Allan Bester

Alan Bester (born March 26, 1964) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey goaltender. He played in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, and Dallas Stars between 1984 and 1996.

Playing career Bester was born in Hamilton, Ontario. He played with the Brantford Alexanders of the OHL for three seasons before moving on to professional hockey. He was drafted into the National Hockey League (NHL) by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the third round (48th overall) of the 1983 NHL entry draft.

Bester spent parts of 11 seasons in the NHL, beginning in 1983–84. He spent eight years in Toronto, and then was traded to the Detroit Red Wings in 1991. He spent most of his career moving between the NHL and American Hockey League (AHL). In 1992, Bester won a Calder Cup with the Adirondack Red Wings. He was awarded the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as playoff MVP. Bester made a short return to the NHL after a four-year absence, playing ten games for the Dallas Stars in the mid-1990s.

Bester ended his career in the International Hockey League (IHL). He played with both the San Diego Gulls and Orlando Solar Bears before announcing his retirement in August 1998.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV% 1981–82 Brantford Alexanders OHL 19 4 11 0 970 68 0 4.21 — — — — — — — — — 1982–83 Brantford Alexanders OHL 56 29 21 3 3210 188 0 3.51 — 8 3 3 480 20 1 2.50 — 1983–84 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 32 11 16 4 1848 134 0 4.35 .883 — — — — — — — — 1983–84 Brantford Alexanders OHL 23 12 9 1 1271 71 1 3.35 — 1 0 1 60 5 0 5.00 — 1984–85 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 15 3 9 1 767 54 1 4.22 .874 — — — — — — — — 1984–85 St. Catharines Saints AHL 30 9 18 1 1669 133 0 4.78 .866 — — — — — — — — 1985–86 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 1 0 0 0 20 2 0 6.00 .600 — — — — — — — — 1985–86 St. Catharines Saints AHL 50 23 23 3 2855 173 1 3.64 .881 11 7 3 637 27 0 2.54 — 1986–87 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 36 10 14 3 1808 110 2 3.65 .889 1 0 0 39 1 0 1.54 .941 1986–87 Newmarket Saints AHL 3 1 0 0 190 6 0 1.89 .937 — — — — — — — — 1987–88 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 30 8 12 5 1607 102 2 3.81 .884 5 2 3 253 21 0 4.98 .844 1988–89 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 43 17 20 3 2460 156 2 3.80 .890 — — — — — — — — 1989–90 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 42 20 16 0 2206 165 0 4.49 .873 4 0 3 196 14 0 4.29 .883 1989–90 Newmarket Saints AHL 5 2 1 1 264 18 0 4.09 .891 — — — — — — — — 1990–91 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 6 0 4 0 247 18 0 4.37 .860 — — — — — — — — 1990–91 Newmarket Saints AHL 19 7 8 4 1157 58 1 3.01 .909 — — — — — — — — 1990–91 Detroit Red Wings NHL 3 0 3 0 178 13 0 4.38 .869 1 0 0 20 1 0 3.00 .917 1991–92 Detroit Red Wings NHL 1 0 0 0 31 2 0 3.87 .778 — — — — — — — — 1991–92 Adirondack Red Wings AHL 22 13 8 0 1268 78 0 3.69 .879 19 14 5 1174 50 1 2.56 .915 1992–93 Adirondack Red Wings AHL 41 16 15 5 2268 133 1 3.52 .896 10 7 3 633 26 1 2.46 — 1993–94 San Diego Gulls IHL 46 22 14 6 2543 150 1 3.54 .891 8 4 4 419 28 0 4.00 .891 1994–95 San Diego Gulls IHL 58 28 23 5 3250 183 1 3.38 .894 4 2 2 272 13 0 2.86 .925 1995–96 Orlando Solar Bears IHL 51 32 16 2 2947 176 1 3.58 .889 23 11 12 1343 65 2 2.90 .906 1995–96 Dallas Stars NHL 10 4 5 1 601 30 0 3.00 .899 — — — — — — — — 1996–97 Orlando Solar Bears IHL 61 37 13 3 3115 132 2 2.54 .903 10 4 4 512 27 0 3.16 .904 1997–98 Orlando Solar Bears IHL 26 13 8 1 1330 66 1 2.98 .895 2 1 0 76 6 0 4.68 .860 NHL totals 219 73 99 17 11773 786 7 4.01 .883 11 2 6 508 37 0 4.37 .870

International Year Team Event GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV% 1984 Canada WJC 2 2 0 0 120 2 1 1.00 — Junior totals 2 2 0 0 120 2 1 1.00 —