John LeClair

For the Canadian politician, see John LeClair (politician).

John LeClair
John LeClair while with the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2006–07 season
Born	July 5, 1969 (1969-07-05) St. Albans, VT, USA
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight	235 lb (107 kg; 16 st 11 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Left
Played for	Montreal Canadiens (1990–1995) Philadelphia Flyers (1995–2004) Pittsburgh Penguins (2005–2006)
National team	United States
NHL Draft	33rd overall, 1987 Montreal Canadiens
Playing career	1991–2006

John Clark LeClair (born July 5, 1969) is an American former professional ice hockey left winger who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers, and Pittsburgh Penguins. He won the Stanley Cup with Montreal in 1993 but he had his most productive seasons while with Philadelphia, scoring 50 goals three straight seasons - the first American-born player to do so - and being a member of the Legion of Doom line.

Playing career

Montreal Canadiens

LeClair was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens with the 33rd pick in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft after graduating from Bellows Free Academy (B.F.A.) High School in St. Albans, Vermont. One of the most highly recruited hockey players in New England, Leclair put his NHL aspirations on hold to attend the University of Vermont on a full scholarship. His fans didn't have to wait long to see him score in his first collegiate game. After the final game of his senior year he signed with the Canadiens and, less than a week later, played and scored in his first NHL game. As a member of the Canadiens, LeClair was on the Stanley Cup-winning team in 1993, where he scored two overtime game-winning goals during the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals.

Philadelphia Flyers and the Legion of Doom

On February 9, 1995, a Montreal team desperate to salvage a difficult season traded LeClair, along with Éric Desjardins and Gilbert Dionne to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Mark Recchi and Philadelphia's 3rd round choice in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. LeClair gelled immediately with new line-mate Eric Lindros and quickly became one of the NHL's most feared goal scorers.

With the Flyers he played left-wing on the famed "Legion of Doom" line, centered by Lindros and Mikael Renberg on right-wing. The trio was not only effective at scoring but they were also a dominant physical presence on the ice. In 1998, LeClair became the first American-born NHL player to record three consecutive 50-goal seasons and the second Flyer to do so, behind Tim Kerr. Following the 1997–98 NHL season, LeClair had two consecutive 40 goal seasons. LeClair played for the Flyers for 10 seasons and was one of the most productive players in franchise history, scoring 333 career goals and an additional 35 in the playoffs, statistics good enough for top 10 in the history of Flyers goal scorers.

Pittsburgh Penguins

On July 23, 2005, as a result of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement which finally introduced a salary cap to the NHL, the Flyers were forced to part ways with their longtime alternate captain, and they bought out LeClair's and teammate Tony Amonte's contracts to create cap space. Rumors had LeClair going to the Boston Bruins or perhaps the Toronto Maple Leafs. Instead, LeClair signed a two year deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins on August 15, 2005. LeClair had a fairly successful season in Pittsburgh during the 2005–06 NHL season, finishing third on the team in scoring as he passed the 400-goal mark and had his ninth 50+ point season. After struggling early in the 2006–07 season, LeClair was released by the Penguins on December 14, 2006 after only 21 games.

Other information

LeClair is president of the John LeClair Foundation which awards grants to non-profit Vermont organizations that sponsor programs for children. In addition, he and former teammate Chris Therien operate a shipping logistics company together called LT Lines (LeClair-Therien Lines). He currently divides his time between Haverford, Pennsylvania and his hometown of St. Albans, Vermont. LeClair was also inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009.

Awards

• ECAC Second All-Star Team (1990–91)
• NHL First All-Star Team (1994–95, 1997–98)
• NHL Second All-Star Team (1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99)
• NHL Plus/Minus Award (1996–97, 1998–99)
• Played in NHL All-Star Game (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000)
• World Cup All-Star Team (1996)
• Olympic Tournament All-Star Team (2002)

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1985–86	Bellows Free Academy	HS		22	41	28	69	14		—	—	—	—	—
1986–87	Bellows Free Academy	HS		23	44	40	84	14		—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	University of Vermont	ECAC		31	12	22	34	62		—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	University of Vermont	ECAC		18	9	12	21	40		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	University of Vermont	ECAC		10	10	6	16	38		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	University of Vermont	ECAC		33	25	20	45	58		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		10	2	5	7	2		3	0	0	0	0
1991–92	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		59	8	11	19	14		8	1	1	2	4
1991–92	Fredericton Canadiens	AHL		8	7	7	14	10		2	0	0	0	4
1992–93	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		72	19	25	44	33		20	4	6	10	14
1993–94	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		74	19	24	43	32		7	2	1	3	8
1994–95	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		9	1	4	5	10		—	—	—	—	—
1994–95	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		37	25	24	49	20		15	5	7	12	4
1995–96	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		82	51	46	97	64		11	6	5	11	6
1996–97	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		82	50	47	97	58		19	9	12	21	10
1997–98	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		82	51	36	87	32		5	1	1	2	8
1998–99	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		76	43	47	90	30		6	3	0	3	12
1999–00	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		82	40	37	77	36		18	6	7	13	6
2000–01	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		16	7	5	12	0		6	1	2	3	2
2001–02	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		82	25	26	51	30		5	0	0	0	2
2002–03	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		35	18	10	28	16		13	2	3	5	10
2003–04	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		75	23	32	55	51		18	2	2	4	8
2005–06	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		73	22	29	51	61		—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		21	2	5	7	12		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				967	406	413	819	501		154	42	47	89	94

International

Olympic medal record
Men's ice hockey
Silver	2002 Salt Lake City	Ice hockey

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1988	United States	WJC		7	4	2	6	12
1989	United States	WJC		7	6	4	10	12
1996	United States	WCH		7	6	4	10	6
1998	United States	OG		4	0	1	1	0
2002	United States	OG		6	6	1	7	2
Junior int'l totals				14	10	6	16	24
Senior int'l totals				17	12	6	18	8

All-Star Games

Year	Location		G	A	P
1996	Boston		0	1	1
1997	San Jose		2	1	3
1998	Vancouver		1	0	1
1999	Tampa Bay		0	0	0
2000	Toronto		0	0	0
All-Star totals			3	2	5

External links

• John LeClair's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
• John LeClair at Hockey-Reference.com
• John LeClair's biography at Legends of Hockey
• John LeClair's NHL player profile

Preceded by Chris Pronger	Winner of the NHL Plus/Minus Award 1999	Succeeded by Chris Pronger
Preceded by Vladimir Konstantinov	Winner of the NHL Plus/Minus Award 1997	Succeeded by Chris Pronger
Preceded by Eric Lindros	Winner of the Bobby Clarke Trophy 1997, 1998	Succeeded by Eric Lindros