canadiens, for no other reason than him being French Canadian.  He spent the remainder of his career playing in the AHL and QNAHL while managing to squeeze in a stint in Germany.  He did manage to get into 2 games with Montreal, but they were even worse than what he managed with the Hurricanes.

Reflections: While it’s always fun to play fast and loose with history, it’s worth noting a few players that were taken in 1994 long after Fichaud (and yes, I realize that none of these guys were a given to reach the levels that they did):

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