Joseph Pavelski (born July 11, 1984 in Stevens Point, Wisconsin) is an American professional ice hockey player for the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League. He scored a goal in his first NHL game, making him the 11th Sharks player in the history of the team to do so.
Playing career
Pre-NHL
He was a member of the 2004 Clark Cup champion Waterloo Blackhawks of the USHL. He won a Wisconsin State Hockey Championship with the SPASH (Stevens Point Area Senior High) Panthers in 2002. He won an NCAA Division I National Championship with the Wisconsin Badgers in the 2005–2006 season, while leading the team in overall points.
NHL - 2006/7
He started his career on a hot streak, scoring 7 goals and 10 points in his first 12 games. He continued playing well, before suffering a leg injury in his first season that saw his playing time reduced.
2007/8
During that season, Pavelski became a regular player on the Sharks roster and one of the best and most consistent young players on the squad, having played in all of 82 regular season games and in all of 13 playoff games. He also became one of the most dangerous players in the NHL during the shoot outs, having scored seven times on 11 opportunities that season, or a total of 10 times out of 14 in his career, as of the end of the 07/08 season. His success on shoot out opportunities is due to his quick wrist shot release. As he slowly approaches the opposing goalie, the goalie never knows when the shot is coming and which direction it is going. During the postseason, he was tied for the team lead in goals with Ryane Clowe (five) and tied for second with Clowe in points (5-4=9). Pavelski also led San Jose with three game-winning goals during the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs, which tied for third most in the League. In addition to his offensive numbers, he finished tied for 12th among NHL forwards in blocked shots (59). [1]
Contract
Pavelski signed a three-year entry level contract that paid him US$850,000 per year (not including bonuses) until June 2008. On June 25, 2008 Pavelski signed a contract extension, which will pay him $3.3M over the next two years.[2]
Transactions
References
- ^ San Jose Sharks Staff "Sharks Re-Sign Center Joe Pavelski ", Sharks.com, June 25, 2008. Accessed August 16, 2008.
- ^ Pollak, David. "Pavelski, Roenick, Boucher — 4 years, $5 million gets it done", Sharks Blog: Working the Corners, June 25, 2008. Accessed June 25, 2008.
External links
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