Marc-André Fleury blocked his first puck on NHL ice on October 10, 2003. As the top pick in the 2003 draft, he made his debut with the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 3-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings.
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20 years ago, goaltenders from Quebec were not uncommon in the NHL.
Martin Brodeur, Roberto Luongo, Jean-Sébastien Giguère, José Théodore, Marc Denis and Patrick Lalime all filled the number one roles. In the 2003–2004 season, there were 20 goaltenders in Quebec (one game or more).
Ten years later, in the 2013-2014 season, we already noticed a significant decline with 8 goalkeepers (one game or more). The slide never stopped.
When Fleury and the Minnesota Wild visited, there was a duel between two goalies from Quebec on the ice at the Bell Center. The two masked men represented 66% of the total native guards of the province, once called the Nursery.
Devon Levi, a rookie goaltender for the Buffalo Sabres, is the other representative from Quebec.
When it comes to wins in NHL history, four goaltenders from Quebec are at the top: Martin Brodeur (691), Patrick Roy (551), Marc-André Fleury (544) and Roberto Luongo (489). But these statistics are more a sign of a once-glorious era than an indicator of the future.
QUEBEC GOALKEEPER FOR 20 YEARS
| ONE GAME OR MORE | 10 OR MORE GAMES | |
| 2003-2004 | 20 | 14 |
| 2005-2006 | 19 | 14 |
| 2006-2007 | 17 | 13 |
| 2007-2008 | 16 | 13 |
| 2008-2009 | 14 | 12 |
| 2009-2010 | 13 | 11 |
| 2010-2011 | 12 | 11 |
| 2011-2012 | 13 | 9 |
| 2012-2013 | 11 | 8th |
| 2013-2014 | 8th | 7 |
| 2014-2015 | 7 | 4 |
| 2015-2016 | 7 | 5 |
| 2016-2017 | 7 | 6 |
| 2017-2018 | 7 | 7 |
| 2018-2019 | 7 | 6 |
| 2019-2020 | 6 | 5 |
| 2020-2021 | 4 | 2 |
| 2021-2022 | 7 | 3 |
| 2022-2023 | 4 | 2 |
| 2023-2024 | 3 | – |