Vesa Toskala Vesa Tapani Toskala ( born on May 20 , 1977 in Tampere , Finland ) , is a retired professional ice hockey goaltender that played for the San Jose Sharks Toronto Maple Leafs and Calgary Flames . He is a butterfly style goaltender . Early career . Toskala was selected by San Jose in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft ( 4th round , 90th overall ) . The Sharks also took fellow Finn Miikka Kiprusoff in the fifth round . Toskala turned heads with his stellar play in the 1998 – 99 season with Ilves of the SM - liiga , where he went 21 - 12 - 0 with a 2 . 14 GAA and a 0 . 916 save percentage and posted five shutouts . The next season , playing a style that modeled after Markus Korhonen he played with Färjestads BK of the Swedish Elitserien and posted an impressive 2 . 59 GAA . In one game with Färjestad , Toskala scored a goal . At this point , Toskala was not sure if he wanted to have a career in hockey . Wanting a more stable job , he was going to quit hockey altogether to go to school full - time , before San Jose enticed him to North America . He holds the San Jose Club record as the only goalie to record a multiple point game as he tallied two assists against Chicago on February 3 , 2007 . North American career . In his first season in North America in 2000 – 01 , he played with the Kentucky Thoroughblades of the AHL . Splitting time with second - year - pro Kiprusoff , he played 44 games , going 22 - 13 - 5 with a 2 . 77 GAA and a 0 . 911 save percentage , quickly adapting to the North American game and played three games for Kentucky in the playoffs . The next year , after the team ' s move to Cleveland he took over the starting role after Kiprusoff was recalled to San Jose , and in 62 games went 19 - 33 - 7 with a 2 . 99 GAA and a 0 . 912 save percentage . That season he led the league in games played and saves made ( 1 , 845 ) . When Kiprusoff fell to injury , Toskala was called up to back - up Evgeni Nabokov . Toskala received ten minutes of playing time in his first stint in the NHL , where he stopped the two shots he faced . San Jose Sharks . In the 2002 – 03 NHL season , Nabokov and San Jose could not settle on a contract and Toskala served as Kiprusoff ' s backup . When Kiprusoff faltered , Toskala stepped in and played admirably , going 4 - 3 - 1 with a 2 . 35 GAA and a 0 . 927 save percentage . He earned his first shutout in a 25 - save - effort against the Detroit Red Wings . When Nabokov was re - signed , Toskala was sent back to Cleveland , and he struggled going 15 - 30 - 2 , with a 3 . 21 GAA and a 0 . 903 save percentage . Nonetheless , the Sharks brass remembered Toskala ' s stellar play in the big league , and at the end of the season , they recalled Toskala , meaning the Sharks now had three goaltenders on their roster . Since Nabokov was the established starter , Kiprusoff and Toskala fought for the backup position , and Toskala won the battle when Kiprusoff was traded to the Calgary Flames . When Kiprusoff enjoyed tremendous success in Calgary , leading them to the Stanley Cup finals , many believed that since San Jose had picked Toskala over Kiprusoff , Toskala could be even better . That season , playing in 28 games , Toskala went 12 - 8 - 4 with a 2 . 06 GAA and a 0 . 930 save percentage . He did not play in the playoffs . 2005 – 06 proved to be a career year for Toskala ; he began as the backup to Nabokov , but after a start on February 8 he posted a record of 17 - 2 - 2 leading to a Stanley Cup playoff berth for the Sharks . Toskala ' s goals - against - average fell from 3 . 25 to 2 . 55 , while his save percentage increased from 0 . 872 to . 900 . This earned him the nickname " The Finnish Horse " from Shark ' s broadcaster Dan Rusanowsky . Toskala ' s play earned him several accolades and relegated Nabokov to the role of backup goaltender . On February 27 , the Sharks resigned Toskala to a two - year contract extension worth US $ 2 . 75 million . Toskala finished the playoffs with 2 . 45 goals - against - average and a 0 . 910 save percentage . Since both Toskala and Nabokov were seen as number one goalies , the Sharks attempted to trade one or the other before the season began . No trade occurred , and Ron Wilson opted to alternate starts between Toskala and Nabokov . Through 71 games , Toskala played in 35 games , starting 31 and posting a 2 . 45 GAA , along with 3 shutouts . Nabokov got the nod after that , and played in San Jose ' s remaining regular season and playoff games . Toronto Maple Leafs . On June 22 , the first day of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft weekend in Columbus , Ohio , Sharks general manager Doug Wilson traded Toskala along with forward Mark Bell to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for the club ' s 2007 1st ( 13th overall , which was later traded to the St . Louis Blues ) and 2nd round draft picks , as well as Toronto ' s 4th round pick in 2009 . The Toronto Maple Leafs signed Toskala to a four year contract with the team worth 4 million dollars a season in July 2007 . He and Andrew Raycroft shared starts until late November , when Toskala ' s GAA and save percentage improved dramatically . He recorded two shutouts in December , and the NHL named him best goaltender of the month . On March 18 , 2008 in a match against the New York Islanders , Toskala suffered an embarrassing blunder . The Islander ' s Rob Davison attempted to clear the puck out of the Defensive Zone , because of a Penalty . The shot , from 197 feet away bounced 5 times before bouncing over Toskala ' s glove and into the net . In the 2009 NHL regular season opener on October 9 , 2008 , the official scoresheet between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings listed Vesa Toskala as the Maple Leafs captain . Coach Ron Wilson stated that the scoresheet was a mistake . On March 4 , 2009 , Toskala announced that he would be undergoing season - ending surgery to repair a torn labrum ; the Maple Leafs claimed goalie Martin Gerber off of re - entry waivers to replace him .