Chris Driedger
Chris Driedger (born May 18, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender for the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL). Driedger was selected by the Ottawa Senators in the third round (76th overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.
| Chris Driedger | |||
|---|---|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg.webp) Dreidger with the Ottawa Senators in 2016 | |||
| Born |
May 18, 1994 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) | ||
| Weight | 203 lb (92 kg; 14 st 7 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Catches | Left | ||
| NHL team Former teams |
Seattle Kraken Ottawa Senators Florida Panthers | ||
| NHL Draft |
76th overall, 2012 Ottawa Senators | ||
| Playing career | 2014–present | ||
Playing career
Driedger played the 2010–11 season with the Tri-City Americans, before being acquired by the Calgary Hitmen in an off-season trade prior to the start of the 2011–12 season.[1] In his first season with the Hitmen, his outstanding play was recognized when he was invited to play in the 2012 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.[2]
Drafted in the third round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Ottawa Senators, Driedger continued to play with the Calgary Hitmen though to the end of the 2013–14 season. During his final season in the WHL, on February 1, 2014, Driedger was the last member of the Calgary Hitmen to play the puck before it was inadvertently put into the empty net of the Kootenay Ice, becoming the sixth goaltender in WHL history,[3] and the first in the Hitmen franchise history,[4] to be credited with scoring a goal.[5] He also became the Hitmen's all-time saves leader, surpassing Martin Jones mark of 3,374 saves.[6] Driedger completed his major junior career with 170 regular-season WHL games played and a win-loss-tie record of 94–46–15 including eight shutouts.
On April 1, 2014, the Ottawa Senators signed Driedger to a three-year entry-level contract.[7] On March 26, 2015, Driedger made his NHL debut with Ottawa, entering a game against the New York Rangers.
After five seasons within the Senators organization, Driedger was released as a free agent. On July 3, 2018, he agreed to a one-year AHL contract with the Springfield Thunderbirds, the primary affiliate to the Florida Panthers.[8] In the 2018–19 season, Driedger initially split his time between the Thunderbirds and Manchester Monarchs of the ECHL, before solidifying his role in the AHL. He made 16 appearances with Springfield before he was signed to a two-way NHL contract with the Florida Panthers for the remainder of the season on February 24, 2019.[9] On April 30, 2019, Driedger signed a two-year contract extension with the Panthers.[10] Towards the beginning of the 2019–20 season, on November 30, 2019, Driedger made his first career start against the Nashville Predators, in which he recorded a 27 save, 3–0 shutout win.[11]
On July 21, 2021, Driedger was selected from the Panthers at the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft by the Seattle Kraken.[12] Driedger was immediately signed to a three-year, $10.5 million contract by the Kraken.[13]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | OTL | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | ||
| 2010–11 | Tri-City Americans | WHL | 22 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 977 | 57 | 0 | 3.50 | .881 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Calgary Hitmen | WHL | 44 | 24 | 12 | 3 | 2294 | 107 | 3 | 2.80 | .896 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 82 | 9 | 0 | 6.59 | .812 | ||
| 2012–13 | Calgary Hitmen | WHL | 54 | 36 | 14 | 4 | 3199 | 134 | 2 | 2.51 | .915 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 1006 | 40 | 1 | 2.39 | .931 | ||
| 2013–14 | Calgary Hitmen | WHL | 50 | 28 | 14 | 7 | 2892 | 127 | 3 | 2.64 | .918 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 328 | 24 | 1 | 4.39 | .870 | ||
| 2013–14 | Elmira Jackals | ECHL | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 199 | 13 | 0 | 3.92 | .893 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Binghamton Senators | AHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 2 | 0 | 4.58 | .909 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Evansville IceMen | ECHL | 40 | 8 | 27 | 4 | 2253 | 142 | 2 | 3.78 | .885 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Binghamton Senators | AHL | 8 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 401 | 17 | 0 | 2.55 | .923 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Binghamton Senators | AHL | 39 | 18 | 15 | 4 | 2228 | 105 | 1 | 2.83 | .912 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Binghamton Senators | AHL | 34 | 12 | 19 | 2 | 1918 | 103 | 1 | 3.22 | .900 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 40 | 4 | 0 | 6.00 | .733 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Wichita Thunder | ECHL | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 120 | 9 | 0 | 4.51 | .877 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Belleville Senators | AHL | 10 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 490 | 33 | 0 | 4.04 | .885 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Brampton Beast | ECHL | 17 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1014 | 43 | 0 | 2.55 | .922 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Springfield Thunderbirds | AHL | 32 | 18 | 10 | 2 | 1835 | 75 | 1 | 2.45 | .924 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Manchester Monarchs | ECHL | 12 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 676 | 31 | 0 | 2.75 | .911 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Springfield Thunderbirds | AHL | 15 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 891 | 34 | 0 | 2.29 | .932 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 12 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 643 | 22 | 1 | 2.05 | .938 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 23 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 1362 | 47 | 3 | 2.07 | .927 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 130 | 8 | 0 | 3.70 | .871 | ||
| NHL totals | 38 | 21 | 9 | 4 | 2,099 | 73 | 4 | 2.09 | .929 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 130 | 8 | 0 | 3.70 | .871 | ||||
Awards and honours
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| CHL | ||
| CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game | 2012 | [14] |
| AHL | ||
| All-Star Game | 2020 | |
References
- "Hitmen acquire Driedger from Americans". Western Hockey League. July 16, 2011. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
- "Hitmen players heed advice from veteran teammate ahead of CHL/NHL Top Prospects game". Calgary Herald. August 2, 2011. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
- Senators pick Chris Driedger gets WHL’s first goalie goal in 10 seasons (VIDEO) | Buzzing The Net – Yahoo Sports Canada
- Hitmen goaltender Chris Driedger becomes sixth goalie in WHL history to score a goal – OurSports Central – Independent and Minor League Sports News
- "Chris Driedger does it all for WHL's Calgary Hitmen | Hitmen | Sports | Calgary Sun". Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 1, 2014.
- Chris Driedger owns the franchise record for most career saves at 3,390 – OurSports Central – Independent and Minor League Sports News
- Garrett Thompson, Chris Driedger sign with Senators – NHL on CBC Sports – Hockey news, opinion, scores, stats, standings
- "T-Birds sign 5 players to AHL contracts". Springfield Thunderbirds. July 3, 2018. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
- "Florida Panthers agree to terms with Chris Driedger". Florida Panthers. February 24, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
- "Panthers Agree to Terms with Chris Driedger on 2-Year Contract Extension". NHL.com. April 30, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
- "Dreidger set to make his first NHL start". National Hockey League. November 30, 2019. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
- "Seattle Kraken make their picks". Seattle Kraken. July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
- "In Driedger we trust". Seattle Kraken. July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
- "Chris Driedger named to CHL Top Prospects Game". The Hitmen Informant. January 2, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database