Mike Liut
| Mike Liut | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Liut in 1981.
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| Born |
January 7, 1956 Weston, Ontario, Canada |
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| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Caught | Left | ||
| Played for |
Cincinnati Stingers St. Louis Blues Hartford Whalers Washington Capitals |
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| National team |
 Canada
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| NHL Draft | 56th overall, 1976 St. Louis Blues |
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| WHA Draft | 50th overall, 1976 New England Whalers |
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| Playing career | 1977–1992 | ||
Michael "Mike" Dennis Liut (born January 7, 1956) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey goaltender.
Liut played for the Cincinnati Stingers of the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1977 to 1979 and for the St. Louis Blues, Hartford Whalers, and Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to 1992. He won the 1981 Lester B. Pearson Award for being the most valuable player according to his fellow players, and posted the league's best goals against average in 1989–90.
Liut played college hockey at Bowling Green State University. After being named twice to the CCHA First All-Star team, the St. Louis Blues selected him 56th overall in 1976. However, he opted instead to play for the Cincinnati Stingers of the WHA for two seasons. When the WHA merged with the NHL in 1979, the Blues reclaimed Liut's rights.
With four seasons of College hockey and two seasons of pro hockey in the World Hockey Association under his belt, Mike Liut arrived in St. Louis - and the National Hockey League - ready to step in and contribute. He immediately took over the starting duties for the Blues and made a major impact playing 64 games and posting a record of 32-23-9. His second season saw him improve and become arguably the top goaltender in the league posting a record of 33-14-13. He was voted a runner-up to Wayne Gretzky for the Hart Trophy for his efforts and was selected as a First Team All-Star and won the Lester B. Pearson Trophy as the league's MVP as determined by his peers. That fall, he was Canada's starting goaltender at the 1981 Canada Cup, which ended with an 8–1 loss to the Soviet Union in the final. Though he was not solely to blame, Liut's reputation as a top tier goaltender would never fully recover from the thrashing he took in that game and he would not represent Canada again in subsequent Canada Cup tournaments.
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