Early years Tugnutt was born in
Scarborough, Ontario. As a youth, he played in the 1980
Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a
minor ice hockey team from Toronto. Tugnutt played three seasons with the
Peterborough Petes in the
Ontario Hockey League, and won the
F. W. "Dinty" Moore Trophy for the rookie with the best
goals against average, followed by the
Dave Pinkney Trophy for Top Team Goaltending, and was named to the OHL All Star team in 1987.
NHL beginnings He was drafted by the
Quebec Nordiques in the fourth round (81st overall) of the
1986 NHL entry draft. He was primarily used as a backup during his first three pro seasons, bouncing up and down between the
Halifax Citadels of the
American Hockey League (AHL) and the parent club in Quebec City. During
1990–91 NHL season, Tugnutt played what would be a career-high 56 games for Quebec and established himself as a quality NHL starter despite playing for what was then the worst team in the league. On March 21, 1991, Tugnutt stopped 70 of 73 shots to earn his team a 3–3 tie against the
Boston Bruins, the highest number of saves made in a regular season game in NHL history. His performance evoked such respect that after it was over, several Bruins players skated over to congratulate Tugnutt while the Boston fans gave him a standing ovation. In the midst of an inconsistent
1991–92 NHL season, and with the emergence of
Stéphane Fiset as the Nordiques' number one goaltender, Tugnutt was demoted to the Nordiques' AHL affiliate. In exchange for
Martin Ručinský, he was soon traded to the
Edmonton Oilers to serve as
Bill Ranford's backup. Tugnutt remained in this role until he was selected by the
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the
1993 expansion draft. In Anaheim, he split goaltending duties with
Guy Hebert. Anaheim quickly settled on Hebert as their future starter, and the
Montreal Canadiens decided that
André Racicot and
Les Kuntar were not adequately serving as
Patrick Roy's backup, so Tugnutt was acquired by the Canadiens in exchange for
Stéphan Lebeau. Tugnutt's performance suffered; for Anaheim he had posted a .908 save percentage in 28 games, but for Montreal, he posted an .860 save percentage in eight games during the
1993–94 season. During the 1994
Stanley Cup playoffs against the Bruins, Tugnutt started a game as Patrick Roy was recuperating from an
appendectomy, but he did not return to the Canadiens for the
1995–96 season, and was replaced by
Patrick Labrecque. These experiences caused Tugnutt to ponder retirement.
Career breakthrough In 1995, Tugnutt signed a one-year deal with the
Washington Capitals, and subsequently spent the entire 1995–96 season with their AHL affiliate, the
Portland Pirates. He was productive in Portland, helping lead the Pirates to the
Calder Cup Finals. This strong performance caught the attention of the
Ottawa Senators. Goaltending coach
Phil Myre helped Tugnutt work on fundamentals, and gained confidence and improved his game each season. While in Ottawa, he went from fighting for the backup position with
Mike Bales to splitting duties with starter
Damian Rhodes the next two seasons, and became the team's undisputed starting goaltender by 1999. On April 12, 1997, Tugnutt shutout the
Buffalo Sabres in the final game of the regular season. Tugnutt's father had just died and immediately following the win Tugnutt pointed to the rafters to signify the win was for his father, in what became an iconic image of Tugnutt. This win propelled the Senators to their first playoff berth. In
1998–99, Tugnutt had the best season of his career, and one of the best by an NHL goaltender in the current era. He posted a league-best
goals against average of 1.79, placed second in the league in save percentage at .925, had a career high in wins, and tied a career high in shutouts. This outstanding play, and an injury to
Curtis Joseph, gave Tugnutt the opportunity to play in the
1999 NHL All-Star Game. The next season, Rhodes was shipped to the expansion
Atlanta Thrashers, giving Tugnutt sole possession of the starting job. However, he was unable to match his previous season and Ottawa traded him to the
Pittsburgh Penguins for an experienced playoff goaltender,
Tom Barrasso. After arriving in Pittsburgh, Tugnutt took over the starting job from
Jean-Sébastien Aubin and helped lead Pittsburgh deep into the playoffs. Tugnutt was in goal for the May 4, 2000, playoff game against the
Philadelphia Flyers in which he made 70 saves on 72 shots. The 72nd shot was a goal scored by
Keith Primeau of the Flyers at 12:01 of the fifth
overtime, winning the game for Philadelphia 2–1, the longest NHL game since the 1930s. Following his performance with Pittsburgh, Tugnutt became one of the most sought-after
free agent goaltenders on the market. Both Ottawa and Pittsburgh attempted to re-sign Tugnutt but were unable to match the lucrative contract offered by the expansion
Columbus Blue Jackets. During Columbus' inaugural season, Tugnutt was considered their backbone. Tugnutt's 22 wins broke another NHL record for most wins on an
expansion team, and his .917 save percentage was among the best in the league. The team's second season was not as impressive as the first. Tugnutt battled injuries and ended up sharing time with young netminder
Marc Denis. General Manager
Doug MacLean gave Denis the opportunity to be the sole starter on the club, and traded Tugnutt to the
Dallas Stars. In
2002–03 Tugnutt was the backup to
Marty Turco. In January 2003, Turco suffered an ankle injury that allowed Tugnutt to start almost 20 straight games, and he posted back to back shutouts during that stretch. For the season, he played 31 games and posted a 15-10-5 record including four shutouts. The
2003–04 season was possibly Tugnutt's toughest in the NHL, as by January he only received three starts. He was sent down to the minors for the first time in almost ten years to get some playing time with the
Utah Grizzlies. Just five games in, Tugnutt pulled his groin and was out until after the All Star break. Soon after, he was recalled to the Dallas Stars. After two solid starts, one of which was a shutout, Tugnutt received a break when Turco received a four-game suspension. He retired following the 2003–04 season.
Post-retirement After the lockout, Tugnutt joined
CBC as a
color commentator for
Hockey Night in Canada. From 2008–09 to 2009–10, Tugnutt served as the goaltending coach for the
OHL's Oshawa Generals and was a goaltending consultant for the 2010 Canadian World Junior team. Tugnutt's contract with the Generals was not renewed after a major front office shakeup in May 2010. Tugnutt joined the Peterborough Petes coaching staff for the 2010–11 season. Tugnutt was a consultant with Hockey Canada until 2013 when that relationship ended. Tugnutt then purchased the
Kemptville 73's, a
Junior "A" ice hockey team, where he served as head coach, president and governor. Tugnutt sold the team to an ownership group led by former teammate
Jason York. ==Off the ice==