Emmanuel Fernandez was drafted in the 3rd round, 52nd overall, of the 1992 NHL Entry Draft by the Québec Nordiques. Before playing in the NHL, he was traded to the Dallas Stars in 1994 for Tommy Sjodin and a 3rd round pick, which ended up being Chris Drury.

 

In June of 2000, he was traded with Brad Lukowich to the Minnesota Wild for two draft picks, a 3rd round pick in 2000 and 4th round pick in 2002.

 

During the 2002-03 NHL season, Fernandez shared netminding duties with Dwayne Roloson as the Wild made their first ever appearance in the post-season, defeating the Colorado Avalanche in the first round and the Vancouver Canucks in the second before falling to the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in the Western Conference Finals.

 

In his earlier years, Fernandez was often criticized for having confidence and discipline issues and being inconsistent. In a 2006 interview, Fernandez credited his recent improvement to gaining maturity, becoming the Wild's number one goaltender after the departure of Dwayne Roloson, and a switch to the butterfly style of goaltending.

 

On June 30, 2007, he was traded to the Boston Bruins for forward Petr Kalus and a fourth-round draft pick in 2009.

 

Today, Fernandez is known for no-nonsense attitude during games. He often is not afraid to get physical with players who invade his crease by shoving them or trapping their stick.

 

Nephew of Wild coach and Hall-of-Famer, Jacques Lemaire. Played for Luleå HF in Sweden during the 2004-05 NHL lockout