Brett Lebda

Brett Lebda
Born January 15, 1982 (1982-01-15) (age 30)
Buffalo Grove, IL, USA
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight 195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
AHL team
Former teams		 Springfield Falcons
Detroit Red Wings
Toronto Maple Leafs
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 2004–present

Brett Steven Lebda (born January 15, 1982) is an American professional ice hockey defenceman. He is currently playing with the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League (AHL). He has played in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs and won the Stanley Cup with the Detroit Red Wings.

Contents

Playing career

Lebda attended Buffalo Grove High School in Buffalo Grove, Illinois for two years. In addition to hockey, he also played golf and volleyball. He then relocated to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he was a participant on the USA National Under-18 Team. Lebda graduated from Pioneer High School.

Lebda played college hockey at the University of Notre Dame. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Detroit Red Wings in 2004, and was assigned to the Grand Rapids Griffins, the Wings' minor league affiliate in the American Hockey League. Lebda was unable to suit up for a NHL game until the 2005–06 NHL season due to the NHL lockout. He became the first Red Wing since Greg Johnson in 1993 to score his first NHL goal on opening night. He played in 46 games that regular season and all of Detroit's six opening round playoff games.

He played in 76 games during the 2006–07 NHL season to go with 12 games that playoff year. He set a career high in points with 18, and participated in the only fight of his career when he squared off against Mikael Holmqvist.

In the 2007–08 NHL season, Lebda suited up for 78 games, as well as 19 playoff games as the Red Wings won the 2008 Stanley Cup.

Due to sub-par play to start the 2008–09 NHL season, Lebda found himself a healthy scratch for three straight games before returning to the lineup.

During his career with the Red Wings, Lebda was often paired with Chris Chelios, a fellow Chicago suburban native who is 20 years his elder. While growing up in suburban Chicago, Lebda considered Chelios an idol, and modeled his game after his.

On July 7, 2010, Lebda signed a two-year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Lebda and Robert Slaney were traded to the Nashville Predators for Cody Franson and Matthew Lombardi on July 3, 2011.

Following the 2010–11 NHL season Lebda became a free agent.,[1] and on November 7, 2011, the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League signed Lebda to a professional tryout agreement.[2]

Personal

Lebda resides in a suburb of Chicago during the off-season.

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2000–01 Chicago Steel USHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2000–01 University of Notre Dame CCHA 39 7 19 26 109 — — — — —
2001–02 University of Notre Dame CCHA 34 6 8 14 54 — — — — —
2002–03 University of Notre Dame CCHA 40 7 14 21 48 — — — — —
2003–04 University of Notre Dame CCHA 39 6 18 24 42 — — — — —
2003–04 Grand Rapids Griffins AHL 6 0 1 1 0 4 0 0 0 2
2004–05 Grand Rapids Griffins AHL 80 2 10 12 34 — — — — —
2005–06 Grand Rapids Griffins AHL 25 4 14 18 42 11 1 4 5 8
2005–06 Detroit Red Wings NHL 46 3 9 12 20 6 0 0 0 4
2006–07 Detroit Red Wings NHL 74 5 13 18 61 12 0 2 2 8
2007–08 Detroit Red Wings NHL 78 3 11 14 48 19 0 2 2 6
2008–09 Detroit Red Wings NHL 65 6 10 16 48 23 0 6 6 22
2009–10 Detroit Red Wings NHL 63 1 7 8 24 2 0 0 0 0
2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 41 1 3 4 14 — — — — —
AHL totals 111 6 25 31 76 15 1 4 5 10
NHL totals 367 19 53 72 215 62 0 10 10 40

References

  1. ^ "Leafs acquire Lombardi and Franson in swap". NHL.com. http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=568385&navid=mod-rr-headlines. Retrieved 3 July 2011. 
  2. ^ Springfield Falcons - Falcons Sign Lebda To PTO Contract

External links