Background History
The Vezina Trophy was first presented in 1927 in memory of Georges Vézina, the Montreal Canadiens goaltender who collapsed during a game on 28 November 1925 and died of tuberculosis a few months later at the age of 39. The trophy was donated by Canadiens owners Leo Dandurand, Louis Letourneau and Joe Cattarinich.
Criteria
The original criteria for the Vezina Trophy was unclear, although it was usually awarded to the goaltender with the best goals-against average. Newspapers at the time reported that it was awarded to the “outstanding” or most valuable goaltender in the league, or to the goaltender with the lowest average.
In 1946, the NHL clarified the criteria for the Vezina Trophy, which would be awarded to the main goalie for the team that had allowed the fewest goals in the regular season. However, as the game evolved, and teams regularly employed more than one goalie, the criteria for the Vezina Trophy changed as well. In 1965, the league allowed goaltenders to share the award, as long as they had each played at least 25 games for the team (e.g., Johnny Bower and Terry Sawchuk of the Toronto Maple Leafs shared the trophy for the 1964–65 season). On one occasion, goaltenders from different teams shared the award: in 1973–74, the Philadelphia Flyers and Chicago Black Hawks tied for the lowest number of goals against, so the trophy was presented to both Bernie Parent and Tony Esposito.
Since the 1981–82 season, the Vezina Trophy has been awarded to the league’s outstanding goalie, as determined by a poll of all NHL general managers. Since 1982, the league has awarded the William M. Jennings Trophy to the goalie(s) with at least 25 games on the team that allowed the fewest goals.
Notable Winners
Jacques Plante won the Vezina Trophy seven times, including five consecutive trophies between 1956 and 1960. In 1969, he shared the award with Glenn Hall. Bill Durnan and Dominik Hasek won the Vezina Trophy six times, followed by Ken Dryden with five, and Terry Sawchuk, Martin Brodeur, Michel Larocque and Cecil Ralph “Tiny” Thompson with four. Canadiens goaltenders have won the most Vezina Trophies with 29.
Vezina Trophy Winners
Year | Player | Team |
1927 | George Hainsworth | Montreal Canadiens |
1928 | George Hainsworth | Montreal Canadiens |
1929 | George Hainsworth | Montreal Canadiens |
1930 | Cecil Ralph “Tiny” Thompson | Boston Bruins |
1931 | Roy Worters | New York Americans |
1932 | Charlie “Chuck Gardiner | Chicago Black Hawks |
1933 | Cecil Ralph “Tiny” Thompson | Boston Bruins |
1934 | Charlie “Chuck Gardiner | Chicago Black Hawks |
1935 | Lorne Chabot | Chicago Black Hawks |
1936 | Cecil Ralph “Tiny” Thompson | Boston Bruins |
1937 | Normie Smith | Detroit Red Wings |
1938 | Cecil Ralph “Tiny” Thompson | Boston Bruins |
1939 | Frank Brimsek | Boston Bruins |
1940 | Dave Kerr | New York Rangers |
1941 | Walter “Turk” Broda | Toronto Maple Leafs |
1942 | Frank Brimsek | Boston Bruins |
1943 | Johnny Mowers | Detroit Red Wings |
1944 | Bill Durnan | Montreal Canadiens |
1945 | Bill Durnan | Montreal Canadiens |
1946 | Bill Durnan | Montreal Canadiens |
1947 | Bill Durnan | Montreal Canadiens |
1948 | Walter “Turk” Broda | Toronto Maple Leafs |
1949 | Bill Durnan | Montreal Canadiens |
1950 | Bill Durnan | Montreal Canadiens |
1951 | Al Rollins | Toronto Maple Leafs |
1952 | Terry Sawchuk | Detroit Red Wings |
1953 | Terry Sawchuk | Detroit Red Wings |
1954 | Harry Lumley | Toronto Maple Leafs |
1955 | Terry Sawchuk | Detroit Red Wings |
1956 | Jacques Plante | Montreal Canadiens |
1957 | Jacques Plante | Montreal Canadiens |
1958 | Jacques Plante | Montreal Canadiens |
1959 | Jacques Plante | Montreal Canadiens |
1960 | Jacques Plante | Montreal Canadiens |
1961 | Johnny Bower | Toronto Maple Leafs |
1962 | Jacques Plante | Montreal Canadiens |
1963 | Glenn Hall | Chicago Black Hawks |
1964 | Charlie Hodge | Montreal Canadiens |
1965 | Johnny Bower/Terry Sawchuk | Toronto Maple Leafs |
1966 | Lorne John “Gump” Worsley/Charlie Hodge | Montreal Canadiens |
1967 | Glenn Hall/Denis DeJordy | Chicago Black Hawks |
1968 | Lorne John “Gump” Worsley/Rogatien “Rogie” Vachon | Montreal Canadiens |
1969 | Glenn Hall/Jacques Plante | St. Louis Blues |
1970 | Tony Esposito | Chicago Black Hawks |
1971 | Ed Giacomin/Gilles Villemure | New York Rangers |
1972 | Tony Esposito/Gary Smith | Chicago Black Hawks |
1973 | Ken Dryden | Montreal Canadiens |
1974 |
Tony Esposito
Bernie Parent |
Chicago Black Hawks
Philadelphia Flyers |
1975 | Bernie Parent | Philadelphia Flyers |
1976 | Ken Dryden | Montreal Canadiens |
1977 | Ken Dryden/Michel Larocque | Montreal Canadiens |
1978 | Ken Dryden/Michel Larocque | Montreal Canadiens |
1979 | Ken Dryden/Michel Larocque | Montreal Canadiens |
1980 | Don Edwards/Bob Sauve | Buffalo Sabres |
1981 | Denis Herron/Michel Larocque/Richard Sevigny | Montreal Canadiens |
1982 | Billy Smith | New York Islanders |
1983 | Pete Peeters | Boston Bruins |
1984 | Tom Barrasso | Buffalo Sabres |
1985 | Pelle Lindbergh | Philadelphia Flyers |
1986 | John Vanbiesbrouck | New York Rangers |
1987 | Ron Hextall | Philadelphia Flyers |
1988 | Grant Fuhr | Edmonton Oilers |
1989 | Patrick Roy | Montreal Canadiens |
1990 | Patrick Roy | Montreal Canadiens |
1991 | Ed Belfour | Chicago Blackhawks |
1992 | Patrick Roy | Montreal Canadiens |
1993 | Ed Belfour | Chicago Blackhawks |
1994 | Dominik Hasek | Buffalo Sabres |
1995 | Dominik Hasek | Buffalo Sabres |
1996 | Jim Carey | Washington Capitals |
1997 | Dominik Hasek | Buffalo Sabres |
1998 | Dominik Hasek | Buffalo Sabres |
1999 | Dominik Hasek | Buffalo Sabres |
2000 | Olaf Kolzig | Washington Capitals |
2001 | Dominik Hasek | Buffalo Sabres |
2002 | Jose Theodore | Montreal Canadiens |
2003 | Martin Brodeur | New Jersey Devils |
2004 | Martin Brodeur | New Jersey Devils |
2005 | Season cancelled due to lockout | |
2006 | Miikka Kiprusoff | Calgary Flames |
2007 | Martin Brodeur | New Jersey Devils |
2008 | Martin Brodeur | New Jersey Devils |
2009 | Tim Thomas | Boston Bruins |
2010 | Ryan Miller | Buffalo Sabres |
2011 | Tim Thomas | Boston Bruins |
2012 | Henrik Lundqvist | New York Rangers |
2013 | Sergei Bobrovsky | Columbus Blue Jackets |
2014 | Tuukka Rask | Boston Bruins |
2015 | Carey Price | Montreal Canadiens |
2016 | Braden Holtby | Washington Capitals |
2017 | Sergei Bobrovsky | Columbus Blue Jackets |
2018 | Pekka Rinne | Nashville Predators |
2019 | Andrei Vasilevskiy | Tampa Bay Lightning |
2020 | Connor Hellebuyck | Winnipeg Jets |
2021 | Marc-André Fleury | Vegas Golden Knights |
2022 | Igor Shesterkin | New York Rangers |
2023 | Linus Ullmark | Boston Bruins |
2024 | Connor Hellebuyck | Winnipeg Jets |