Pat LaFontaine
Hockey Hall of Fame , 2003 | |
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Date of birth | February 22, 1965 |
place of birth | St. Louis , Missouri , USA |
size | 178 cm |
Weight | 82 kg |
position | center |
number | # 16 |
Shot hand | Right |
Draft | |
NHL Entry Draft |
1983 , 1st lap, 3rd position New York Islanders |
Career stations | |
1982-1983 | Verdun Juniors |
1983-1984 | Team USA |
1984-1991 | New York Islanders |
1991-1997 | Buffalo Sabers |
1997-1998 | New York Rangers |
Patrick Michael "Pat" LaFontaine (born February 22, 1965 in St. Louis , Missouri ) is a retired American ice hockey player . Between 1984 and 1998 the center played 865 games for the New York Islanders , Buffalo Sabers and New York Rangers in the National Hockey League . He led the Sabers as team captain for five years and set franchise records that are still valid today , so that the team has not awarded its jersey number 16 since 2006 . With the national team of the USA he won, among other things, the gold medal at the World Cup of Hockey in 1996 and also took part in the Winter Olympics in 1984 and 1998 . He also received the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy , recorded over 1000 scorer points in the NHL and was inducted into both the Hockey Hall of Fame and the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2003.
Career
Born in St. Louis, Missouri and raised in Detroit , Michigan , LaFontaine decided against a junior career on a college team and played in the Canadian Junior League. Here he played an outstanding season and led his team, the Verdun Juniors, into the final of the Memorial Cup .
This achievement made him one of the highly regarded hopefuls in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft . Behind Brian Lawton and Sylvain Turgeon , who shouldn't have a great NHL career ahead of them, Lafontaine was selected as third by the New York Islanders, ahead of other stars like Steve Yzerman (4th), Tom Barrasso (5th) and Cam Neely (9th). ). But instead of switching to the NHL, he played with the US national team and prepared for the 1984 Olympic Games in Sarajevo . With eight points in six games, LaFontaine was one of the best players on the team that finished 7th .
For the coming season he went to the Islanders, but only made his breakthrough in his third season in 1986/87 . Six seasons followed, each with over 40 goals, but despite their good performance, the Islanders were a little successful team in those years. In 1991 Lafontaine was given to Buffalo. There he managed 148 points in the 1992/93 season . In 1996 he suffered a severe concussion . To lower the pay structure, he was given to the New York Rangers. In New York it no longer reached the top values as before. In 1998 he again took part in the Olympic Games. After contracting another severe concussion, he retired from his career.
In 2003 he was honored with induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame and the United States Hockey Hall of Fame . In addition, his jersey number 16 was established in 2006 by the Buffalo Sabers locked .
Achievements and Awards
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International
- 1991 silver medal at the Canada Cup
- 1996 gold medal at the World Cup of Hockey
Career statistics
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
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season | team | league | Sp | T | V | Pt | SM | Sp | T | V | Pt | SM | ||
1982/83 | Verdun Juniors | LHJMQ | 70 | 104 | 130 | 234 | 10 | 15th | 11 | 24 | 35 | 4th | ||
1983/84 | USA hockey | International | 58 | 56 | 55 | 111 | 22nd | |||||||
1983/84 | New York Islanders | NHL | 15th | 13 | 6th | 19th | 6th | 16 | 3 | 6th | 9 | 8th | ||
1984/85 | New York Islanders | NHL | 67 | 19th | 35 | 54 | 32 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4th | ||
1985/86 | New York Islanders | NHL | 65 | 30th | 23 | 53 | 43 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
1986/87 | New York Islanders | NHL | 80 | 38 | 32 | 70 | 70 | 14th | 5 | 7th | 12 | 10 | ||
1987/88 | New York Islanders | NHL | 75 | 47 | 45 | 92 | 52 | 6th | 4th | 5 | 9 | 8th | ||
1988/89 | New York Islanders | NHL | 79 | 45 | 43 | 88 | 26th | - | - | - | - | - | ||
1989/90 | New York Islanders | NHL | 74 | 54 | 51 | 105 | 38 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
1990/91 | New York Islanders | NHL | 75 | 41 | 44 | 85 | 42 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
1991/92 | Buffalo Sabers | NHL | 57 | 46 | 47 | 93 | 98 | 7th | 8th | 3 | 11 | 4th | ||
1992/93 | Buffalo Sabers | NHL | 84 | 53 | 95 | 148 | 63 | 7th | 2 | 10 | 12 | 0 | ||
1993/94 | Buffalo Sabers | NHL | 16 | 5 | 13 | 18th | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
1994/95 | Buffalo Sabers | NHL | 22nd | 12 | 15th | 27 | 4th | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4th | 2 | ||
1995/96 | Buffalo Sabers | NHL | 76 | 40 | 51 | 91 | 36 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
1996/97 | Buffalo Sabers | NHL | 13 | 2 | 6th | 8th | 4th | - | - | - | - | - | ||
1997/98 | New York Rangers | NHL | 67 | 23 | 39 | 62 | 36 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
LHJMQ total | 70 | 104 | 130 | 234 | 10 | 15th | 11 | 24 | 35 | 4th | ||||
International overall | 58 | 56 | 55 | 111 | 22nd | |||||||||
NHL overall | 865 | 468 | 545 | 1013 | 552 | 69 | 26th | 36 | 62 | 36 |
International
Represented the USA at:
year | team | event | Sp | T | V | Pt | SM | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1984 | United States | Olympia | 6th | 5 | 3 | 8th | 0 | |
1987 | United States | Canada Cup | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
1989 | United States | WM | 10 | 5 | 3 | 8th | 8th | |
1991 | United States | Canada Cup | 6th | 3 | 1 | 4th | 2 | |
1996 | United States | World cup | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4th | 2 | |
1998 | United States | Olympia | 4th | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
Men overall | 36 | 19th | 10 | 29 | 12 |
( Legend for player statistics: Sp or GP = games played; T or G = goals scored; V or A = assists scored ; Pkt or Pts = scorer points scored ; SM or PIM = penalty minutes received ; +/− = plus / minus balance; PP = overpaid goals scored ; SH = underpaid goals scored ; GW = winning goals scored; 1 play-downs / relegation )
Team records
- 95 assists in one season with the Buffalo Sabers (NHL 1992/93)
- 148 points in one season with the Buffalo Sabers (NHL 1992/93)
Web links
- Pat LaFontaine in the database of the National Hockey League (English)
- Pat LaFontaine in the database of the Hockey Hall of Fame (English)
- Pat LaFontaine at eliteprospects.com (English)
personal data | |
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SURNAME | LaFontaine, Pat |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | LaFontaine, Patrick Michael |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American ice hockey player |
DATE OF BIRTH | February 22, 1965 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | St. Louis , Missouri , United States |