| Zack Kassian | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 24, 1991 Kingsville, ON, CAN |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight | 214 lb (97 kg; 15 st 4 lb) |
| Position | Right wing |
| Shoots | Right |
| NHL team Former teams |
Buffalo Sabres Windsor Spitfires (OHL) |
| NHL Draft | 13th overall, 2009 Buffalo Sabres |
| Playing career | 2011–present |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for Canada | ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Junior Championships | ||
| Silver | 2011 USA | |
Zack Kassian (born January 24, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player, currently playing for the Buffalo Sabres.
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Kassian made his debut with the Peterborough Petes in the 2007–08 season. He appeared in 58 games, scoring 9 goals to go along with 12 assists for 21 points.
In the 2008–09 season, Kassian showed great improvement, and his numbers increased greatly. In 61 games played, he had 24 goals and 39 assists for 63 points. He also had 136 penalty minutes, which was the highest number on the Petes; this was due in part to Kassian's 13 fighting majors. That season, he played in the OHL All-Star Classic, scoring a goal and adding an assist for the Eastern Conference team. He also played in the CHL Top Prospects Game for Team Cherry. In the game, he had a hit on top prospect John Tavares, which left Tavares with a shoulder injury.[1]
Kassian plays a power forward style, and has been compared to the likes of Boston Bruins forward Milan Lučić and former All-Stars Cam Neely and Keith Tkachuk.
On June 26, 2009, Kassian was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres, 13th overall, in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.
On January 21, 2010, Kassian was handed a 20 game suspension by the OHL for his hit to the head of Barrie Colts forward Matt Kennedy.[2] Also in the 2011 IIHF world juniors, Kassian was handed a 2 game suspension for his hit to the head on Czech defenceman Petr Senkerik.
In May 2010, Kassian was charged with assault after an altercation outside of a downtown Windsor, Ontario bar. In October 2010, Kassian reached an agreement that saw the assault charge laid against him in May dropped. As part of the deal, Kassian, 19, must perform 25 hours of community service. He will also make a $500 donation to charity and pay for the dental work of the other person involved in the incident. Kassian was arrested shortly after the completion of the Memorial Cup after an altercation at a Windsor bar. If convicted of the charge, Kassian could have run into difficulty crossing the Canada-U.S. border as he looks to continue his hockey career.
On April 23, 2011, Kassian was suspended 4 games for an intent to injure match penalty he received at the end of a playoff game vs the Owen Sound Attack on April 23, 2011.
On November 1, 2011, he signed a 3-year entry level contract with the Sabres, and played with the team's affiliate the Portland Pirates in the first round of the AHL playoffs.
On November 24, 2011, Kassian was recalled by the Buffalo Sabres, and in his first game on 11/25/11, recorded an assist on Jordan Leopold's goal (against the Columbus Blue Jackets), giving him his first NHL point in his first NHL game.
On November 26, 2011, Zack Kassian scores his first career NHL goal in front of his hometeam, the Buffalo Sabres against the Tomas Vokoun of the Washington Capitals.[3]
Canadian National Team World Junior Tournament 2010
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2006-07 | Windsor Jr. Spitfires | AH | 57 | 32 | 48 | 80 | 136 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Peterborough Petes | OHL | 58 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 74 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2008–09 | Peterborough Petes | OHL | 61 | 24 | 39 | 63 | 136 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 2009–10 | Peterborough Petes | OHL | 33 | 8 | 19 | 27 | 58 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Windsor Spitfires | OHL | 5 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 23 | 19 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 38 | ||
| 2010–11 | Windsor Spitfires | OHL | 56 | 26 | 51 | 77 | 67 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 37 | ||
| 2010–11 | Portland Pirates | AHL | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| OHL totals | 213 | 71 | 121 | 192 | 358 | 44 | 14 | 21 | 35 | 85 | ||||
| Preceded by Tyler Ennis |
Buffalo Sabres first round draft pick 2009 |
Succeeded by Mark Pysyk |