Steve Cash
Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.), a three-time Paralympic gold medalist and five-time world champion, is among the most decorated sled hockey athletes of all time.
He backstopped the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team for 16 seasons, appearing in 150 contests for Team USA with a 103-16-7-33 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record, 1.22 goals against average and .898 save percentage.
Nicknamed “Money” by his teammates, Cash enjoyed tremendous success on the Paralympic stage, earning four medals and allowing just three goals in 15 total games.
At just 16 years old, he earned a spot on the roster for the 2006 Paralympic Games amid his debut with the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team in the 2005-06 season, and helped Team USA earn a bronze medal in Torino, Italy.
He then went on to help Team USA win an unprecedented three-straight Paralympic gold medals. At the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, he set a Paralympic record after recording five shutouts and not allowing a single goal in Vancouver. Following that performance, Cash was awarded Best Male Athlete with a Disability at the 2010 ESPYs.
At the 2014 Paralympics, Cash finished with a 4-0-0-1 record, including a 0.41 goals against average and .955 save percentage with three shutouts. In addition, he served as the U.S. flag bearer at the closing ceremony.
Cash helped Team USA claim its third-straight Paralympic gold medal at the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games, where he registered a 0.29 goal-against-average, .967 save percentage and a pair of shutouts while winning all four of his starts. In the gold-medal game against Canada, Cash turned away 11 of 12 shots faced as the U.S. came from behind for a 2-1 victory in overtime.
The Overland, Missouri, native kept watch over Team USA's net in a U.S.-record eight world championships, helping the Team USA earn five gold medals (2009, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021), a pair of silver medals (2013, 2017) and one bronze medal (2008). In 40 games played in the world championship, Cash owns an impressive 30-3-1-6 record, including 15 shutouts. He helped the U.S. become the first country to win back-to-back gold medals at the Para Ice Hockey World Championship with a perfect 3-1-0-0 record in 2019, and a 3-0-0-1 showing and 0.90 goals-against-average in 2021.
In other international competition, Cash has competed for Team USA in 13 Para Hockey Cup tournaments, previously referred to as the World Sled Hockey Challenge, helping the U.S. win eight events overall (2009, 2012, 2015, 2016 (Jan.), 2016 (Dec.), 2017, 2018, 2019).
Cash, whose right leg was amputated due to osteosarcoma (bone cancer) at age three, was named the 2009 Paralympic SportsMan of the Year by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee.