Prior to a long NHL career that saw him play 15 seasons as a goaltender with the Chicago Blackhawks, Tony Esposito starred in college hockey at Michigan Tech University.
Esposito’s efforts as a member of the Michigan Tech Huskies have earned him a sport on the 2020 Michigan Sports Hall of Fame ballot as an amateur finalist, announced earlier this week.
Esposito played three seasons at Michigan Tech, playing in 51 games between 1964 and 1967.
He posted a record of 38-10-3 with a 2.55 goals against average and a 0.912 save percentage while helping the Huskies to the 1965 NCAA championship, beating Boston College in the tournament final, and was named to the NCAA All-Tournament first team at the event.
A three-time All-WCHA first team selection with the Huskies, Esposito was inducted into the Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1991 as a player and again in 2014 when the 1965 Huskies team was inducted.
Esposito was also a first team All American all three seasons at Michigan Tech.
Esposito went on to star for the Blackhawks, posting a record of 418-302-147 with a goals against average of 2.92 and a save percentage of 0.859 and still holds the Blackhawks record for most career wins and shutouts (74). He also holds the Blackhawks team record for shutouts in a season with 15 during the 1969-70 season, which is also a rookie record for the team.
Esposito’s NHL career began one season prior to joining the Blackhawks when he played 13 games with the Montreal Canadiens during the 1968-69 season where he posted a 5-4-4 record.
Voting for the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame continues until April 30. The ballot, along with the other finalists, can be found here.
The Michigan Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony is scheduled for Oct. 2 in Detroit.