Jason Pominville

Infobox Ice Hockey Player


image_size =
team=Buffalo Sabres
former_teams =
prospect_team =
prospect_league =
league = NHL
position = Right Wing
shoots = Right
height_ft = 6
height_in = 0
weight_lb = 186
nationality = CAN
nationality_2 = USA
birth_date = birth date and age|1982|11|30
birth_place = Repentigny, QC, CAN
draft = 55th overall
draft_year = 2001
draft_team = Buffalo Sabres
career_start = 2002

Jason John [Middle Name [http://sabres.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=InsiderNewsPage&articleid=355957] ] Pominville (born November 30, 1982 in Repentigny, Quebec, Canada) is a professional ice hockey right winger who is currently the most recent team captain for the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL.

Playing career

Pominville played junior hockey for the Shawinigan Cataractes of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In his fourth and final year with Shawinigan, 2001–02, he amassed 121 points in 66 games – seventh in league scoring – and was awarded the Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy as the league's most gentlemanly player.

Pominville was drafted 55th overall in the second round by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. He played for the Sabres' minor league affiliate, the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League until the 2005–06 season, when he earned a roster spot.

To begin the 2005–06 campaign, Pominville had initially been waived by the Sabres. Clearing waivers, he continued to play in the minors until he was called up a couple of months into the season.citeweb|title=Buffalo Sabres winger Jason Pominville inks 5-year extension|url=http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5iWxGYW1JnqVMWHaRm9cW50ZOhAxg|accessdate=2008-09-21|date=2008-09-19|publisher=Canadian Press] He scored his first NHL goal on November 27, 2005 – a powerplay goal against Olaf Kolzig in a 3-2 win against the Washington Capitals. [citeweb|title=Pominville's first NHL goal lifts Sabres over Caps|url=http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=251127023|accessdate=2008-09-21|date=2005-11-27|publisher=ESPN] Pominville quickly became an integral part of the Sabres line-up and finished the rest of the season with the Sabres with 18 goals in 57 games. In the 2006 playoffs, he recorded a hat trick in Game 2 of the first round against the Philadelphia Flyers. [citeweb|title=Sabres use 2 hat tricks to overpower Flyers|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/25/sports/hockey/25sabres.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss|accessdate=2008-09-19|date=2006-04-25|publisher=New York Times] Later in the Sabres' playoff run, he scored the series-clinching goal in the second round against the Ottawa Senators – a shorthanded effort in overtime of Game 5. [citeweb|title=Sabres bounce top-seeded Senators|url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/cup/2006-05-13-senators-sabres-gm5_x.htm|accessdate=2008-09-19|publisher=USA Today] It marked the first time in NHL history that a playoff series was decided by an overtime shorthanded goal.fact|date=September 2008 Buffalo announcer Rick Jeanneret marked this occasion with a call that is now famous in Buffalo hockey lore: "Oh, now do you believe? Now do you believe? These guys are good, scary good!" The Sabres had qualified as the fourth seed in the playoffs, surprising many after failing to make the playoffs the previous three seasons.

After improving to 68 points the following season, Pominville made a name for himself in 2007–08. He scored at nearly a point-per-game with 80 points in 82 games. In the absence of departed co-captains Chris Drury and Daniel Briere from the previous season, the Sabres utilized a rotating captaincy during the 2007–08 season; Pominville was named captain for the month of March.

Pominville was one of three finalists nominated for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for the 2007-08 NHL season, his first nomination. [citenews|title=Datsyuk, Pominville, St. Louis are Lady Byng finalists|publisher=ESPN|date=2008-04-24|url=http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3365147|accessdate=2008-04-25] The award went to Pavel Datsyuk.

On September 18, 2008, the Sabres acknowledged Pominville's rise to prominence and signed him to a 5-year, $26.5 miilion extension (taking effect in 2009–10). His existing contract sees him make just over $1 million per season.

International play

Since Pominville has dual citizenship, he was eligible to play for either the United States or Canada in international tournaments. He is a dual citizen as a result of his mother being American (as in the cases of Brett Hull, Adam Deadmarsh and Brady Murray) but was raised in Canada.

Making his international debut, he chose to represent the United States at the 2008 World Championships and scored 5 points in 7 games. [http://stats.iihf.com/Hydra/132/IHM1320USA_83_7_0.pdf]

Awards

*QMJHL First All-Star Team - 2002 [citeweb|title=Jason Pominville on NHL.com|http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8469506&service=page&tab=crst|accessdate=2008-09-21|publisher=National Hockey League]
*Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy (QMJHL's most gentlemanly player) - 2002

Career statistics

International statistics

References

ee also

*List of NHL seasons
*List of current NHL players
*List of AHL seasons

External links

* [http://www.sabres.com/playerprofile.cfm?id=83&type=history Jason Pominville - Sabres.com]
*
* [http://nhlpa.com/PlayerOfTheDay/index.asp?Date=4/25/2006 Jason Pominville @ nhlpa.com]