O'Toole 66 Saves Shy of NLL Career Record
by Craig Rybczynski | Rochester Knighthawks
Depending on what part of the country you are from the No. 66
means different things to different people. To hockey fans former
Penguins star Mario Lemieux comes to mind. To baby boomers it is
the famous route in the U.S. Highway System, which once ran from
Chicago to California. To Rochester Knighthawks goalie Pat
O’Toole it is the number of saves he is away from goaltending
immortality.
"To break the record, if I am lucky enough to do so, is something I
would definitely like to do but it is for sure second in my mind to
winning each game,” said O’Toole. “To start off
the beginning of this year with a couple of shaky outings, trying
to get my game back on track and helping this team win games is
first on my list. As for the record, just being mentioned with
other great goalies like Dallas, Bobby (Watson),
‘Chugger’ (Steve Dietrich) is an honor in itself. To be
on the top of that list for saves would be awesome.”
The 16-year pro enters this week’s game against the Edmonton
Rush just 66 stops away from passing National Lacrosse League Hall
of Fame netminder Dallas Eliuk as the all-time saves leader. Eliuk
recorded 6,356 saves during his 18 seasons in the league.
O’Toole now has 6,290 following a stellar 34-save performance
at Philadelphia on February 20th.
O’Toole tries not to think about the milestone, despite the
constant reminders. More important to the East York, Ontario,
native is the fact that the Knighthawks are 5-3 and are one-half
game behind the Toronto Rock for first place in the East Division
with a big home game this Saturday.
“This game against Edmonton is a big one for us. They are a
much improved team from past years and are coming off a big win
against Toronto,” said O’Toole. “They are coming
into our barn, and we need a win. We need to keep some of this
momentum going and put some consecutive wins together to claw our
way back to the top of our division and in a playoff
spot.”
O’Toole began his career with the New York Saints back in
1995 and spent the next three seasons with the Buffalo Bandits. In
1999, he reached a turning point in his career. He was released by
Buffalo, a team that he led to the 1996 MILL title, and was waiting
at home for someone to call. That call came from the rival
Knighthawks.
“After getting cut from Buffalo I didn't know what to do. It
was like all lacrosse was done for good. Then the call came in from
Rochester when ‘Chugger’ blew his knee out. At first I
was just happy to be able to play again. Then I came to the first
game and was treated great by everyone in the organization. You
could tell right away, it was a first-class operation and something
I was glad to be part of,” said O’Toole. “We had
great players, great fan support and the success on the floor
followed quickly. Success on the floor has continued throughout the
years, we still have great fans and fan support and best of all we
have great players that I love going to battle with every
game.”
The rest they say is history. O’Toole has had a Hall of Fame
career in Rochester. In his 12 seasons, he has led the team to 11
playoff berths, four NLL Championship Games and one title (2007).
He is also the franchise’s all-time leader in wins (101) and
saves (5,580). Additionally, he is a three-time team MVP, two-time
NLL All-Pro and the 2003 league Goaltender of the Year. He has
quite the collection of memorable moments, having been a part of 12
of the 16 seasons of Knighthawks lacrosse.
“Most memorable moment thus far would have to be winning the
Championship. We come in every season with that as our goal. After
a couple of disappointing Championship loses, to finally put it all
together in 2007 and win the Championship with a lot of the guys
that were there for the losses too was an unbelievable
feeling,” he said.
The 37 year old has enjoyed his career and so as his family. His
wife, Lynne, and his kids Connor and Kayla often travel to games
from their home in Brampton, Ontario, to watch No. 39 play in goal.
It is a family atmosphere for the O’Toole’s with
Lynne’s brother, Mike Hasen, serving as one of the
Knighthawks assistant coaches.
“Having my family around has been great and probably the
reason I am still playing today. It would be really hard to leave
your family behind every weekend to go play. It would be incredibly
hard for my wife if I left every weekend. I don't know how she does
it as it is,” said Pat O’Toole. “But for them to
be able to come to 10 or 11 games a season, for all their support
and just being together is great. Mike being my brother-in-law and
his family coming to the games as well has allowed our families to
see each other a lot more and make it a family event. Even our
parents drive to the games together.”
O'Toole has not only endeared himself to his family but to the fans
of Rochester, as well. That is evident when he makes a big save.
Everyone in The Blue Cross Arena yells, “Toole Time”
after the public address announcer asks them, “What time is
it?”
O’Toole is so popular because he represents the blue-collar
mentality of the diehard fans with his day-to-day working with
steel at Metal Supermarkets to his pregame meal of burgers and
fries. O’Toole is not the embodiment of the spoiled modern
athlete, but quite the contrary. He knows the importance of the
fans and how they impact the sport he loves. O’Toole even
delivered cheesesteaks to members of the fan club, the Knighthawks
Krew, on a recent road trip to Philadelphia.
“Our fans are definitely loud and supportive. They get our
team pumped up for every game. Some have even become good
friends,” said O’Toole. “Whether it is getting
loud for our introduction, the famous ‘Sucks’ chant
after visiting introductions or going absolutely nuts for
Junior’s overtime winner vs. Buffalo to send us to the
finals. We hear them and appreciate their support.
The fans will have a chance to root on their favorite player as the
Knighthawks play a season-high four games at home from February
27th to April 3rd. During one of those contests, O’Toole will
make that 66th save and he will join Eliuk as one of the greatest
goalies in NLL history.
