Arturs Irbe Artūrs Irbe ( born February 2 , 1967 ) is a Latvian professional goaltender , currently an unrestricted free agent who played for the San Jose Sharks , Dallas Stars , Vancouver Canucks , and Carolina Hurricanes in the National Hockey League . Playing career . Artūrs Irbe was drafted in the 10th round , 196th overall by the Minnesota North Stars in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft . His first professional hockey team was Dinamo Riga of the Soviet Hockey League ( from 1987 to 1991 ) . After playing in only 2 games during the 1986 – 1987 season Irbe got a chance to become Dinamo Riga ' s number one goaltender during the 1987 – 1988 season when their starting goaltender and Olympic champion , Vitaliy Samoylov went down with a long term injury . In his only full professional season , Irbe was outstanding in helping Dinamo Riga make it to the finals of the Soviet Hockey League where they eventually lost to perennial Soviet champions CSKA Moscow . During this period he also played for the Soviet Union in the World Championships in 1989 and 1990 . The Soviet team won those two championships and Irbe was honoured as the best goalkeeper of the 1990 tournament . He refused to play for the Soviet Union in 1991 because Latvia had proclaimed independence from the Soviet Union on May 4 , 1990 and the Soviet government attempted to use military force in January 1991 to stop Latvia ' s independence . In the 1988 – 89 season Irbe travelled to North America with his then club Dinamo Riga to play in a series of exhibition games against NHL teams . The next season ( 1989 – 90 ) he was temporarily added to the CSKA Moscow team during an exhibition tour of North America . His NHL career began in 1991 . His first NHL team was the San Jose Sharks , he played with them from 1991 – 92 to 1995 – 96 . With Irbe between the pipes , the newly established Sharks made their first playoff appearance in the 1993 – 94 season and upset the top - seeded Detroit Red Wings . That season Irbe played an NHL record 4412 minutes between the pipes for the Sharks . Irbe , affectionately known as Archie , was nicknamed " The Wall " and became a cult figure in San Jose , a status he enjoys there to this day . Following an injury ( his hand being mauled by his pet dog in the offseason ) and a poor 1995 – 96 season , Irbe was released by the Sharks . For the next two years , he was a backup goaltender for the Dallas Stars and the Vancouver Canucks until he became the starter for the Carolina Hurricanes in the 1998 – 99 . Irbe was picked to be a member of the " World " NHL All - Star team in 1998 – 1999 season , where he became the first goalie to record an assist in an NHL All - Star game . The highest point of his career with the Hurricanes was 2001 – 02 when Irbe was instrumental in leading the Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup finals where they fell to the Detroit Red Wings . In June 2004 he was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets , but never played with the club due to that year ' s NHL Lockout . After the lockout that cancelled the 2004 – 2005 season , Arturs played for HK Riga 2000 in Latvia and EC Red Bulls Salzburg in Austria . Recently , he signed with HK Dynamax Nitra playing in the Slovak Ice Hockey Extraliga , but he decided to leave after his unsatisfactory results . He is notable on the ice for his helmet and padding - he has worn them almost continuously since his NHL debut for the Sharks - which are creased and scuffed with puck marks , stains , and tears . He has earned the nickname " Michelin Man " as a result . In the 2006 Olympics in Turin , Irbe was Latvia ' s flag - bearer in the opening ceremonies . He is divorced from his wife Ilze , and currently lives in Riga , Latvia . Irbe currently works as goalkeeper coach for Dinamo Riga . Arturs Irbe is also a member of board of directors of the Kids First Fund , a non - profit organization based in the United States which raises money for projects assisting abused and abandoned children in Latvia ( www . KidsFirstFund . org ) . International play . Played for Latvia in :