Curtis Joseph

**Curtis Shayne Joseph** (né Munro; born April 29, 1967) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played parts of 19 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, Phoenix Coyotes, and Calgary Flames. Joseph was nicknamed "**Cujo**" by fans after he painted vicious dogs on his mask based on the 1981 Stephen King novel, *Cujo*.

He is a three-time All-Star and was the winner of the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in 2000. Internationally, he played for Canada and won the gold medal with them at the Winter Olympics in 2002.

## Career
Before playing in the NHL, Joseph played one year with the Wisconsin Badgers of the Big Ten Conference (B1G).

He was not drafted by an NHL team. On June 16, 1989, Joseph signed an entry-level contract to join the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). On January 2, 1990, Joseph made his NHL debut in a 6–4 loss against the Edmonton Oilers. He made 17 saves in the game. On January 30, Joseph earned his first NHL Win, stopping 24 shots in a 2–1 win against the New York Islanders. He was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy and helped the Blues during the 1993 playoffs. They defeated and swept the Chicago Blackhawks. This was seen as an upset victory since the Blackhawks were the Clarence Campbell Conference champions at the time. They were eventually defeated by the Toronto Maple Leafs four games to three in the semi-finals.

On August 4, 1995, the Blues traded Joseph and the rights to Mike Grier to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a 1996 first-round pick and a 1997 first-round pick. On January 11, 1996, Curtis Joseph signed a three-year, $6.9 million contract to join the Oilers. He played parts of three seasons with the team.

On July 15, 1998, Joseph signed a four-year, $24 million contract to join the Toronto Maple Leafs. He had a very successful tenure with the Leafs. He 
He was a runner-up for the Vezina Trophy in 1999 and 2000, a finalist for the Lester B. Pearson Award in 1999, and was the winner of the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in 2000. He helped the Leafs during the playoffs, defeating the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. They were eventually defeated by the Philadelphia Flyers four games to one in the Eastern Conference final. He helped the Leafs again during the playoffs the next year, defeating the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators. They were eventually defeated by the Carolina Hurricanes four games to two in the Eastern Conference final.

On June 30, 2002, the Leafs traded the rights to Joseph to the Calgary Flames in exchange for a 2004 eighth-round draft pick. He never played for the Flames. On July 2, 2002, Joseph signed a three-year, $24 million contract to join the Detroit Red Wings. Joseph was brought in to replace Dominik Hašek who announced he was retiring at the end of the season. The next year, Hašek decided that he was coming out of retirement. On July 1, 2003, Red Wings GM Ken Holland picked up the option on Hašek's contract and looked to trade Joseph. Joseph's contract made it difficult to find a trading partner and the team played with two starting goaltenders that season. Joseph once again became the starting goaltender for Detroit after Hašek decided to sit out the season while recovering from a groin injury.

On August 17, 2005, Joseph signed a one-year contract with the Phoenix Coyotes. On May 26, 2006, Joseph signed a one-year, $2-million to stay with the Coyotes. He played parts of two seasons with the team.

On January 14, 2008, Joseph signed a one-year, US$1.5 million contract to join the Calgary Flames. He played nine regular season games with the team, going 3–2.

On July 1, 2008, Joseph signed a one-year, $700,000 contract to rejoin the Toronto Maple Leafs. He played 21 regular season games with the team, going 5–9.

On January 12, 2010, Joseph announced that he was retiring from playing professional ice hockey.

## References
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