Mike Liut is considered to be one of the all-time greatest Whalers. His stellar play from 85-87 carried the Whalers to the playoffs and helped propel them to the Adams Division title in 1986-87.
Mike Liut played college hockey at Bowling Green State University. After being named twice to the CCHA First All-Star team, the St. Louis Blues selected him 56th overall in 1976. However, he opted instead to play for the Cincinnati Stingers of the WHA for two seasons. When the WHA merged with the NHL in 1979, the Blues reclaimed Liut's rights.
Liut was outstanding in his debut with St. Louis. His first two seasons saw him pile up 71 victories. In 1980–81, he was voted a runner-up to Wayne Gretzky for the Hart Trophy; he was selected as a First Team All-Star and won the Lester B. Pearson Trophy as the league's MVP as determined by his peers. That fall, he was Canada's starting goaltender at the 1981 Canada Cup, which ended with a disappointing 8–1 loss to the Soviet Union
In 1985, Liut was traded to the Hartford Whalers where, in his second season, he led the NHL in shutouts with four. In that same season, Liut backstopped the Whalers into the Adams Division Semifinals, where they were defeated by the Montreal Canadiens in OT of the seventh game in a memorable playoff series. The Canadiens went on to win the Stanley Cup that year. In 1986–87, Liut led the Whalers to their first and only Adams Division title and was named to the NHL's Second All-Star Team. He also posted the league's best goals-against average with the Whalers in 1989–90.
He was traded to the Washington Capitals in 1990, but had difficulty maintaining his workhorse status because of a failing back, an ailment that led to his retirement in 1991–92.
Following his playing career, Liut joined the University of Michigan as an assistant coach in 1995–96 until the end of the 1997–98 season. He received a law degree in 1995, and now heads up the ice hockey division at global sports management leader Octagon[1].
Liut is a second cousin of former NHL player Ron Francis (who was also his teammate on the Whalers).
