David Laliberté
| David Laliberté | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
March 17, 1986 St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC, CAN | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 198 lb (90 kg; 14 st 2 lb) | ||
| Position | Right Wing | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| NHL team | Philadelphia Flyers | ||
| NHL draft |
124th overall, 2004 Philadelphia Flyers | ||
| Playing career | 2007–present | ||
David Laliberté (born March 17, 1986) is a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger who plays for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Playing career
Laliberté started his playing career after being drafted 3rd overall in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) Entry Draft by the Montreal Rocket. He quickly became a top player for the team as one of their best offensive forecheckers. After just two [years with the Rocket, who relocated to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island during his time with the club, he was drafted in the fourth round, 124th overall, by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.
During the 2004–05 season, Laliberté sustained an inoperable injury to a nerve in his back, which sent pain shooting down his leg, making it difficult for him to walk. The injury caused him to miss a year of playing and doctors said that he would have to tolerate some pain for the rest of his life.[citation needed] He did not return from the injury until December 2005 of the following season. He scored a hat-trick in his first game back and was named team captain,[citation needed] helping lead the underachieving P.E.I. Rocket back into the playoffs after failing to qualify the previous season. Laliberté completed his major junior career in 2006–07 with a QMJHL career-high 50 goals and 89 points in 68 games.
Following the season, Laliberté was technically an unrestricted free agent after not being signed by the Flyers within two years of being drafted, but he signed a three-year, entry level contract with the team on May 17, 2007. Laliberté split the 2007–08 season between the Flyers' minor league affiliates, the Philadelphia Phantoms of the AHL and the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL, before spending the entire 2008–09 season with the Phantoms. About a month into the 2009–10 season, Laliberté was called up by the Flyers and scored his first NHL goal and assist against goaltender Michael Leighton of the Carolina Hurricanes in his debut on October 31, 2009, in a 6–1 win.[1]
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2002–03 | Montreal Rocket | QMJHL | 66 | 15 | 14 | 29 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2003–04 | P.E.I. Rocket | QMJHL | 70 | 21 | 22 | 43 | 51 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | ||
| 2004–05 | P.E.I. Rocket | QMJHL | 41 | 23 | 13 | 36 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | P.E.I. Rocket | QMJHL | 34 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 41 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | ||
| 2006–07 | P.E.I. Rocket | QMJHL | 68 | 50 | 48 | 98 | 86 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 27 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | 27 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 78 | 28 | 20 | 48 | 43 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| AHL totals | 105 | 31 | 26 | 57 | 56 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||||
| ECHL totals | 27 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| QMJHL totals | 279 | 121 | 108 | 229 | 224 | 23 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 14 | ||||
References
- ^ "Laliberte scores in debut as Flyers thumb Hurricanes". The Sports Network. 2009-10-31. Retrieved 2009-10-31.