Roberto Luongo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Position Goaltender
Catches Left
Nickname(s) Bobby Lou, Louie, Lu, Bolo.
Height
Weight		 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
206 lb (93 kg/14 st 10 lb)
NHL Team
F. teams		 Vancouver Canucks
Florida Panthers
New York Islanders
Nationality Flag of Canada Canada
Born April 4, 1979 (1979-04-04) (age 29),
Montreal, QC, CAN
NHL Draft 4th overall, 1997
New York Islanders
Pro career 1998 – present

Roberto Luongo (born April 4, 1979, in Montreal, Quebec) is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender with the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League. He has previously played for the New York Islanders and Florida Panthers.

Playing major junior in the QMJHL for the Val-d'Or Foreurs and the Acadie-Bathurst Titan, Luongo was drafted fourth overall by the Islanders in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, making him, at the time, the highest drafted goalie in NHL history.[1] He was a Vezina Trophy nominee with Florida in 2004, and once more in his first season with Vancouver in 2007. Both years he was the first runner-up to Martin Brodeur. In 2007, he was also nominated for the Lester B. Pearson Award and the Hart Memorial Trophy, but was first runner-up to Sidney Crosby for both awards.

Internationally, Luongo has represented Team Canada in two World Junior Championships, winning Best Goaltender honours in a silver-medal winning effort in 1999. In senior play, he has played in four World Championships, winning two gold medals and one silver. He also has a gold medal from the 2004 World Cup and competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics, in which he played backup to Martin Brodeur in both instances.

Contents

[edit] Playing career

[edit] QMJHL

Luongo began his major junior hockey career at the age of 16. He joined the QMJHL's Val-d'Or Foreurs in 1995-96, but posted only 6 wins in 23 games. The following season, as the team's starter, he improved to 32 wins, a club record, and was also awarded the Mike Bossy Trophy as the league's best professional prospect. In 1997-98, Luongo established a QMJHL single-season record with 7 shutouts[2] and backstopped the Foreurs to a Memorial Cup appearance. After he was traded to the Acadie-Bathurst Titan for the 1998-99 season, he made his second straight Memorial Cup appearance, but was ousted in the round robin.

During his major junior career, Luongo also made two apperances for Team Canada in 1998 and 1999, winning silver, as well as Best Goaltender and All-Star Team honours in 1999.

[edit] New York Islanders

Using the Toronto Maple Leafs' first round pick in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft (acquired in a deal that sent Wendel Clark back to Toronto), the New York Islanders drafted Luongo fourth overall, making him, at the time, the highest drafted goaltender in NHL history.

Although the Islanders returned 18-year-old Luongo to the QMJHL, they had every intention of getting him dressed for a 1998-99 NHL game, but contractual problems changed the plan.[citation needed] In 1999-00, Luongo made his professional debut with the Lowell Lock Monsters, the Islanders' AHL affiliate. Early in the season, Luongo was called up by the Islanders and made his NHL debut on November 28, 1999 stopping 43 shots in a 2-1 win against the Boston Bruins.[3]

However, after just 24 games as an Islander in his rookie season, GM Mike Milbury would trade Luongo to the Florida Panthers on the day of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft along with Olli Jokinen for Mark Parrish and Oleg Kvasha. As both Jokinen and Luongo would eventually develop into superstars with the Panthers, the trade would earn Milbury widespread criticism.

In Luongo's only season with New York, he posted 7 wins with a 3.25 GAA and a .904 save percentage.

[edit] Florida Panthers

Atlanta Thrashers forward Peter Bondra scores on Luongo.
Atlanta Thrashers forward Peter Bondra scores on Luongo.

In Luongo's first few seasons with Florida, he posted impressive numbers, featuring a consistently high save percentage. However, on a struggling Panthers team, he would not record more than 20 wins in a season until 2003-04 — somewhat of a breakout campaign for Luongo.

In 2003-04, he placed second in voting for the Vezina Trophy after facing the most shots in a single season by an NHL goaltender (2,475), a mark previously held by Felix Potvin.[4] Despite facing an unprecedented amount of shots, Luongo posted a 2.43 GAA and a .931 save percentage, which was first among goalies with 50-plus starts (Luongo had 72). Not surprisingly, Luongo also set an NHL record for most saves in a single season with 2,303 while picking up 7 shutouts, good enough for fifth in the league. Ultimately, Luongo lost out to fellow Montrealer Martin Brodeur for the league's top goalie.

Prior to the announcement of the 2004-05 NHL lockout, Luongo competed for Team Canada in the 2004 World Cup as Brodeur's backup, earning gold. Two years later, he would also play behind Brodeur in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.

When the NHL resumed in 2005-06, Luongo posted 35 wins and a career-high 8 shutouts for Florida before being traded away to Vancouver in the off-season.

Because Florida never made the playoffs in Luongo's duration with the team, he was a regular competitor for Team Canada in the World Championships, earning two gold medals (2003, 2004) and one silver (2005).

[edit] Vancouver Canucks

Luongo warming up before a game in 2007
Luongo warming up before a game in 2007

Prior to the start of the 2006-07 season, Luongo was in the midst of contract negotiations with Florida, and expected to sign[5] when GM Mike Keenan traded him to the Vancouver Canucks. In a blockbuster deal, Luongo was packaged with defenceman Lukáš Krajíček and a sixth round draft pick in exchange for forward Todd Bertuzzi, defenceman Bryan Allen and goaltender Alex Auld. Immediately following the deal, Vancouver signed Luongo to a four-year, $27-million deal.

Midway through the campaign he made his first All-Star Game appearance as a starter — his second appearance overall — and was named the Skills Competition's top goalie. He led the Canucks to a Northwest Division title, seeding third in the Western Conference, after they failed to make the playoffs the previous season. Luongo would also shatter Kirk McLean's franchise record of 38 wins in a season with 47. That same mark would also tie Bernie Parent's thirty-three-year NHL record of wins in a season, although Martin Brodeur would also reach and succeed that mark that same year (Luongo and Brodeur's achievements are, however, considered to be somewhat skewed, given that it was the first season the NHL made ties obsolete with shootouts, generating more wins than in the past). It was assumed that Luongo would achieve better statistics than in the past, backstopping a more successful team compared to the Panthers, who had never made the playoffs in Luongo's tenure with them. He would, in fact, set career highs in wins and goals-against-average, as well as the second highest save percentage of his career.

Incidentally, the 2007 postseason was Luongo's first playoffs of his career; in his first game, he almost set an NHL record for most saves in a game with 72, en route to a 5-4 quadruple overtime victory over the Dallas Stars. He was just one save shy of tying the mark set by Ron Tugnutt and Kelly Hrudey of 73. Luongo would go on to win his first playoff series in seven games, but would lose to the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the Anaheim Ducks in the second round. Game 5 of the series with Anaheim saw Luongo come close to his previous 72-save performance, stopping 60 of 62 in a losing effort, in which Vancouver was eliminated. Oddly, Luongo had missed the first three minutes of the first overtime, to what was first believed to be an equipment malfunction. However, after the series had ended, it was revealed that Luongo, instead, had an untimely case of diarrhea.[6]

Shortly after the end of the post-season, Luongo was up for three major NHL awards, the Vezina, Pearson and Hart. However, Luongo finished second in voting for all three awards, behind Brodeur for the Vezina and Sidney Crosby for the Hart and Pearson.[7]

After a season of great accomplishments, 2007-08 paled somewhat in comparison. For the most part of his second campaign with the Canucks, Luongo kept pace with his previous season's work and continued to set impressive statistics, most significantly, a three-game shutout streak spanning 210:34 (a Canucks franchise record).[8] Also, although he did not attend in order to be with his pregnant wife, he was voted in as the 2008 NHL All-Star Game's Western Conference starting goalie for the second consecutive season. However, in Luongo's last eight games, crucial to the Canucks' playoff hopes, he went 1-7 and allowed an uncharacteristic 25 goals in that span. The Canucks, who at several points in the season had the division lead, would end up missing the playoffs.

[edit] Awards & achievements

QMJHL

NHL

Team

International

[edit] Records

QMJHL

NHL

  • Highest drafted goaltender in NHL history - 4th overall in 1997 (surpassed by Rick DiPietro in 2000)'
  • NHL league record for most shots faced in a single season - 2,475 (2003-04)
  • NHL league record for most saves in a single season - 2,303 (2003-04)

Florida Panthers

  • Florida Panthers' franchise record for most shutouts in a season - 7 (2003-04)
  • Florida Panthers' franchise record for most wins in a season - 35 (2005-06)
  • Florida Panthers' franchise leader in all-time games played - 318
  • Florida Panthers' franchise leader in all-time wins - 108
  • Florida Panthers' franchise leader in all-time shutouts - 26

Vancouver Canucks

  • Vancouver Canucks' franchise record for most wins in a season - 47 (2006-07)
  • Vancouver Canucks' franchise record for save percentage in a season - .921 (2006-07)
  • Vancouver Canucks' franchise record for saves in a single game - 72 (April 11, 2007)
  • Vancouver Canucks' franchise record for longest shutout streak - 210:34 (2007-08)

[edit] Movements

[edit] Personal life

Luongo lives with his wife, Gina, and his daughter, Gabriella, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, during the off-season.[9] After skipping the 2008 NHL All-Star Game, in which he was chosen as a starter, to be with his pregnant wife, Gabriella was born on March 27, 2008.[10]

[edit] Career statistics

[edit] Regular season

   
Season Team League GP W L T OTL MIN GA SO GAA SV%
1995-96 Val d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 23 6 11 4 -- 1201 74 0 3.70 .878
1996-97 Val d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 60 32 21 2 -- 3302 171 2 3.10 .902
1997-98 Val d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 54 33 19 0 -- 3043 157 7 3.09 .899
1998-99 Val d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 21 6 10 2 -- 1476 77 1 3.93 .902
1998-99 Acadie-Bathurst Titan QMJHL 22 14 7 1 -- 1342 74 0 3.31 .914
1999-00 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 26 10 12 4 -- 1517 74 1 2.93 .908
1999-00 New York Islanders NHL 24 7 14 1 -- 1292 70 1 3.24 .908
2000-01 Louisville Panthers AHL 3 1 2 0 -- 178 10 0 3.38 .917
2000-01 Florida Panthers NHL 47 12 24 7 -- 2628 107 5 2.44 .920
2001-02 Florida Panthers NHL 58 16 33 4 -- 3030 140 4 2.77 .915
2002-03 Florida Panthers NHL 65 20 34 7 -- 3627 164 6 2.71 .918
2003-04 Florida Panthers NHL 73 25 33 14 -- 4252 172 7 2.43 .931
2005-06 Florida Panthers NHL 75 35 30 -- 9 4305 213 8 2.97 .914
2006-07 Vancouver Canucks NHL 76 47 22 -- 6 4490 171 5 2.29 .923
2007-08 Vancouver Canucks NHL 73 35 29 -- 9 4232 168 6 2.38 .917
NHL Totals 490 197 219 33 24 27,857 1205 38 2.60 .919
QMJHL Totals 180 85 70 9 -- 8892 554 10 3.30 --

[edit] Playoffs

   
Season Team League GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SA SV%
1995-96 Val d'Or QMJHL 3 0 1 68 5 0 4.41 -- --
1996-97 Val d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 13 8 5 777 44 0 3.39 -- --
1997-98 Val d'Or Foreurs QMJHL 17 14 3 1019 37 2 2.17 -- --
1998-99 Acadie-Bathurst Titan QMJHL 23 16 6 1400 64 0 2.74 -- --
1999-00 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 6 3 3 359 18 0 3.00 222 .919
2006-07 Vancouver Canucks NHL 12 5 7 847 25 0 1.77 427 .941
NHL Totals 12 5 7 847 25 0 1.77 427 .941
QMJHL Totals 56 38 15 3264 150 2 2.75 -- --

[edit] International play

Medal record
Competitor for Flag of Canada Canada
Men's Ice Hockey
World Championships
Gold 2003 Finland Ice Hockey
Gold 2004 Czech Republic Ice Hockey
Silver 2005 Austria Ice Hockey
World Cup
Gold 2004 World Cup of Hockey Ice Hockey
World Junior Championships
Silver 1999 Canada Ice Hockey

Played for Canada in:

Luongo has normally played backup to Martin Brodeur in most senior international tournaments.

[edit] International statistics

   
Year Team Event GP W L T SO GAA
1998 Canada WJC 3 0 0 0 0 2.89
1999 Canada WJC 7 4 2 1 0 1.93
2001 Canada WC 2 1 0 0 0 1.44
2003 Canada WC 4 3 0 1 1 1.98
2004 Canada WC 7 5 1 1 1 2.32
2004 Canada WCH 1 1 0 0 0 2.82
2005 Canada WC 2 1 0 1 1 1.50
2006 Canada Oly 2 1 1 0 0 1.51
Junior Int'l Totals 10 4 2 1 0 2.22
Senior Int'l Totals 18 12 2 3 3 1.99

[edit] References

  1. ^ Amber, David (2006-03-24). Q&A with Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo. ESPN. Retrieved on 2008-06-05.
  2. ^ CHL Record Book. CHL.com. Retrieved on 2008-04-20.
  3. ^ Isles Rookie Stifles Bruins. CBS News (1999). Retrieved on 2008-04-20.
  4. ^ As Sens gear up for playoffs, Luongo sets shot mark. USA Today (2004). Retrieved on 2008-04-21.
  5. ^ New Canuck Luongo surprised by trade. CBC Sports (2008). Retrieved on 2008-04-17.
  6. ^ Ziemer, Brad. "MIA Lou reveals he was ... in the loo", Vancouver Sun, 2007-05-07. Retrieved on 2007-11-20. 
  7. ^ Canadian Press. "Award hat trick anoints Crosby", Sporting News, 2007-06-15. Retrieved on 2008-02-18. 
  8. ^ Luongo's shutout streak ends in loss to Wild. Globe and Mail (2008). Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
  9. ^ Luongo skipping All-Star Game to be with his pregnant wife. USA Today (2008-01-09). Retrieved on 2008-06-05.
  10. ^ MacIntyre, Iain (2008-03-28). Daddy Luongo rejoins Canucks. Canwest Publishing. Retrieved on 2008-06-05.

[edit] External links

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