Ranking the Goalie Masks of the NHL

We will start in Pittsburgh with Marc-Andre Fleury. This netminder takes pride in his artistic saves and big build (6'2") while guarding the cage.

But he also takes pride in his mask. With a pair of "Hockey-Playing Penguins" on each side of his helmet, bullet holes fill the right side of his mask. The penguins on the sides of his helmet at opposites of each other. On the left, the penguin has the body of the normal Penguins Logo, but the left is sort of an "Anti-Penguin."

Martin Biron's mask shows all that is good in the "City of Brotherly Love."

On the left ear, there is a silver statue of the city-wide boxing star, Rocky, standing, arms raised in front of the art museum. On the right, the Ben Franklin Bridge stands, in close proximity to one of the most beautiful sites in the city, the illuminated nighttime skyline.

And last, but definitely not least, smack on Biron's forehead stands the Liberty Bell, as prominent and as meaningful as ever.

Cam Ward dons his new lid, but this star goalkeeper plays, well, he plays like he's ingesting lightning daily. On Ward's mask, the nickname 'WARDO' is painted onto his chin. This lid, as well as Martin Biron's mask, feature the key and famous aspects of the player's town.

Ward's mask shows the USS North Carolina on the left ear, and on the right side, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and the Wright Brothers' first plane is flying throughout the shower of lighting. And if you look even closer to the plane, you will see the initials of Cam's wife, CWC, on the top wing.

Evgeni "Nabby" Nabokov's new lid is scary, just like his game. Nabokov is one of the more talented goalies in the league, but his lid is one of his most prized possessions.

Sharks fill the chin piece of his mask, on either side of his nickname "Nabby.'" Two gremlin-like goblins take up both sides of the mask, each bright white with sharp claws and green eyes. Sounds like a character right out of "Lord of the Rings," huh?

It's MILLER TIMEEE. That is just what it says on the back of this Buffalo netminder's mask.

Just under those words is a bulldog wearing a green sweater. This image depicts Ryan's playing career at Michigan State University. Miller's mask has the angry face of what looks like a buffalo, with two crossed swords on his chin (the retro logo of the Sabres).

The star that sits directly between the eyes of Mr. Turco only takes a backseat to the two fierce dragons on either side of this goalies lid.

This dragon-filled mask comes in black, and also in white, but this particular lid comes with a goldish background. The two dragons are perched on top of two green brick walls. The silver painted cage that protects Marty's face is one of the more modern parts of this mask. Well, besides the revolutionary painting and graphics.

Giguere's new helmet has the contrast of the duck and the, I guess, inside of the duck on the front.

The left half of the duck may come across to many as weird or scary, the duck shows the difference between the outside, kind of friendly look of Giguere and his scary and talented play on the ice.

Nitty's mask features a gangster, smoking a cigar while firing a gun. But there is a hidden meaning behind this mask. This mobster, who is firing his Tommy Gun, is Frank Nitti.

His gun is smoking and all around the mask are bullet holes and smoking empty slugs. Nitty's mask also shows the Philly skyline, as well as the Philadelphia Flyers Logo.

Ray Emery is an avid boxing fan. And as you can see, he has placed one of his idols on his mask, George Chuvalo. And in years past, he has had famous boxers such as Muhammad Ali, Jack Johnson, Mike Tyson and Marvin Hagler. Ray's nickname, 'Razor" is also on the back of his mask.

Dan Cloutier has taken a nickname, an angel, a skyline, and some clouds and put them together like nothing that has ever been seen. His chin reads 'City of Angels', the nickname for the city of Los Angeles. The use of the contrast between a deep purple and black brings out this goaltenders ferocious play.

There isn't really much out of the ordinary when you look at the lid of Carolina goaltender John Grahame. Well, if by nothing, I mean...a No. 47 race car that says "Hurricanes" and a checkerboard trim above the forehead and around the chin. Oh, don't forget a smokin' hot lady no the side of his helmet wearing nothing but a bikini. But other than that, I'm looking at a pretty nonschalant, normal mask for a goalie. Nothing special here.

The Canadiens goalie, Jaroslav Halak loves his helmets. He has upgraded his helmet many times. But he made a big splash with this one. On the right ear sits Partick Roy, holding up, what else, but Lord Stanley's Cup. On the forehead, is some sort of fictional character with horns and big teeth. What can I say, I'm not a fan (or a member) of World of Warcraft. I'm sure this is a character from that game.

Veteran Jose takes a lesson from Marty Turco with the fictional dragons on his mask. These, in my opinion, top Marty's only because, well these are red. The 'Big Foot' on his chin sits in front of a background of the Rocky Mountains. On the back of the helmet (not shown), sits a pair of two dragon like wings with an 'R' on it. On the 'R' is a chain with holds a cross on it. The 'R', is believed to stand for Romy, Jose's daughters name.

Jason Bacashiua's mask goes back to the past. On the sides of his head, Jason pays a homage to, who else, but Jason. That is, Jason from Freddy vs. Jason. Jason stands with his signature mask, wearing a St. Louis Blues t-shirt holding a hockey stick. And quite frankly, he looks extremely pissed off. The lightning in the background gives the mask a nice finishing touch.

Marc Denis. Not the best goalie in the NHL, but boy, does he have a hell of a mask. This Quebec native sports a mask that has many in the NHL jealous. On the forehead, who else stands holding a lightning bolt but the Greek god Zeus.

This Big Apple Goalie has one of the nicest masks in the NHL. His mask is filled with stars and different images. On the right, a group of soldiers on the move. On the left, another group of soldiers standing together. And on top of those soldiers flies a helicopter. This may look like just a normal plane, but it pays respect to the helicopter that his father flew in the Vietnam War. This is one of the most thoughtful but coolest masks around.

Josh Harding's sister has cancer. As you can see, Josh does a lot more than raise awareness for breast cancer. He wears awareness for breast cancer on his mask. And wouldn't you know it, Harding's first NHL game wearing that mask, Harding won the game 5-0, notching his first career shutout.