PASCAL LECLAIREBorn in Repentigny, Quebec on November 7 1982, goaltender Pascal Leclaire is considered by many to be one of the best young goalies in the NHL. Despite criticism of inconsistency that plagued Pascal early in his career, Leclaire appears to have found his niche and as of late, has had an impressive run in the cage. Quick and agile, this classic butterfly goaltender is aggressive and active around the net, often venturing outside of his crease to help his defensemen and challenge shooters. As large in stature as he is in attitude, (Leclaire stands 6 foot two and weighs in at 190 pounds) the left-handed catcher executes impressive lateral movements and displays solid technique. Not bothered by heavy traffic or screens, Leclaire’s is famous for his ability to perform under pressure, making his playoff performances both exciting and memorable. Leclaire did not play college hockey, his career began with a four-year stint that ran from 1998 to 2002 with the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), first as a member of the Montreal Rocket outfit and then of the Halifax Mooseheads. In 1999, Leclaire was part off the Canadian gold medal team at the Under-18 tournament and posted a 2-0-0 record with an impressive 1.00 GAA, a .969 save percentage and one shutout. He further impressed his critics at the 2000 Memorial Cup Tournament by going 2-1-0 with a .314 GAA and a .991 save percentage in four games, including an exciting 40 save performance. Unfortunately, the following season was a disappointing one for Pascal. Plagued by injuries, throughout 2000 and 2001, Leclaire first missed training camp and then the beginning of the season. The disappointment continued as Leclaire went on to miss the 2001 CHL-NHL Top Prospects game and the CHL All Star Cup. Despite his run of bad luck, Leclaire was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round (first Blue Jackets Pick, eighth overall) of the NHL draft on June 23, 2001. As a member of the National Team in 2002, Leclaire was influential in helping the Canadians win a silver medal in the World Championships. In addition, he was named to the All Star Team and went on to the win the Top Goal Tender Award. In the 2003-2004 season, Leclaire played for the Syracuse Crunch, the AHL affiliate to the Blue Jackets NHL team and played two regular season games. He made his NHL debut on February 20, 2004 at Glendale Arena as the Blue Jackets faced the Phoenix Coyotes and swallowed a 3-2 defeat. Pascal remained optimistic. "It’s frustrating when any team comes back on you. I know, though, that I can play in that league. Now I just have to make the big save." Some might say he was out to prove just that when on March 6, 2004 Pascal recorded an impressive fifty save shut out to help the Syracuse Crunch beat the hometown Manitoba Moose by a 1-0 score. This was despite the fact that the Crunch were out shot 50-9, 24 shots alone being made in the last period.
Leclaire’s hard work paid off in 2006 when on June 30 primary goalie Marc Denis was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning and Leclaire was promoted to the position of primary goalie for the Columbus Blue Jackets. Most recently, Leclaire was signed by the Blue Jackets again, this time as a restricted free agent to a two-year contract on July 18, 2006 where he remains the Blue Jackets franchise goaltender.
Mental Goaltending Home Page 
|
After the NHL shutout in 2004-2005 Pascal returned to the Blue Jackets, and was signed as a restricted free agent to a one-year contract to serve as back up to Marc Denis, the team’s primary goaltender. Pascal experienced his first NHL win on November 30, 2005 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul Minnesota. In a shoot out that resulted in a 3-2 victory, Leclaire stopped Marian Gaborik, Mikku Koivu and Randy Robitaille in succession to defeat Manny Fernandez and the Minnesota Wild. Overall, he stopped an impressive 32 shots in the game before going three for three in the tiebreaker.