Who was the first goaltender to win the Stanley Cup while wearing a mask?

Jacques Plante was the first goaltender to win the Stanley Cup while wearing a mask.

Plante’s breakthrough came during the 1959–60 season with the Montreal Canadiens. On November 1, 1959, a shot by New York Rangers forward Andy Bathgate broke Plante’s nose during a game at Madison Square Garden. After receiving stitches, Plante returned wearing a homemade mask he had already used in practice. He refused to remove it, and Montreal coach Toe Blake eventually accepted the change.

The Canadiens continued winning while Plante wore the mask, and he made it part of his regular equipment. Montreal went on to sweep the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1960 Stanley Cup Final, giving Plante his fifth consecutive championship and making him the first Cup-winning goaltender to do so while regularly protected by a mask.

A common mix-up involves Clint Benedict, who wore crude facial protection for the Montreal Maroons in 1930. Benedict was the first NHL goaltender known to wear a mask, but he did not win the Stanley Cup while wearing it. Plante popularized the mask as standard goaltending equipment, a role modern hockey history recognizes as transformative.