Rick DiPietro Has Most Wins Among Active American Goaltenders Not From Michigan

by Brian Roach on Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 9:04PM

The two winningest active goaltenders were inside TD Garden on Thursday night, as Tim Thomas and Ryan Miller were both present for the Bruins-Sabres showdown.

While Miller didn't get the start for Buffalo, he's still the winningest active American goalie with 244 career victories as of Thursday. Thomas, meanwhile, ranks second on the list with 189 wins.

Interestingly enough, both netminders are Michigan natives, as is Brent Johnson, who ranks third on the active American wins list with 137.

So who is the winningest active American goaltender not from the state of Michigan?

That honor belongs to New York Islanders goalie Rick DiPietro, who has 130 wins over the past nine-plus seasons.

DiPietro's record stands at 130-133-36 while making 306 starts in 315 games since his first appearance in 2000. His first career win came against the Edmonton Oilers on Feb. 16, 2001. He won 4-2, and it was only DiPietro's sixth start in net.

DiPietro has not appeared this season since a win over the Dallas Stars on Dec. 3.