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James van Riemsdyk

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James van Riemsdyk
Born (1989-05-04) May 4, 1989 (age 35)
Middletown, NJ, USA
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 211 lb (96 kg; 15 st 1 lb)
Position Left wing
Shoots Left
NHL team Philadelphia Flyers
National team  United States
NHL draft 2nd overall, 2007
Philadelphia Flyers
Playing career 2009–present

James van Riemsdyk (born May 4, 1989 in Middletown, New Jersey) (also known as JVR) is an American professional ice hockey left winger who plays for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing career

Van Riemsdyk attended Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft, New Jersey before transferring out after his sophomore year to move to Ann Arbor, Michigan to play for the U.S. National Team Development Program. Before that he played Mite to Bantom at Brick Hockey Club in Brick, NJ

Van Riemsdyk was drafted second overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft behind number one pick and fellow American Patrick Kane, marking the first time in NHL history that two Americans were drafted 1st and 2nd overall in the same draft.

On April 1, 2009, the Philadelphia Flyers announced that van Riemsdyk would forgo his last two years of college eligibility at the University of New Hampshire to sign an entry level NHL contract starting in the 2009-10 season; he spent the remainder of the 2008-09 season playing for the Philadelphia Phantoms on an amateur tryout contract.[1]

It was during the 2009-10 preseason that van Riemsdyk began making an impact. Initially expected to spend the year in the AHL or at best gain a place midway through the season, van Riemsdyk seized the attention in the Flyers' annual rookie game against the Capitals with 4 goals and an assist in the Flyers' 7-3 rout of the Capitals' rookies. As he moved into the preseason, van Riemsdyk proved himself one of the most consistent members of the Flyers outfit, once again seizing the attention with two goals against the Detroit Red Wings in a 5-2 Flyers victory.

Van Riemsdyk was included in the Flyers' starting 2009-10 roster to play on a third line with prolific sophomore Claude Giroux. He scored his first NHL point in his first game, recording an assist on a powerplay goal by Mike Richards in a 2-0 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes. His next game saw a return to his roots in New Jersey, where he contributed two more assists against the New Jersey Devils. He suffered a minor concussion shortly after that due to a hit by the Capitals' defenseman Milan Jurcina in the Flyers' home opener and missed two games, but would return quickly. He scored his first goal on October 24, 2009 against Tomas Vokoun of the Florida Panthers.

James van Riemsdyk had an impressive month of November for a rookie, scoring four goals and five assists. Three of the four goals were game-winning goals. He was named the NHL's rookie of the month in November 2009.[2]

During the 2010 Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Philadelphia Flyers (who finished in 7th place in the Eastern Conference during the regular season) found themselves down 3 games to none against the 6th-place Boston Bruins. Philadelphia mounted a comeback, only to find themselves losing to the Bruins 3-0 in game 7 at Boston's TD Garden. With 2:50 left in the first period, van Riemsdyk scored his first career playoff goal, and the game's momentum shifted to the Flyers. Philadelphia went on to win the game, 4-3, and the playoff series, 4 games to 3. Not since the New York Islanders came back from a 3-0 deficit against the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1975 had a team won 4 games in a row to win an NHL playoff series. For van Riemsdyk's momentum-changing goal, he was named the Bud Light impact player of the game. Many commentators rank Philadelphia's comeback as one of the greatest upsets in NHL history.

International play

James van Riemsdyk
Medal record
Men's ice hockey
Representing the  United States
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2007 Sweden
IIHF U18 Championships
Silver medal – second place 2007 Finland
Gold medal – first place 2006 Sweden

Van Riemsdyk's first international experience came in the 2007 World Under-18 Championships (U18) in which he played a limited role in winning the gold medal with the United States. In 2006–07, he scored 33 goals and 30 assists for the US Under-18 National Team, and represented the United States at the 2007 World Junior Championships (WJC) in Sweden. He followed up his inaugural WJC by winning the scoring title at the 2007 U18 with 5 goals and 7 assists.[3] He was named to the tournament all-star team, named the top forward, and garnered MVP honours, as the United States won silver, losing against the Russians in the final.

He had a great showing at the 2008 WJC where he led the entire tourney in scoring with five goals and six assists. Despite his efforts, USA did not medal, finishing fourth. However, he was named to the WJC all-star team in 2008. He continued his strong international play with six goals and four assists at the 2009 WJC as the US finished fifth in his final international tournament to date.

Awards

  • Named to the IIHF U18 Championships All-Star Team in 2007.
  • Named top forward of the IIHF U18 Championships in 2007.
  • Named MVP of the IIHF U18 Championships in 2007.
  • Named to the World Junior All-Star Team in 2008.
  • Named NHL Rookie of the Month in November 2009.

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2006–07 USNTDP NAHL 37 18 11 29 26 — — — — —
2007–08 New Hampshire Wildcats HE 31 11 23 34 36 — — — — —
2008–09 New Hampshire Wildcats HE 36 17 23 40 47 — — — — —
2008–09 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 7 1 1 2 2 4 0 0 0 2
2009–10 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 78 15 20 35 30 — — — — —
AHL totals 7 1 1 2 2 4 0 0 0 2
NHL totals 78 15 20 35 30 — — — — —

International statistics

Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
2006 United States U18 1st place, gold medalist(s) 6 0 1 1 2
2007 United States WJC 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 7 1 0 1 2
2007 United States U18 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7 5 7 12 4
2008 United States WJC 4th 6 5 6 11 2
2009 United States WJC 5th 6 6 4 10 4
U18 totals 13 5 8 13 6
WJC totals 19 12 10 22 8
Junior International totals 32 17 18 35 14

References

  1. ^ vanRiemsdyk Signs with Flyers Yahoo Sports, April 1, 2009
  2. ^ "Van Riemsdyk Named NHL Rookie of the Month". NHL.com. January 14, 2010.
  3. ^ "2007 IIHF U18 Scoring Leaders" (PDF). iihf.com. January 14, 2010.
Preceded by Philadelphia Flyers' first round draft pick
2007 		Succeeded by
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