On This Day July 15th.

July 15: On this day in 1963, Steve Thomas was born in Stockport, England. Prior to his first of two stints as a Leaf, Thomas was signed as a free agent in May, 1984. In his first NHL playoff season and as a Leaf, Thomas recorded 14 points in just 10 playoff games in 1986. After netting 35 goals in 1986-87, Thomas was traded away to the Chicago Black Hawks in a poor Leaf trade. He returned to Toronto in 1998 and spent another three seasons with the Leafs as a mature and reliable goal-getter, regular season and playoffs. "Stumpy" was always a Leaf fan favourite.

July 15: On this day in 1998, the Maple Leafs signed free agent goaltender Curtis Joseph. CUJO immediately provided clutch goaltending that allowed the team to go offensive and lead the NHL in goals scored with 268 in 1998-99, winning a team record 45 games. Led by Joseph's 36 victories, the Leafs recorded their first 100 point season in franchise history. He played four seasons with the Leafs through 2001-02 and started 60 playoff games in that time. He then abruptly signed with the Red Wings as a free agent. With the Leafs, Joseph posted a regular season record of 133-88-27.