Patrick Williams, TheAHL.com Options Author
Eighteen professional seasons, journeys to the waiver wire, enjoying within the Stanley Cup Last, battling accidents, going abroad, coming again to the AHL as a veteran and mentor.
And now, the American Hockey League Corridor of Fame.
Michael Leighton, who performed for 11 completely different NHL organizations in 13 separate AHL cities, piled up loads of awards and classes alongside the best way. The highway began with the Norfolk Admirals as a Chicago Blackhawks prospect in 2001-02, securing a spot on the AHL All-Rookie Group.
“It was an enormous studying curve,” mentioned Leighton, who lived with a few teammates in Virginia Seaside that season. “Typically it simply takes time to construct your recreation and construct confidence and determine your identification as a goalie. And I simply did that over time and all through my profession.
“It turned out OK.”
It definitely did. In all, Leighton logged 507 regular-season AHL video games, seventh-most in league historical past amongst goaltenders. His 250 wins put him fifth all-time, and his 50 shutouts rank first, breaking a file held by Johnny Bower. He completed with a 2.38 goals-against common and .916 save proportion in internet over an AHL profession that had stops in Norfolk, Rochester, Portland, Philadelphia, Albany, Adirondack, Rockford, Charlotte, Syracuse, Chicago, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Ontario and Utica.
Leighton additionally performed 111 NHL video games for Chicago, Nashville, Philadelphia and Carolina, his profession peak coming in 2010 when he helped to take the Flyers to the Stanley Cup Last towards the Blackhawks, the staff that had drafted him 11 years earlier.
It was a journey, one which Leighton would have been comfortable to proceed had his physique allowed him. He was a workhorse from his first season on, enjoying 52 video games for the Admirals as a rookie and crossing the 50-game mark two different occasions. He wished the web, and his play and physique allowed him to have it. It was solely within the latter half of his profession that his physique started to disclaim him as he handled accidents and a bout of viral meningitis.
Now 43 years previous and working the Michael Leighton Goalie Academy in Windsor, Ont., he’s carrying these on- and off-ice classes with him to mentor the following technology. He runs his personal present but nonetheless is ready to go these hockey and life classes on to his college students.
Classes like a wild 2006-07 season by which he was claimed off waivers thrice and traded as soon as, making him a part of 5 NHL organizations in lower than 12 months. But it surely was that commerce – a 2007 draft-day deal from Montreal to Carolina – that turned out to be the break that Leighton wanted, even when he did spend many of the following marketing campaign with Albany. He performed a career-high 58 video games in 2007-08 and received the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Award because the league’s excellent goaltender. He additionally had a memorable postseason, making headlines throughout hockey with a single-game file 98 saves in a five-overtime contest towards Philadelphia.
By the next 12 months, Leighton lastly caught within the NHL full-time with the Hurricanes as he and his rising household settled in North Carolina. However in 2009-10, the Hurricanes elected to usher in veteran Manny Legace, pushing Leighton out of the crease.
One other alternative was fizzling on him, this time at age 28.
“I wouldn’t say it [angered] me, nevertheless it upset me, proper?” Leighton admits. “I wished that spot. They picked Manny over me, put me on waivers. That sort of burned in me just a little bit.”
The Flyers wanted assist and claimed Leighton, getting themselves a goaltender with one thing to show.
Leighton received eight of his first 10 appearances for Philadelphia.
“I went to Philly with a very good perspective simply considering I’d solely be there for every week or two after which go play with the (Adirondack) Phantoms,” Leighton continued. “They gave me a possibility when (Brian) Boucher received damage, and simply the boldness the staff had in me, and the gamers, we simply clicked.
“I performed a bunch of video games in a row, was feeling good, and the staff was enjoying properly. There was no stress on me as a result of we have been out of a playoff spot by far. Simply received in just a little rhythm and was enjoying good, and all of it clicked collectively.”
That April the Flyers certified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs of their last regular-season recreation. After defeating New Jersey within the first spherical, they fell behind three video games to none towards Boston of their second-round collection. With Boucher injured, Leighton posted a shutout in Recreation 5, fended off the Bruins in Recreation 6, after which held the Flyers in lengthy sufficient to take a 4-3 comeback win in Recreation 7. They took care of Montreal within the Jap Convention Last to arrange a match-up with the Blackhawks.
The Flyers’ run finally led to extra time of Recreation 6, however Leighton received an opportunity to savor an expertise that even most NHL veteran netminders by no means do.
“If you go to a recreation,” Leighton mentioned, “the place everybody stands up the entire recreation, it’s fairly loopy, proper? Round city everybody had Flyers flags, and it was simply so lengthy since that they had received. Everybody within the metropolis knew who you have been and was rooting for us. We misplaced, and it was disappointing, however the followers have been nonetheless nice, and so they nonetheless discuss that run to today.”
After that spring run in Philadelphia, although, he performed just one recreation the following season for the Flyers. A herniated disc at coaching camp sidelined him. The second half of his profession largely was spent within the AHL. A high-ankle sprain, again surgical procedure and hip surgical procedure within the span of a 12 months and a half slowed lots of his profession momentum. He received caught behind Ilya Bryzgalov in Philadelphia after which Sergei Bobrovsky in Columbus. These are the breaks that include a profession in hockey.
After one season within the Kontinental Hockey League, Leighton returned to the AHL in 2014 and stuffed a useful function as a mentor for younger goaltender and a dependable call-up choice. He labored with the likes of Alex Nedeljkovic, Tristan Jarry, Casey DeSmith and Connor Ingram on their option to the NHL.
Leighton completed his profession with stops in Syracuse, Chicago, Wilkes-Barre, Ontario and Utica over his last two seasons. The damage and tear had taken a toll. His household had stayed again in LaSalle, Ontario. Ultimately, as pushed and as a lot of a workhorse as he was, Leighton selected household.
“It was simply time to name it quits,” Leighton mentioned. “However realistically, I felt game-wise I may have stored enjoying within the AHL for one more two or three years.”
He was in a position to end his profession with loads of reminiscences and an iron-clad fame as the final word professional.
“I feel my mindset was I all the time wished to play hockey for a dwelling and being despatched to the AHL wasn’t the worst factor for me,” Leighton mentioned. “There’s clearly a purpose for it. I needed to both change the best way I performed or do issues higher, and so each time I received despatched down, I took it as a problem. I went down and didn’t settle for staying there. My objective was to play within the NHL.
“I might go down and work exhausting, do the suitable issues, and have a very good perspective that I finally wish to get again to the NHL, and it labored.”
On that journey, Leighton – and his household, it have to be famous – went by 5 trades, 4 waiver claims, and 5 occasions signing as a free agent. However he all the time left a very good impression, even coming again for return stints with the Philadelphia, Carolina and Chicago organizations. It was a disturbing, far-flung, unsure life-style at occasions, however one which was value it.
However so is that this extra steady post-playing life. Leighton spent elements of three seasons as a goaltending coach with Windsor of the Ontario Hockey League, the identical membership that he had performed for as a teen greater than 20 years earlier. And after the Leighton household winding by all of these cities, now they’ve a steady residence base.
He continues to be concerned in hockey, whereas giving his spouse Jennifer, their children Ella, Annalise and Theodore, and, frankly, himself, the steady life that they battled to acquire for therefore lengthy.
“I’m at residence now,” Leighton mentioned. “I’m with my children. I’m teaching them, and I’m with them on a regular basis, and that’s what it’s all about for me proper now – being with my household.”
On the American Hockey League beat for 20 years, TheAHL.com options author Patrick Williams additionally presently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a daily contributor on SiriusXM NHL Community Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for his excellent protection of the league in 2016.
