John Scott (ice hockey)

John Scott

Scott pictured during his tenure with the Chicago Blackhawks
Born (1982-09-26) September 26, 1982
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Height 6 ft 8 in (203 cm)
Weight 260 lb (120 kg; 18 st 8 lb)
Position Left wing
Shot Left
Played for Minnesota Wild
Chicago Blackhawks
New York Rangers
Buffalo Sabres
San Jose Sharks
Arizona Coyotes
Montreal Canadiens
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 2006–2016

John Howard Scott (born September 26, 1982) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey defenceman/winger who most recently played for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League. Scott previously played for the Minnesota Wild, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, San Jose Sharks, Buffalo Sabres and the Arizona Coyotes of the NHL. Scott was born in Edmonton, Alberta, but grew up in St. Catharines, Ontario. He graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2006.

Scott gained prominence in January 2016 when, after an online campaign, he was named captain of the Pacific Division team for the 2016 NHL All-Star Game, despite only having scored five goals in his career, and only one assist in his time with the Coyotes. Despite a trade to the Montreal Canadiens, and subsequently being sent down to the St. John's IceCaps, the Canadiens AHL affiliate, the NHL confirmed on January 19, 2016, that Scott would participate in the 2016 NHL All-Star Game as the captain of the Pacific Division.[1] Scott scored two goals in the tournament that helped his team advance to the finals where they were winners by a score of 1–0. He earned his share of the million dollar prize pool ($90,666) by helping his team win the tournament. Scott went on to win the MVP award in the All-Star Game.[2][3]

Playing career

Undrafted, Scott committed to a four-year collegiate hockey career with Michigan Tech in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. As an enforcing physical defenceman, Scott recorded 19 points with 347 penalty minutes in his time with the Huskies.

A free agent, Scott joined the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League. During his first professional season in 2006–07 he was signed by the Minnesota Wild to an entry-level contract.[4] The first time he was called up, he was unable to play in the game because it was against the Maple Leafs in Toronto, and he didn't have his passport.[5] His first NHL game came one month later in Detroit. In the 2009–10 season Scott scored his first NHL goal on November 15, 2009, against Michael Leighton of the Carolina Hurricanes in a 5–4 loss in a Shootout.[6]

On July 1, 2010, Scott left the Wild as a free agent and signed a two-year contract with the Chicago Blackhawks.

In the second year of his contract in the 2011–12 season, Scott was dealt at the trade deadline to the New York Rangers for a fifth-round draft pick in 2012 on February 27, 2012.[7]

On July 1, 2012, Scott agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres.[8] On May 20, 2013, the Sabres re-signed Scott to a one-year contract extension worth $750,000.

On October 31, 2013, Scott was suspended 7 games for an illegal check to the head of the Bruins' Loui Eriksson a week prior.

On December 27, 2013, Scott scored his second career goal vs Maple Leafs goalie Jonathan Bernier.

On July 2, 2014, Scott signed as a free agent to a one-year contract with the San Jose Sharks.[9]

On October 26, 2014, against the Anaheim Ducks, Scott was subbed in via legal line change, and immediately began fighting Tim Jackman without attempting to play the puck,[10] though head coach Todd McLellan stated Scott had already been on the ice at the time, and the fight escalated into a line-brawl.[11] The next day, he was suspended for the next two games;[10] it was officially recorded as for "leaving the bench on a legal line change and starting an altercation".[12] According to the NHL's Department of Player Safety video, Scott said he left the bench with the desire to fight Jackman.[13]

On December 24, 2014, Scott was suspended for four games as "punishment for punching an unsuspecting opponent and causing an injury" on December 22 according to the NHL's Department of Player Safety. The punch/hit with stick was, again, on Jackman.[14]

On July 10, 2015, Scott signed a one-year contract with the Arizona Coyotes.[15] In the 2015–16 season, on January 2, 2016, Scott was announced as the winner of the NHL All Star Game fan vote, as the captain for the team representing the Pacific Division of the Western Conference.[16] Scott received the most votes of any player, despite having only recorded 1 point in 11 games played with the Coyotes (Scott spent much of the season as a healthy scratch) and scoring 5 goals in his entire career up to this point. The situation has been compared to Rory Fitzpatrick's All Star campaign in 2007, in which fans vote for a player who would not conventionally be chosen as an All-Star.[17][18]

On January 15, 2016, Scott was traded to the Montreal Canadiens along with Victor Bartley for Jarred Tinordi and Stefan Fournier. After Scott was traded, the Canadiens sent him down to their American Hockey League affiliate, the St. John's IceCaps. TSN analyst Bob McKenzie reported that the NHL and the Coyotes had requested that Scott remove himself from the All-Star team. At first, he made a statement to the NHL fans, saying "Listen. I don’t deserve this. Vote for my teammates." Soon following this statement, he refused the offer, and decided that he would play in the game.[19] After the trade, Arizona general manager Don Maloney insisted the trade was a business move, and not an attempt at keeping Scott out of the All-Star Game. Speculation surfaced that Scott was potentially to be ruled ineligible to be on the All-Star team not only because of his move to an AHL roster, but his move to a team in the Atlantic division.[20][21][22] On January 19, however, Scott was officially declared by the NHL to be the captain of the Pacific Division roster at the 2016 All-Star Game.[1] Scott later penned an article for The Players' Tribune, entitled A Guy Like Me, in which he stated the NHL tried to persuade him not to play in the game.[23]

During the All-Star Game, Scott scored two goals in the semifinal of the tournament to propel his team into the final—which the Pacific Division ultimately won, and was named All-Star Game MVP, despite not being included in the voting.[24] When he was excluded, fans (including players such as Henrik Lundqvist and official team accounts for the Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks, and Edmonton Oilers among others) took to Twitter with the hashtag #VoteMVPScott. Faced with this overwhelming support, the NHL awarded Scott the title.[25]

Scott's helmet at the All-Star game was sent to the Hockey Hall of Fame,[26] and Scott's agent was approached about a film based on Scott's career as well as several endorsement deals.[27]

On April 3, 2016, Scott was called up from the St. John's IceCaps by the Montréal Canadiens.[28] It was his first time back in the NHL since December 31, 2015.

On April 5, 2016, Scott played in his first NHL game with the Canadiens, where he had 3 shots, 7 hits, and 2 penalty minutes. Directly after the game he was given the option to return to St. John's to finish the season or return to Michigan to see his family for the first time in nearly two months. Scott returned home, ending his season.

On November 4, 2016, Scott revealed he was retired from professional hockey.[29]

Personal life

Scott has a mechanical engineering degree from Michigan Tech, where he played his college hockey with the Huskies.[30] Scott and his wife Danielle have four daughters, including two identical twins. The twins were born on February 5, 2016.[31][32]

Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2001–02Chicago FreezeNAHL534812240—————
2002–03Michigan TechWCHA3113464—————
2003–04Michigan TechWCHA35134100—————
2004–05Michigan TechWCHA36246101—————
2005–06Michigan TechWCHA2432582—————
2006–07Houston AerosAHL65156107—————
2007–08Houston AerosAHL64303184500013
2008–09Minnesota WildNHL2001121—————
2008–09Houston AerosAHL44224111—————
2009–10Minnesota WildNHL5111290—————
2010–11Chicago BlackhawksNHL4001172400022
2011–12Chicago BlackhawksNHL2901148—————
2011–12New York RangersNHL60005—————
2012–13Buffalo SabresNHL3400069—————
2013–14Buffalo SabresNHL56101125—————
2014–15San Jose SharksNHL3831487—————
2015–16Arizona CoyotesNHL1101125—————
2015–16St. John's IceCapsAHL2722485—————
2015–16Montreal CanadiensNHL10002—————
NHL totals 286 5 6 11 544 4 0 0 0 22

Awards and achievements

Award Year(s) awarded
NHL All-Star Game 2016 (Pacific Division captain)[1]
NHL All-Star Game MVP 2016[2]
NHL Star of the Week Jan. 25–31, 2016[33]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "John Scott will captain Pacific Division All-Stars". NHL.com. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
  2. 1 2 "John Scott scores 2 goals, wins MVP, proves he belongs in NHL all-star game". CBC.ca. The Associated Press. Retrieved February 1, 2016.
  3. ↑ Burke, Timothy. "John Scott Scores Two Goals In NHL All-Star Game, Wins MVP Trophy". Screengrabber. Deadspin. Retrieved February 1, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Wild signs D John Scott to a contract". Minnesota Wild. 2006-12-31. Retrieved 2010-07-01.
  5. ↑ Minton, Jack (February 3, 2016). "Why John Scott Matters". Third Stone Pop.
  6. ↑ "Jokinen gets shootout winner to help Hurricanes snap 14-game slide". CBS Sports.
  7. ↑ "Rangers obtain Scott from Blackhawks". New York Rangers. February 27, 2012. Retrieved 2012-02-27.
  8. ↑ "Sabres agreed to terms with Forward John Scott". Buffalo Sabres. 2012-07-01. Retrieved 2012-07-01.
  9. ↑ "Scott, Fedun sign one-year contracts with Sharks". National Hockey League. 2014-07-01. Retrieved 2014-07-01.
  10. 1 2 Associated Press (October 27, 2014). "F John Scott suspended by NHL". ESPN. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
  11. ↑ Pashelka, Curtis (October 26, 2014). "San Jose Sharks blast Ducks to halt losing streak". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
  12. ↑ "John Scott Suspended Two Games". National Hockey League. 2014-10-28. Retrieved 2014-10-28.
  13. ↑ "John Scott learns lesson from Phil Kessel incident". Yahoo! Sports. 2014-10-28. Retrieved 2014-10-28.
  14. ↑ "San Jose Sharks forward John Scott handed four-game suspension". National Hockey League. 2014-12-24. Retrieved 2014-12-24.
  15. ↑ Mahiban, Dhiren (July 10, 2015). "Beefing up: Coyotes ink John Scott". NBC Sports. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Fans elect division captains for 2016 All-Star Game". NHL.com. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
  17. ↑ Traikos, Michael (December 2, 2015). "John Scott, an enforcer with five career goals and a sense of humour, might be just what the NHL All-Star Game needs". National Post. Postmedia Network. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  18. ↑ Mirtle, James (December 2, 2015). "If fans vote enforcer John Scott into all-star game, NHL says he's going". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  19. ↑ Grautski, Amara. "John Scott explains lengths NHL went to in attempt to keep him out of All-Star Game". New York Daily News. NYDailyNews. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  20. ↑ "John Scott deal further complicates All-Star debacle". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  21. ↑ "John Scott's AHL demotion may make him ineligible for NHL All-Star Game". Habs Eyes On the Prize (SBNation). Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Montreal Canadiens acquire all-star John Scott in trade". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  23. ↑ Scott, John (January 28, 2016). "A Guy Like Me". The Players' Tribune. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  24. ↑ "John Scott scores twice in first NHL All-Star Game". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved 2016-02-01.
  25. ↑ "John Scott wasn't a NHL All-Star MVP finalist, but still won with overwhelming fan support". SB Nation. January 31, 2016. Retrieved February 1, 2016.
  26. ↑ Arthur, Bruce (2016-01-31). "All-star MVP John Scott saved hockey, for a day: Arthur". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-02-02.
  27. ↑ Seravalli, Frank (2016-02-01). "#MondayMustRead: Scott approached about movie". TSN. Retrieved 2016-02-02.
  28. ↑ John Scott recalled by Canadiens
  29. ↑ https://mobile.twitter.com/johnscott_32/status/794632687600353281
  30. ↑ Branch, John (2016-04-04). "Coming In From the Cold: John Scott Is Joining the Canadiens". New York Times. Retrieved 2016-08-09.
  31. ↑ Peters, Chris (February 5, 2016). "NHL All-Star MVP John Scott's wife gives birth to twin girls". CBSSports.com. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  32. ↑ "John Scott 'welcome' at NHL All-Star Game, Bettman says". www.cbc.ca. Retrieved 2016-01-31.
  33. ↑ "Scott, Atkinson, Eichel named stars of week". NHL.com. NHL. Retrieved February 1, 2016.

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