Alex Pietrangelo

Alex Pietrangelo
Born January 18, 1990
King City, ON, CAN
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 201 lb (91 kg; 14 st 5 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Right
NHL team St. Louis Blues
National team  Canada
NHL Draft 4th overall, 2008
St. Louis Blues
Playing career 2008–present

Alexander Pietrangelo (born January 18, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for, and serving as alternate captain of, the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). As a junior, he played with the Niagara IceDogs and Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Pietrangelo has competed in with Team Canada at the junior and senior level, including a gold medal win with Canada's under-20 team at the 2009 World Junior Championships. Individually, he has been named Best Defenceman at the 2010 World Junior Championship and 2011 Men's World Championship. His father is the cousin of former NHL goaltender Frank Pietrangelo.[1]

On January 7, 2014, Pietrangelo was named to the 2014 Canadian Olympic hockey team, winning a gold medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Playing career

Minor

Pietrangelo played minor hockey in the Greater Toronto Area when he was growing up. He started to play hockey with the Richmond Hill Stars of the OMHA before playing three years with the Vaughan Kings of the Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL). As a novice aged player (nine and under), Pietrangelo and his Toronto Pro Hockey Development teammates participated in the 2000 Brick Super Novice Tournament in Edmonton, Alberta. His teammates included Steven Stamkos, Philip McRae and Michael Del Zotto. Toronto, however, was defeated in the tournament final by the Vancouver Pacific Vipers, on a goal by Jordan Eberle.[2] Pietrangelo was also a member of the All-Ontario Peewee AAA Champion Vaughan Kings team in 2003. He played three years in the Toronto Jr. Canadiens AAA system.[3] The Jr. Canadiens won Ontario's bantam championship in 2005, with Pietrangelo scoring the game-winning goal in the final against the Markham Waxers.[4]

Junior

After his successful minor hockey career, Pietrangelo was drafted third overall by the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)'s Mississauga IceDogs in the first round of the 2006 OHL Priority Selection.[5] He scored at a near point-per-game pace in his rookie season with the IceDogs with 52 points in 59 games, then moved with the team to Niagara as the franchise relocated in 2007.

In September 2007, he was named Canadian Hockey League Player of the Week after recording three goals and four assists in two games.[6] In December 2007, TSN ranked Pietrangelo third overall among eligible skaters for the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.[7] International Scouting Services described Pietrangelo as a "tremendous specimen in terms of size and skills"[8] and ranked him fifth among North American draft prospects at mid-season, then sixth in their final rankings leading up to the Draft.[9] After finishing his second OHL season with 53 points in 60 games, he was selected fourth overall by the St. Louis Blues at the Entry Draft on June 20, 2008.[10]

Pietrangelo during 2008 Blues Fan Fest

Coming into training camp, the Blues signed him to an entry-level contract on September 4, 2008.[11] Pietrangelo earned his way onto the team for opening night and played his first NHL game against the Nashville Predators on October 10, 2008.[12] Three days later, however, he suffered a head injury on October 13 in a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, when Ryan Hollweg checked him from behind into the boards.[13] Pietrangelo returned shortly, and after playing eight games total for the Blues, he was sent back to his junior team, the Niagara IceDogs.[14] On April 10, 2009, he was assigned to the Blues' top minor league affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen of the American Hockey League (AHL), after his junior season had ended.[15]

Pietrangelo began the 2009–10 season on the Blues' roster for a second consecutive year, but played in only nine games by December 2009. After the Blues lent him to the Canadian under-20 team for the 2010 World Junior Championships, Pietrangelo was returned to the OHL. During the World Juniors, his OHL rights were traded from the IceDogs to the Barrie Colts.[16] Playing half a season with Barrie, he recorded 29 points in 25 games, while adding 14 points in 17 playoff games. Due to his long playoff run with the Colts, he did not have the opportunity to play in the AHL as he did the previous season.

Professional

Pietrangelo with the Blues in 2014.

In 2010–11, Pietrangelo played his first full season with the Blues, leading all team defencemen with 43 points (11 goals and 32 assists) over 79 games. He also led team defencemen in plus-minus (+18) and shots (161), while ranking third in average ice time per game.[17] Due to his previous eight- and nine-game seasons in the NHL, he did not qualify as a rookie.[18] Comparatively, the League's leading scorer among rookie defencemen that season was teammate Kevin Shattenkirk, who was born a year earlier than Pietrangelo; he also recorded 43 points.[19] At the end of the 2011–12 season, Pietrangelo was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team.[20]

On September 13, 2013, Pietrangelo agreed to a seven-year, $45 million contract with the Blues.[21]

International play

Medal record
Competitor for Canada Canada
Ice hockey
Winter Olympics
Gold 2014 Sochi
World Junior Championships
Gold 2009 Canada
Silver 2010 Canada

Pietrangelo was picked to play for Team Canada's under-18 team at the 2007 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, where he served as an alternate captain. The team finished fourth.[22] He played next for the Canadian National Junior Team at the 2009 World Junior Championships and won a gold medal.[23]

The following year, Pietrangelo was loaned by his NHL team, the St. Louis Blues, to play for Team Canada in his second World Junior Championships in 2010.[24] He was selected as an alternate captain to Patrice Cormier. In the final game of the round-robin, Pietrangeo scored a shorthanded game-tying goal against the United States to send the game to overtime. Canada eventually won in a shootout and earned a bye into the semi-final.[25] Advancing to the gold medal game, Canada met the United States in a rematch, but lost 6–5 in overtime. Pietrangelo picked up several individual honours at the conclusion of the tournament. He was named a Tournament All-Star by the media, the Best Defenceman by the directorate and was selected by the coaching staff as one of Canada's top three players.

As the St. Louis Blues failed to make the playoffs in Pietrangelo's first full season in the NHL, he was selected to Canada's men's team for the 2011 IIHF World Championship in Slovakia. With two goals and three assists for five points over seven games, he led Canada in defensive scoring, while tying for second overall among all tournament defencemen.[26] Canada advanced to the quarterfinal as the top-ranked team in their pool, but lost 2–1 to Russia. At the end of the tournament, Pietrangelo was chosen as the Best Defenceman by the directorate.[27]

Pietrangelo was part of Canada's gold-medal winning 2014 Winter Olympic team. He played in all six of Canada's games, contributing one assist.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2005–06 Toronto Jr. Canadiens GTHL 44 13 31 44 33 — — — — —
2006–07 Mississauga IceDogs OHL 59 7 45 52 45 4 0 0 0 8
2007–08 Niagara IceDogs OHL 60 13 40 53 94 6 5 4 9 4
2008–09 Niagara IceDogs OHL 36 8 21 29 32 — — — — —
2008–09 St. Louis Blues NHL 8 0 1 1 2 — — — — —
2008–09 Peoria Rivermen AHL 1 0 0 0 4 7 0 3 3 2
2009–10 St. Louis Blues NHL 9 1 1 2 6 — — — — —
2009–10 Barrie Colts OHL 25 9 20 29 27 17 2 12 14 8
2010–11 St. Louis Blues NHL 79 11 32 43 19 — — — — —
2011–12 St. Louis Blues NHL 81 12 39 51 36 8 0 5 5 0
2012–13 St. Louis Blues NHL 47 5 19 24 10 6 1 1 2 2
2013–14 St. Louis Blues NHL 81 8 43 51 32 6 1 2 3 0
2014–15 St. Louis Blues NHL 81 7 39 46 28 6 0 2 2 0
NHL totals 386 44 174 218 133 26 2 10 12 2

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2009 Canada WJC 1st 6 1 2 3 0
2010 Canada WJC 2nd 6 3 9 12 14
2011 Canada WC 5th 7 2 3 5 2
2014 Canada Oly 1st 6 0 1 1 0
Junior totals 12 4 11 15 14
Senior totals 13 2 4 6 2

References

  1. ↑ "The sky's the limit for Blues' defenseman Pietrangelo". NHL.com. 2009-09-08. Retrieved 2012-01-08.
  2. ↑ Short, John (2000-08-14). "Vipers take Brick in OT thriller". Edmonton Journal. p. D4.
  3. ↑ "Player Profile - Alex Pietrangelo". Hockey Canada. Retrieved 2011-01-16.
  4. ↑ "Sports Ticker". Toronto Star. 2005-04-03. p. B10.
  5. ↑ "Stamkos No. 1 at OHL draft". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 2006-05-06. Archived from the original on 11 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-14.
  6. ↑ "Pietrangelo named CHL Player of the Week". Canadian Online Explorer. 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2008-01-14.
  7. ↑ McKenzie, Bob (2007-09-07). "Stamkos unanimous pick for top prospect". The Sports Network. Retrieved 2008-01-14.
  8. ↑ "ISS Draft Rankings (OHL)". The Sports Network. Retrieved 2008-01-14.
  9. ↑ "Pietrangelo Looking to Make it Big". St. Louis Blues.com. 2008-06-20. Archived from the original on 22 June 2008. Retrieved 2008-06-22.
  10. ↑ "Blues Select Pietrangelo with 4th pick". St. Louis Blues.com. 2008-06-20. Retrieved 2006-06-22.
  11. ↑ "Blues sign Pietrangelo: Defenseman was the Blues' first-round pick in 2008". St. Louis Blues. Archived from the original on 13 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-12.
  12. ↑ "Rookie will start season on blue line". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 2008-10-07. Archived from the original on 9 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
  13. ↑ "Blues come back to beat Maple Leafs". The Hockey News. 2008-10-13. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
  14. ↑ "Blues assign Pietrangelo to Niagara". St. Louis Blues. 2008-11-13. Archived from the original on 16 November 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
  15. ↑ "Blues Assign Pietrangelo to Peoria". NHL.com. April 10, 2009. Archived from the original on 14 April 2009. Retrieved April 11, 2009.
  16. ↑ Aaron Bell (2010-01-08). "Around the OHL". Ontario Hockey League. Archived from the original on 1 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-01-09.
  17. ↑ "2010-2011 Regular Season St Louis Blues Defenseman Summary Total Points". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2011-05-19.
  18. ↑ "Calder Memorial Trophy". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 2011-05-19.
  19. ↑ "2010-2011 - Regular Season - Rookie - All Skaters - Summary - Total Points". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on May 12, 2011. Retrieved 2011-05-19.
  20. ↑ "Pietrangelo Named to 2nd All-Star Team". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2012-06-23.
  21. ↑ Brehm, Mike (2013-09-13). "Blues sign Alex Pietrangelo to seven-year deal". USA Today. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  22. ↑ "Canada's National Team Finishes Fourth". Hockey Canada. 2007-08-18. Retrieved 2008-01-14.
  23. ↑ "Canada's junior hockey heroes proud in victory". CTV News. 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2009-01-17.
  24. ↑ "NHLer Pietrangelo aims to be go-to guy". The Leader-Post. 2009-12-14. Retrieved 2010-01-05.
  25. ↑ "Canada comes back to beat USA in shootout". The Sports Network. 2010-01-02. Archived from the original on 4 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-01-05.
  26. ↑ "Defensemen Scoring Leaders" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2011-05-15. Retrieved 2011-05-19.
  27. ↑ "Best Players Selected By the Directorate" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2011-05-19.

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
David Perron		 St. Louis Blues first round draft pick
2008 		Succeeded by
David Rundblad
Preceded by
Erik Karlsson		 World Junior Best Defenceman
2010 		Succeeded by
Ryan Ellis