Brian Leetch

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Position	Defenseman
Shoots	Left
Height Weight	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg)
NHL Team F. Teams	none New York Rangers Toronto Maple Leafs Boston Bruins
Nationality	United States
Born	March 3, 1968, Corpus Christi TX, USA
NHL Draft	9th overall, 1986 New York Rangers
Pro Career	1987 – present

Brian Leetch (born March 3, 1968 in Corpus Christi, Texas, USA) is a professional ice hockey player with the National Hockey League's Boston Bruins, though he has yet to re-sign for the 2006/2007 season. He is generally considered one of the top offensive defensemen in history, and arguably the best American defenseman as well; his election to the Hockey Hall of Fame after his retirement seems a virtual certainty. He has played for the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins.

Although he was born in Texas, his family moved from there 3 months after he was born, eventually settling in Cheshire, Connecticut. This is where the youngster would begin to hone his hockey skills at the local ice rink, which was managed by his father. In high school he excelled in baseball and hockey first at Cheshire High School and then at Avon Old Farms. As a sophomore, his 90-mph fastball helped the Cheshire Rams baseball team to a state championship and as a senior at Avon Old Farms he set the school record for strikeouts in a game with 19, yet it was hockey where he really excelled. As a sophomore at Cheshire, he scored 53 goals and 50 assists. In 2 seasons with Avon Old Farms he scored 70 goals and 90 assists in 54 games. These numbers were especially remarkable for a defenseman. NHL scouts were starting to take notice and the New York Rangers chose Leetch as their first-round pick (9th overall) in 1986. Following in the footsteps of his father Jack, Brian enrolled at Boston College in the fall of 1986, and like his father would become an All-American defenseman for the Eagles.

Contents 1 Professional Career 2 Career Statistics 3 External Links 4 See also

[edit] Professional Career

After one season in the NCAA, he made his NHL debut with the New York Rangers in 1987, scoring 14 points in 17 games. In his first full year in 1988, he notched 71 points, including a rookie defenseman-record 23 goals, winning the Calder Trophy as well as being selected to the NHL All-Rookie Team.

As the Rangers slowly developed into a championship-caliber team, Leetch won increasing respect from fans for his quiet demeanor and entertaining, offensive-minded play. In 1992 he became the fifth defenseman in history, and the only American defenseman, to record 100 points in a season and was awarded the Norris Trophy. In 1994 he again matched his career high of 23 goals in the regular season as the Rangers won the Presidents Trophy. That year the Rangers' 54-year championship drought ended with a 7-game Stanley Cup victory over the Vancouver Canucks; Leetch became the first non-Canadian to be awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy, and remains the only American to win it.

Olympic medal record
Men's Ice Hockey
Silver	2002 Salt Lake City	Ice Hockey

Following the Rangers' Cup win in 1994, Leetch remained a fan favorite and team leader, serving as Captain from 1997-2000 after the departure of Mark Messier. In 1997 he again won the Norris Trophy and the Rangers made a surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they were defeated by the Philadelphia Flyers. The next years, however, were marked by disappointing team performances that saw the Rangers miss the playoffs every year. After the especially unsuccessful 2004 campaign, the Rangers traded most of their high-priced veterans; Leetch was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs just prior to the trade deadline for prospects Maxim Kondratiev, Jarkko Immonen, and a first-round pick in the 2004 draft, which became Lauri Korpikoski, and a second-round pick in 2005, which became Michael Sauer. Leetch played well with the Leafs in the playoffs.

After the 2004-05 NHL lockout, Leetch was signed by the Boston Bruins to a one-year, $4-million contract. During this season with the Bruins, he scored his 1,000th career point.

In 1998, he was ranked number 71 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players of all time.

During the summer of 2006, he had gotten many offers from teams such as the New York Rangers, the 2006 Stanley Cup Champs, the Carolina Hurricanes, the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Edmonton Oilers. He has turned down many of those deals and is still a Free-Agent today. He has yet to make up his mind if he will retire or play one more season in the NHL.

[edit] Career Statistics

                                  Regular Season
Season  Team                    Lge   GP   G   A    Pts  PIM

1987-88 New York Rangers        NHL   17   2   12   14   0
1988-89 New York Rangers        NHL   68   23  48   71   50
1989-90 New York Rangers        NHL   72   11  45   56   26
1990-91 New York Rangers        NHL   80   16  72   88   42
1991-92 New York Rangers        NHL   80   22  80   102  26
1992-93 New York Rangers        NHL   36   6   30   36   26
1993-94 New York Rangers        NHL   84   23  56   79   67
1995    New York Rangers        NHL   48   9   32   41   18
1995-96 New York Rangers        NHL   82   15  70   85   30
1996-97 New York Rangers        NHL   82   20  58   78   40
1997-98 New York Rangers        NHL   76   17  33   50   32
1998-99 New York Rangers        NHL   82   13  42   55   42
1999-00 New York Rangers        NHL   50   7   19   26   20
2000-01 New York Rangers        NHL   82   21  58   79   34
2001-02 New York Rangers        NHL   82   10  45   55   28
2002-03 New York Rangers        NHL   51   12  18   30   20
2003-04 New York/Toronto        NHL   72   15  36   51   34
2005-06 Boston Bruins           NHL   61   5   27   32   36

                   NHL Totals         1205 247 781  1028 571

[edit] External Links

• Brian's U.S. Olympic Team bio

[edit] See also

• List of NHL players with 1000 points

Preceded by: Mark Messier	New York Rangers captains 1997-2000	Succeeded by: Mark Messier
Preceded by: Chris Chelios	Winner of the Norris Trophy 1997	Succeeded by: Rob Blake
Preceded by: Ray Bourque	Winner of the Norris Trophy 1992	Succeeded by: Chris Chelios
Preceded by: Patrick Roy	Winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy 1994	Succeeded by: Claude Lemieux
Preceded by: Joe Nieuwendyk	Winner of the Calder Trophy 1989	Succeeded by: Sergei Makarov