Hasek not only went on to play in six NHL All-Star Games, he also won six Vezina trophies as the NHL's top goaltender, two Hart trophies as the League's regular-season MVP, two Jennings trophies and two Pearson awards. He also skated off into the sunset last season with the Stanley Cup held high over his head.

The retired Red Wings' goalie led the League in goals-against-average twice in his career, and was tops in save percentage six of the last eight years. He topped the NHL in shutouts four times and in 1993-94 became the first European-trained goaltender to lead the NHL in goals-against average when he finished the year with a 1.95 mark. Hasek also won 30 or more games six times in his career.

"In the past, there wasn't much experience with European goalies in the NHL, so it took me a while to prove that I could play in the NHL and be a very good goalie," Hasek said. "Some 18-year-olds can, all of a sudden, start, but with some people it takes a longer time. That was my case."

"European goalies when Dom first came in were kind of frowned upon and he had to make a major adjustment when he first came in," Muckler recalled. "He had to learn to adapt to the North American style and readjust to the different angles because of the smaller buildings."

But even when he proved he could compete on the NHL level, some were still questioning his style in the net.

"When I came to the U.S. I had a tough time," Hasek said. "The media and coaches said I was unorthodox. I had to show I was good enough."

"I always figured he wasn't that good, that he had weaknesses we could capitalize on," former NHL coach Terry Crisp said, "but I realize now he really is spectacular."

In 1997, everyone in the NHL knew how good Hasek was when he went on to win a hat trick of awards at the conclusion of that season, bringing home a Hart Trophy, a Vezina Trophy and a Pearson Award. His Hart win marked the first time since 1962 that a goaltender won the MVP award.

The following season, Hasek took his game to another level and showed the entire hockey world just how good he was when he led the Czech Republic to a gold-medal win at the 1998 Winter Olympics. He also recorded another awards hat trick at the conclusion of the 1997-98 season. His second Hart win also marked the first time in League history that a goaltender has won the award twice.

While he enjoyed winning another Hart, no award victory that year compared to his gold-medal win.

"The MVP is a personal award, an individual award," Hasek explained at the time. "It was a great feeling and something that I'm really proud of, but winning the gold medal was something more special, I think. If you win like a team it's the best feeling in your life."

But Hasek's play between the pipes helped open doors for younger netminders to get a shot at glory and fame in the NHL.

Tomas Vokoun's improved play allowed the Nashville Predators to trade Mike Dunham to the New York Rangers.

"When I was drafted in '94 it was a little different. Times were changing," said Nashville's Tomas Vokoun, who was selected with the 226th choice in the 1994 Entry Draft by the Montreal Canadiens. "It's a lot different now. If I played the way I played when I was on the National Team back then, now I would have been drafted much higher than I was. Back then, there was only a few goalies from Europe. No one was really a proven starter back then. Hasek was just starting and there was just a few other guys in the League."

Today, the NHL is loaded with talent from all around the globe. Talented goalies like Nikolai Khabibulin, Tommy Salo, Jani Hurme, David Aebischer, Roman Cechmanek, Arturs Irbe, Milan Hnilicka, Miikka Kiprusoff, Johan Hedberg, Evgeny Nabokov, Pasi Nurminen, Mika Noronen, Peter Skudra, Roman Turek, Vokoun and a world of others are turning away the best-of-the-best every night in North American rinks.

"Obviously, there's a lot more pressure here," Vokoun said. "There's a lot more goalies and a lot more competition here. The best guys from all over the world are here. The game's more demanding. You have to play the puck better, more traffic, smaller arenas, more shots, a lot more screens and stuff like that. I would say it's a lot tougher to play here than in Europe.

"Since I was around 10, I started thinking about playing in the NHL, but before that it was tough. We lived in an area where we couldn't watch the NHL. There was no way we could follow it. I didn't know much about it."

So instead of staying inside and dreaming about NHL games, goalies like Vokoun hit the ice and honed their games on the ponds and rinks of Europe, hoping to one day earn a shot at playing a game they love in a League far, far away.