Bill Ranford—The Stopper

Some people expect to be heroes, while others, like goaltender Bill Ranford, are thrust into the role.

When starter Grant Fuhr was injured before the 1990 playoffs, the Oilers assigned Ranford as the starting goaltender. With less than 100 games of NHL experience, Ranford was not expected to lead the Oilers to the Stanley Cup. But he did—earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs.

Ranford was born December 14, 1966, in Brandon, Manitoba. As the son military father, Ranford did not stay long in Canada. Instead, he spent a lot of time following his parents across military bases in Europe. It was there that he cultivated his love for hockey, as he played in a series of international tournaments with his childhood Army-base rep teams. Ranford even played in a tournament against a team from the former Czechoslovakia that featured the great Dominik Hasek.

When Ranford returned to Canada, he proved to be one of the top junior goaltending prospects in the country, starring for the New Westminster Bruins of the Western Hockey League. He made his debut with the Bruins in 1985-86, and over the next two seasons he won 16 NHL games and was regarded as the Bruins’ goalie of the future. But, before the 1987-88 season, he was dealt to Edmonton in a trade that sent Oilers’ back-up Andy Moog to Boston.

Over the next two seasons, Ranford played the role of understudy. Although a member of the 1988 Oiler Stanley Cup championship, he was Fuhr’s back-up, and only played in regular-season games.

Not until 1989-90 would he get his chance to play a starting role. That season, Fuhr got a severe injury, and the team asked Ranford to salvage the rest of the season. He won 24 regular season games for the Oilers, and with his confidence growing, coach John Muckler assigned him the role of playoff goaltender in lieu of the still-injured Fuhr.

At the start of the playoffs, the Oilers looked to be done after just four games. The Winnipeg Jets had taken a commanding three-games-to-one lead in their first round Smythe Division battle with the Oilers. With game four, Ranford courageously led the Oilers’ comeback, and Edmonton took the series in seven. With Ranford in net, the Oilers dispatched the Los Angeles Kings and then the Chicago Blackhawks in the second and third series.

The Cup final matched Ranford against his former Bruins teammates.  In that series, Ranford was spectacular, allowing just eight goals in five games. Unlike 1988, Ranford was instrumental in an Oilers’ Cup win. From that moment until his trade back to Boston in 1995-96, Ranford was the Oilers’ number one goaltender. Including a swan-song return he made to the Oilers as Tommy Salo’s back-up in 1999-2000, Ranford won 167 games and recorded eight shutouts. Ranford stopped eight penalty shots in his career with Edmonton, more than any other Oilers’ netminder.

Ranford—who also spent time with the Washington Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning and Detroit Red Wings before coming back to Edmonton before retiring—said that a key to his success was never allowing himself to be intimidated by the shooters.

"I never think about who’s shooting the puck," said Ranford. "I mean, it’s in the back of your mind’ you’re aware of it, but you have to focus on stopping the puck."

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