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Paul Kariya

Kariya with the Mighty Ducks

Paul Tetsuhiko Kariya (born October 16, 1974) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is currently an unrestricted free agent and is sitting out the 2010–11 NHL season because of post-concussion syndrome.

Playing career[]

Paul Kariya scored 91 goals and 153 assists for 244 points in 94 games for the Penticton Panthers of the British Columbia Junior Hockey League. He was the first freshman to win the Hobey Baker Award, notching 33 goals and 91 assists for 124 points in 51 games, helping the University of Maine to a 42–1–2 record, and the 1992–93 NCAA and Hockey East titles in his only full season. His younger brother, Steve, captained Maine to the 1998–99 NCAA title and later played briefly in the NHL. His younger sister, Noriko, is a professional boxer and his youngest brother, Martin, helped Maine get to the 2002 "Frozen Four" finals.

He was picked by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim fourth-overall in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft.[1] Kariya played for Anaheim for nine seasons and served as team captain for seven seasons.[2] His best season statistically so far is 1995–96, scoring 50 goals and 58 assists for 108 points. When Anaheim traded for Teemu Selanne with the Winnipeg Jets, Kariya was placed on a line with Selanne, and Steve Rucchin. The combinition of Kariya and Selanne became a lethal force against their opponents becoming one of the best duos in the NHL.

In 2003, he and the Ducks reached their first Stanley Cup Finals.[3] Kariya was third on the team in playoff scoring (behind Adam Oates and Petr Sýkora), scoring six goals and adding six assists. However he will best be remembered for a dramatic moment. During the second period in Game 6, Kariya took a hard check from the New Jersey Devils' Scott Stevens and lay on the ice for several minutes. He went to the locker room, but returned and 11 minutes later scored a goal to give the Ducks a 4–1 lead. Anaheim would win the game 5–2, but lose the series in seven games. Many felt Kariya's equipment changes following his first concussion may have saved him from being rendered unconscious from the Stevens hit.[4]

At a team rally following the Ducks' game seven loss to the Devils, Kariya promised to bring the Cup to Anaheim in 2004. A verbal agreement with then-GM Bryan Murray was broken by Kariya after his $10 million-per-year contract was not qualified. Murray intended to re-sign Kariya at a lower amount (believed to be in the $6–7 million range, to which Kariya had verbally agreed) and use the extra money to find the final piece to the Cup puzzle via free agency. Instead, Kariya took an $8.8 million paycut, ensuring himself unrestricted free agency at season's end, when he and former Ducks teammate Teemu Selanne signed with the Colorado Avalanche on July 3, 2003.[5] He believed he had a better chance at winning a Cup on the Avalanche. Kariya played in only 56 games and one playoff game that season for Colorado due to injuries, recording only 36 points.

After the season, Kariya signed a two-year contract with the Nashville Predators as an unrestricted free agent.[6] In his first season with the Predators in 2005–06, Kariya tallied 31 goals and 54 assists, accumulating his most points since the 1999–2000 campaign. Kariya played in all 82 games, joining Dan Hamhuis as the only Predators to do so. On April 18, 2006 , the last day of the regular season, Kariya scored a hat trick against the Detroit Red Wings in a 6–3 win. Kariya finished the year fourth in the NHL in shootout scoring percentage, converting on five of seven attempts. On November 1, 2006, Kariya reached the 800-point milestone against the Edmonton Oilers.

On July 1, 2007, Kariya signed a three-year contract worth $18 million with the St. Louis Blues.[7] Kariya was assigned as one of the alternate captains of the Blues organization. He, along with Keith Tkachuk, and Barret Jackman rotated the position throughout the 2008–09 season. In November, he was sidelined with an injury to his left hip. After undergoing surgery, it was discovered that he needed surgery on his right hip.[8] He returned in the 2009–10 season, scoring two goals in his first game. On March 18, 2010, Kariya scored the 400th goal of his NHL career, against the New York Rangers.[9] On August 27th, 2010, Kariya announced that he would sit out the 2010-11 season with post-concussion syndrome.[10] Whether Kariya will retire or return in 2011-12 remains to be seen.

International career[]

Kariya has played in two Olympics for the Canadian team. He failed to score as Canada's last shooter in a shootout against Sweden in the 1994 Olympic Gold Medal game, but he helped Canada win gold in the 2002 Winter Olympics. Kariya missed the 1998 Winter Olympics due to a concussion suffered from an on-ice crosscheck by Gary Suter.

Awards[]

  • World Junior Championships All-Star Team - 1992
  • NCAA Hockey East First All-Star Team - 1993
  • NCAA Championship Title
  • Hobey Baker Memorial Award - 1993
  • World Championships All-Star Team - 1994, 1996
  • Lady Byng Memorial Trophy - 1996, 1997
  • Played in NHL All-Star Game - 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003
  • NHL First All-Star Team - 1996, 1997, 1999
  • Puck Control Competition Champion 1999, 2000
  • NHL Second All-Star Team - 2000, 2003
  • Olympic Gold medal for Men's Ice Hockey (2002)

Records[]

  • Longest serving captain in Anaheim Ducks history, 8 years (1996-2003)
  • Most Puck Control Relay wins (4) at NHL All-Star Competition 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
  • Nashville Predators franchise record for assists in a season, 54 (2005–06)
  • Nashville Predators franchise record for points in a season, 85 (2005–06)

Career statistics[]

Regular season and playoffs[]

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1992–93 Maine Black Bears HE 39 25 75 100 12
1993–94 Maine Black Bears HE 12 8 16 24 4
1994–95 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 47 18 21 39 4
1995–96 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 82 50 58 108 20
1996–97 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 69 44 55 99 6 11 7 6 13 4
1997–98 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 22 17 14 31 23
1998–99 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 82 39 62 101 40 3 1 3 4 0
1999–00 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 74 42 44 86 24
2000–01 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 66 33 34 67 20
2001–02 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 82 32 25 57 28
2002–03 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 82 25 56 81 48 21 6 6 12 6
2003–04 Colorado Avalanche NHL 51 11 25 36 22 1 0 1 1 0
2005–06 Nashville Predators NHL 82 31 54 85 40 5 2 5 7 0
2006–07 Nashville Predators NHL 82 24 52 76 36 5 0 2 2 2
2007–08 St. Louis Blues NHL 82 16 49 65 50
2008–09 St. Louis Blues NHL 11 2 13 15 2
2009–10 St. Louis Blues NHL 75 18 25 43 36
NHL totals 989 402 587 989 399 46 16 23 39 12
HE totals 51 33 91 124 16
Medal record
Competitor for Canada Canada
Men's ice hockey
Olympic Games
Gold 2002 Salt Lake City
Silver 1994 Lillehammer
World Championships
Gold 1994 Italy
Silver 1996 Austria
World Junior Championships
Gold 1993 Sweden

International[]

Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
1992 Canada WJC 6 1 1 2 2
1993 Canada WJC 7 2 6 8 2
1993 Canada WC 8 2 7 9 0
1994 Canada Oly. 8 3 4 7 2
1994 Canada WC 8 5 7 12 2
1996 Canada WC 8 4 3 7 2
2002 Canada Oly. 6 3 1 4 0
Int'l totals 51 20 29 49 10

References[]

  1. "Paul Kariya, Blues - Stats". http://blues.nhl.com/team/app?page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8459426&service=page. Retrieved 2009-08-30. 
  2. "Paul Kariya: A perfect fit". Nashville Predators. 2005-08-26. http://predators.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=438573. Retrieved 2010-06-01. 
  3. "2009-10 Regular season Anaheim Mighty Ducks". Anaheim Ducks. 2007-03-20. http://ducks.nhl.com/team/app?service=page&page=TeamGameByGamePage&season=20022003&gameType=3. Retrieved 2008-11-10. 
  4. "Kariya shows character in Game 6". ESPN. 2003-06-07. http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs2003/story?id=1564873. Retrieved 2008-11-10. 
  5. "The Colorado Avalanche get a steal of a deal". abouthockey.com. 2003-07-03. http://proicehockey.about.com/cs/2002freeagents/a/selanne_kariya.htm. Retrieved 2010-06-01. 
  6. "Predators sign star LW Kariya". Yahoo.com. 2005-08-06. http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news?slug=predatorskariya. Retrieved 2010-06-01. 
  7. "Rebuilding Blues add scoring punch, sign Kariya to 3-year deal". ESPN. 2007-07-01. http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=2922984. Retrieved 2010-06-01. 
  8. "Surgery successful for St. Louis Blues forward Paul Kariya". Stltoday.com. 2008-01-06. http://interact.stltoday.com/blogzone/morning-skate/morning-skate/2009/01/surgery-successful-for-st-louis-blues-forward-paul-kariya/. Retrieved 2010-06-01. 
  9. "Kariya’s 400th goal lifts Blues over Rangers". NBC Sports. 2010-03-18. http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/35941543/ns/sports-nhl/. Retrieved 2010-06-01. 
  10. http://twitter.com/mirtle/status/22309255170

External links[]

Preceded by
None
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim first round draft pick
1993
Succeeded by
Oleg Tverdovsky
Preceded by
Randy Ladouceur
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim captains
19962003
Teemu Selanne, 1998
Succeeded by
Steve Rucchin
Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Scott Pellerin
Winner of the Hobey Baker Award
1992–93
Succeeded by
Chris Marinucci
Preceded by
Ron Francis
Winner of the Lady Byng Trophy
1996, 1997
Succeeded by
Ron Francis
Note: Selanne served as captain during the latter half of the 1997–98 season. Kariya was injured and out of the line-up.
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