These Colorado Avalanche Goalies make up "Mount Rushmore"

This begins a new series, a Mount Rushmore of Colorado Avalanche players through the years.

Mount Rushmore is one of the iconic landmarks of the United States. Nestled in the Black Hills of South Dakota, it’s a mountain with sculptures carved into the side depicting previous influential United States Presidents. It’s comprised of four people, Washington, Lincoln, Roosevelt and Jefferson.

Since its inception, the faces depicted on the mural have been debated in multiple ways like their impact on the country, if others should have been sculpted, and many other takes.

In the sports world, a “Mount Rushmore” of a team, or positional area, or city has been debated for years, and Mile High Sticking is about to take their turn. The first instalment of this series will be the goaltenders.

 As the Avalanche have been in Denver since 1996, there’s plenty of players up for selection, and the franchise’s time in Quebec won’t be taken into consideration. Although guys like Ron Hextall and Stephane Fiset (great mask) had quality careers with the franchise, they did it for the Nordiques and thus weren’t the Avalanche.

There are plenty of goalies to choose from over the course of 28 years in Denver, and there were a few that stood out. There were also a few up for debate, and some quality netminders didn’t make the cut. Without further ado, here is the Mount Rushmore of Colorado Avalanche goalies.

1.) Patrick Roy

This selection is likely the most obvious. Patrick Roy is arguably the greatest goaltender in NHL history and the Avalanche were lucky enough to have him don the burgundy and blue for several years, helping the team to two Stanley Cup victories during his time in Denver. Acquired midway through the 1995-96 season, Roy was a key cog in the Avalanche’s run to lift Lord Stanley’s chalice later that season. Roy then led the league in wins his first full season in Colorado with 38. He again backstopped the team to a Stanley Cup victory in 2000-01. The next season he led the league in goals against average at 1.94 and shutouts with nine.

Over his Colorado career, he won 262 of the 478 games he played. He had a 2.27 goals against average while wearing the burgundy and blue, and totalled 37 shutouts, more than he had in Montreal.

Roy’s star shone brightest during his time in the playoffs with Colorado. He played 133 games during the playoffs and had a 2.18 goals against average to show for it, with 18 shutouts! He only had five playoff shutouts in Montreal over nine years. Most importantly for Avalanche fans, Roy hoisted those two Stanley Cups. He’s the top goalie on Mount Rushmore.