John LeClair
Alternate Captain
Birthdate: 6 July 1969
Birthplace: St. Albans, Vermont
Height: 6'3
Weight: 228 lbs
Sweater Number: 10
Position: Left wing (best in NHL, baby!)
Drafted/Acquired: Drafted by Montreal Canadiens in the 2nd round (33rd overall), 1987. Traded to the Flyers with Eric Desjardins and Gilbert Dionne for Mark Recchi on 2/9/95.
Marital Status:Married to wife Christina (his college sweetheart) with cute daughter MacKenzie and sons Cal and Jagger.
Career Notes
- Amateur Career: Recorded 56 goals and 60 assists for 116 points and 198 PIM in 92 games over a four year career at the Universtity of Vermont. Led Vermont in goals (25), points (45), and PIM (58) in 33 games during his senior season in 1990-91.
- 1987-88: Scored his first NHL goal in his first NHL game 3/9/91 vs. Vancouver.
- 1992-93: Member of the 1992-93 Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens. Recorded overtime goals in back-to-back games (6/5/93-6/7/93) of the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals at Los Angeles.
- 1993-94: Led the Canadiens in plus/minus (+17). Played his 200th NHL game 3/9/94 vs. St. Louis.
- 1994-95: Named to NHL First All-Star Team. Recipient of the 1995 Pelle Lindbergh Trophy awarded to the Flyer who was improved most from the previous season as voted by teammates. Recorded his first NHL playoff hat trick in Game 1 of Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. NY Rangers 5/21/95. Recorded first goal as a Flyer (50th of NHL career) 2/11/95at New Jersey.
- 1995-96: Named to NHL Second All-Star Team. Led team in goals (51; tied for fifth in the NHL) GWGs (10), power plays goals (19), and multiple-goal games (10). Registered his first career natural hat trick vs. Pittsburgh 3/31/96, the 13th natural hat trick in Flyers history. Scored goal in his 300th NHL game 12/31/95 at Vancouver. Was typicially amazing.
- 1996-97: Winner of Bobby Clarke Trophy as the Flyers' Most Valuable Player. Recorded two goals and an assist for Eastern Conference All-Star Team in 1997 NHL All-Star Game (second appearance). Led team in points (97; tied for fourth in the NHL) goals (50; tied for third in the NHL), power play goals (10), plus/minus (+44; first in the NHL) and shots (324; fifth in the NHL). Recorded six points (4G, 2A) vs. Montreal 2/6/97 to set career highs in goals (4) and points (6) in a game. His four-goal game tied team record for goals in a game.
- 1997-98: Named to NHL First All-Star Team. Winner of Bobby Clarke Trophy as the Flyers' most valuable player. Selected as a starter and scored a goal for North America All-Stars in 1998 NHL All-Star Game (thrid appearance). Tied for third in NHL goals (51). Second in NHL in shots (303) and in power play goals (16). Tied for fifth in NHL in points (87). First on team in plus/minus (+30, tied for fourth in the NHL), game-winning goals (9; tied for fourth in the NHL),and power play points (16-11-27). His four assists at Florida 4/16/98 established a new career high for assists in a game. His goal at Buffalo 4/13/98 was his 50th of season, the first American-born player to reach 50-goal mark three times and second Flyer to record three consecutive 50-goal seasons (Tim Kerr 1983-84 through 1986-87).
- 1998-99: Named to NHL Second All-Star Team . Played for the North America Team in the 1999 NHL All-Star Game (fourth appearance). Winner of Bud Ice Plus-Minus Award (+36) as "the player, having played a minimum of 60 games, who leads the League in plus/minus statistic at the end of the regular season". First on team in goals (43, fifth in the NHL) power play goals (16, fourth in the NHL), game winning goals (7, tied for ninth in the NHL), shooting percentage (17.5%, 43 goals on 246 shots), plus/minus(+36) and shots (246). Second on the team in points (90, ninth in the NHL). Third on team in assists (47). Tied for first in the NHL in game tying goals (3). Flyers had a 19-6-5 record when LeClair scored at least one goal and 18-15-13 when he was held without a goal. Flyers had a 0-5-1 record when LeClair did not play. Assist vs. Boston 4/8/99 was his 47th of season, tying his career high (47 with the Flyers in 1996-97). Goal vs. Detroit 3/11/99 was his 216th as a Flyer, passing Rick Tocchet for ninth place on Flyers all-time goal list. Scored three goals, including game-winner, at Tampa Bay 10/16/98 for his second career "natural" hat trick. Only the second player in Flyers history to record multiple regular season "natural" hat tricks (Kerr, 4).
- 1999-2000: Named to The Hockey News 2000 Stanley Cup Playoff Second All-Star Team. Appeared in his fifth career All-Star Game. Led team in goals (40, seventh in NHL), power-play goals(13), and game-tying goals (2). Tied for team lead in game-winning goals (7). Second on team in points (77, 13th in NHL). Recorded 24 multi-point games. One of three Flyers to play all 82 games. Flyers had a 18-4-2 record when LeClair scored at least one goal. During playoffs, Ranked 11th in NHL in points (13). Recorded at least one point (3G, 3A) in four straight games (5/2/00-5/9/00). Recorded game-winning goal and an assist in Eastern Conference Semifinal series clinching win at Pittsburgh 5/9/00; game winning goal was his eighth as a Flyer, tied for second on the club's career list. Recorded two assists vs. Pittsburgh 5/7/00. Played 49:04 and scored a goal in 5 OT game at Pittsburgh 5/4/00. Appeared in his 100th career playoff game vs. Pittsburgh 4/27/00. Scored a goal in series clinching win vs. Buffalo 4/20/00. Recorded at least one point (2G, 1A) in three straight games (4/13/00-4/16/00). Scored game-winning goal at Buffalo 4/16/00. Recorded an assist vs. Buffalo 4/13/00, his 50th playoff point as a Flyer. During regular season, Scored goal vs. Boston 4/8/00 for his 40th tally of season to set a Flyers record of five consecutive seasons with 40 or more goals. Registered two assists at Boston 3/4/00, first assist was 300th of his career. Scored two goals at NY Islanders 2/26/00; first goal was his 481st point as a Flyer, passing Mark Howe for 10th place on the Flyers all-time list; second was his 600th career point. Scored his 300th career goal 2/22/00 vs. Chicago. Scored game-winning goal at NY Rangers 2/20/00, his 30th tally of season, becoming just the third Flyer to score 30 or more goals in five consecutive seasons (Bill Barber, Brian Propp). Registered an assist vs. Pittsburgh 1/8/00, his 400th game as a Flyer. Recorded two goals and an assist at Calgary 12/27/99; first goal was his 20th of season, the sixth consecutive season in which he has scored 20 or more goals. Scored two goals, including game winner, vs. St. Louis 12/5/99; first goal was his 425th point as a Flyer, third among left wings on the club's career list. Recorded seven-game scoring streak (7G, 4A: 10/30/99-11/13/99), including at least one goal (6G, 2A) in five consecutive games (10/30/99-11/9/99). Scored goal vs. San Jose 11/13/99, his 231st tally as a Flyer to move into eighth place on the club's all-time list. Scored goal at New Jersey 11/9/99, his 600th career game.
- 2000-2001: Was named First Star after scoring two power play goals, including the game-winning goal in overtime, vs. Pittsburgh on 4/7/01. Recorded an assist at Toronto on 3/24/01 after missing the previous 46 games (from 12/10/00 through 3/22/01) recovering from a disc space infection. Registered a hat trick (the 10th of his career - all with the Flyers) vs. Tampa Bay on 12/6/00. Played vs. Phoenix on 11/26/00 after missing the previous 20 games (from 10/11/00 through 11/24/00) because of an L-3 disc herniation. Underwent successful disc surgery on 10/21/00. Recorded his 500th point (assist) as a Flyer vs. Boston on 10/7/00.
- 2001-2002: Won a silver medal with Team USA at the 2002 Winter Olympics on 2/24/02.
Profile
(10/22/01) I'll admit it--I gush a lot when I write about John LeClair on this website. Yes, I know he already has his own tribute page. Ever since my early days as a Flyer and hockey fan, however, LeClair's been one of my favorites.
He has traveled a long way from St. Albans, Vermont. He had a successful career at UVM, though he was never a college hockey hero on the level of Chris Drury or Marty Turco. During the early years of his career, in Montreal, he was considered a bit of a disappointment: a second round draft pick who had not really panned out. Sure, they said, he's had his moments--most notably in the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals, when his two overtime goals helped Montreal secure its only cup of the 1990s. Those were exceptions. Most of the time in Montreal, LeClair was a bit, well, mediocre.
A blockbuster deal--in which he was an afterthought--brought him to Philly and catapulted him to stardom. Beside Mikael Renberg and Eric Lindros, his career took off. What unfulfilled potential? they said now. Try three straight 50 goal seasons, a spot on Team USA at the 96 World Cup and Nagano Olympics, numerous All-Star game appearances. At first some people said he was simply piggybacking on Eric Lindros's talent--they said John LeClair was Warren Young to Lindros's Mario Lemieux. When Eric Lindros went down with injuries, however, LeClair kept chugging along.
Last year was a lean one for John LeClair. He missed most of the season with various back ailments and spent the rest of his time in a cold war with Flyers management. Would he resign? Would he walk? Those were the questions on everyone's mind; those were the questions that he steadfastly refused to answer. When the Flyers' season ended with a terrible 8-0 loss in Buffalo, hockey pundits throughout North America said it was the end of John LeClair's tenure in orange and black. Thankfully, they were wrong. LeClair gave up free agency for a very lucrative contract with the Flyers--9 million dollars a year. There's a good chance, I think, that he'll finish his career here.
In these early days of the post-Lindros era, it's easy to think that John LeClair's come full circle. Sometimes he plays on a line with Mark Recchi, the player for whom he was traded way back in 1995. But throughout all these years, some things about John LeClair have not changed at all. He's fond of understatement--no Roenick-style quote machine here--and he's a bit of a stoic. Sports Illustrated once wrote, "When John LeClair looks at a glass of water, he sees it as neither half-empy or half-full. He sees water." He plays down his own amazing skills. He pays the price for every goal he scores--and he still scores a heck of a lot of goals. Will he reach the 50 goal milestone again? Let's hope so.
Images
Links
Most of the LeClair links are on the main hockey page.
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