Ben Walter
Ben Walter | |||
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Born |
Beaconsfield, QC, CAN | May 11, 1984||
Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
Weight | 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb) | ||
Position | Centre | ||
Shoots | Left | ||
AL team Former teams |
Nippon Paper Cranes Boston Bruins New York Islanders New Jersey Devils Örebro HK Jokerit EC Red Bull Salzburg | ||
NHL draft |
160th overall, 2004 Boston Bruins | ||
Playing career | 2005–present |
Ben James Walter (born May 11, 1984 in Beaconsfield, Quebec) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre currently playing with the Nippon Paper Cranes in the Asia League Ice Hockey (ALIH). He has previously played in the National Hockey League and is the son of former NHL player Ryan Walter.
Playing career
Walter first played junior hockey with the Langley Hornets in the British Columbia Hockey League for two seasons before he committed to play collegiate hockey with the University of Massachusetts Lowell in the NCAA Hockey East. An offensively minded center he finished second on the River Hawks in scoring as a sophomore in 2003–04 and was consequently drafted 160th overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the Boston Bruins. The ensuing season, Walter then co-led the River Hawks with 39 points in 34 games as a junior. Posting 3 hat-tricks throughout the season, Walter also led the Hockey East with 26 goals to be selected to the Hockey East Second All-Star team and earning a nomination as an Hobey Baker Award finalist.[1]
Walter did not return for his senior year when he signed a three-year entry level contract with the Bruins on August 31, 2005.[2] He was among the final cuts of the Boston Bruins training camp for opening night roster for 2005–06 and started his first professional season with American Hockey League affiliate, the Providence Bruins.[3] On the turn of the year Walter was recalled from Providence and made his NHL debut with the Bruins against the Los Angeles Kings on January 12, 2006.[4] He went scoreless in 6 games with Boston before finishing his first season by scoring 40 points in 62 games with Providence. In the following 2006–07 season, Walter failed to find a role within Boston's line-up and appeared in only 4 games with the Bruins for the year. He spent the majority of the season with Providence and posted 67 points in 73 games to place second on the team in scoring and was named Providence Most Valuable Player to end the season.[5]
On September 11, 2007, Walter was traded by the Bruins, along with a conditional second-round pick to the New York Islanders for Petteri Nokelainen.[6] For the 2007–08 season, Ben was initially assigned to the Islanders AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers before he played his first game for New York against the Pittsburgh Penguins in coach Al Arbour's 1,500th honorary NHL game for the Islanders on November 3, 2007.[7] On March 11, 2008, Walter finally scored his first NHL goal (and point) against Karri Ramo and the Tampa Bay Lightning.[8] In his three brief recalls to the Islanders he totaled only 8 games, however, he figured in a more prominent role to finish second on the Sound Tigers with 20 goals and 66 points. After the season Walter re-signed with the Islanders for an additional year in which he again was an influential player with the Sound Tigers in 2008–09.[9] In 65 games with Bridgeport he matched his previous season tally with 20 goals and scored 50 points while also appearing in a further four games with the Islanders.
On June 30, 2009, he was traded by the Islanders to the New Jersey Devils for Long Islander, Tony Romano.[10] After agreeing to a one-year deal with the Devils, Walter returned to his UMass Lowell roots when he was assigned to AHL affiliate, the Lowell Devils to start the 2009–10 season.[11][12] Ben was leading Lowell in scoring after 45 games before on January 22, 2010, he was recalled to New Jersey to make his Devils debut against the Montreal Canadiens.[13] He went scoreless in 2 games with the Devils before he was returned to Lowell to finish the year as top scorer with 22 goals and 58 points in 78 games to help Lowell reach the playoffs for the first and only time in franchise history.
On July 7, 2010, Walter signed as a free agent to a one-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche.[14] During the 2010–11 pre-season, following the Avalanche's training camp, Walter was reassigned to AHL affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters, to start the year.[15] Walter led the Monsters in scoring with 70 points and in turn helped the Monsters qualify for their first post-season berth.
On July 2, 2011, Walter signed a two-year deal as a free agent with the Calgary Flames. He was later reassigned to AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Heat to start the 2011–12 season. In two seasons with the Flames organization, Walter remained as an offensive leader in Abbotsford.
After the conclusion of the 2012–13 with the Heat, Walter was signed to his first contract abroad as a free agent, agreeing to a one-year deal with Örebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League on May 25, 2013.[16] In the 2013–14 season, Walter struggled to transition to the Swedish league, posting just 2 goals in 35 games with Örebro before accepting a mid-season transfer to the Finnish Liiga with Jokerit on December 29, 2013.[17]
In the off-season, Walter joined his third European club in short succession, in agreeing to a one-year deal with Austrian club, EC Red Bull Salzburg of the EBEL on August 5, 2014.[18] During his two-year tenure in Salzburg, Walter contributed to the Red Bull's success in claiming back-to-back championships.
At the conclusion of his contract, Walter opted for a new venture, signing a one-year deal with Japanese based club, Nippon Paper Cranes of the ALIH on August 6, 2016.[19]
Career statistics
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
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Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
2000–01 | Langley Hornets | BCHL | 50 | 8 | 22 | 30 | 19 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2001–02 | Langley Hornets | BCHL | 50 | 29 | 47 | 76 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2002–03 | U. of Massachusetts-Lowell | HE | 35 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2003–04 | U. of Massachusetts-Lowell | HE | 36 | 18 | 16 | 34 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2004–05 | U. of Massachusetts-Lowell | HE | 36 | 26 | 13 | 39 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2005–06 | Providence Bruins | AHL | 62 | 16 | 24 | 40 | 33 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
2005–06 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2006–07 | Providence Bruins | AHL | 73 | 24 | 43 | 67 | 58 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 | ||
2006–07 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2007–08 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | AHL | 68 | 20 | 46 | 66 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2007–08 | New York Islanders | NHL | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2008–09 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | AHL | 65 | 20 | 30 | 50 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | ||
2008–09 | New York Islanders | NHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2009–10 | Lowell Devils | AHL | 78 | 22 | 36 | 58 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ||
2009–10 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2010–11 | Lake Erie Monsters | AHL | 77 | 23 | 47 | 70 | 24 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | ||
2011–12 | Abbotsford Heat | AHL | 75 | 19 | 40 | 59 | 30 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 2 | ||
2012–13 | Abbotsford Heat | AHL | 68 | 15 | 34 | 49 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2013–14 | Örebro HK | SHL | 35 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2013–14 | Jokerit | Liiga | 23 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
2014–15 | EC Red Bull Salzburg | EBEL | 50 | 13 | 30 | 43 | 12 | 13 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 6 | ||
2015–16 | EC Red Bull Salzburg | EBEL | 41 | 5 | 13 | 18 | 22 | 16 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 0 | ||
NHL totals | 24 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
Awards and honours
Award | Year | Notes |
---|---|---|
College | ||
All-Hockey East Second Team | 2004–05 | [20] |
Transactions
- June 27, 2004 - Drafted by the Boston Bruins in the 5th round, 160th overall.
- September 11, 2007 - Traded to the New York Islanders with a conditional 2nd round pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft for Petteri Nokelainen.
- June 30, 2009 - Traded, with a conditional draft pick in 2012, to the New Jersey Devils for Tony Romano.
- July 7, 2010 - Signed a one-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche.
- July 2, 2011 - Signed a two-year contract with the Calgary Flames.
References
- ^ "First year pro: Ben Walter". hockeysfuture.com. 2005-10-13. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) - ^ "Walter signs a three-year contract". Boston Bruins. 2005-08-31. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) - ^ "Bruins assign Thomas and Walter to Providence". Boston Bruins. 2005-10-03. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) - ^ "Kings 6, Bruins 0". Yahoo! Sports. 2006-01-12. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) - ^ Lindsay Kramer (2007-05-08). "Like father like son? Walter's working on it". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) [dead link] - ^ "Islanders acquire Ben Walter". New York Islanders. 2007-09-11. Retrieved 2009-03-05.
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(help) - ^ "Arbour-led Islanders beat Pens 3-2 behind Satans two goals". Yahoo! Sports. 2007-11-03. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) - ^ "Lecavalier's hat trick gives U.S. record to Lightning coach Tortorella". CBS Sports. 2008-03-11. Archived from the original on 2012-10-14. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Tamby agree 2-year contract, Colliton and Walter accept QO's". New York Islanders. 2008-07-16. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) - ^ "Isles, Devils swap prospects". National Hockey League. 2009-06-30. Retrieved 2009-06-30.
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(help) - ^ "New Jersey/Lowell Devils sign eight players". Trenton Devils. 2009-07-31. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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(help) [dead link] - ^ "5 Burning Questions: Ben Walter". Lowell Devils. 2010-01-27. Archived from the original on 2010-03-04. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Canadiens beat Devils to stop three-game losing streak". CBS Sports. 2010-01-22. Archived from the original on 2012-10-14. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Yip gets new deal with Avs". ESPN. 2010-07-07. Archived from the original on 10 July 2010. Retrieved 2010-07-07.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Avalanche re-assign Goalie Cann, six others". Denver Post. 2010-09-23. Archived from the original on 26 September 2010. Retrieved 2010-09-23.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Ben Walter ready for Örebro HK" (in Swedish). Örebro HK. 2013-05-25. Archived from the original on 2013-06-11. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Walter joins Jokerit" (in Finnish). Jokerit. 2013-12-29. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
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(help) - ^ "Canadian veteran strengthens Red Bulls" (in German). EC Red Bull Salzburg. 2014-08-05. Retrieved 2014-08-05.
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(help) - ^ "Paper Cranes announce roster additions". Nippon Paper Cranes. 2016-08-06. Retrieved 2016-08-06.
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(help) - ^ "Hockey East All-Stars". Hockey East. 2010-08-02. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
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External links
- 1984 births
- Abbotsford Heat players
- Anglophone Quebec people
- Boston Bruins draft picks
- Boston Bruins players
- Bridgeport Sound Tigers players
- Canadian ice hockey centres
- Ice hockey people from Quebec
- Jokerit players
- Lake Erie Monsters players
- Living people
- Lowell Devils players
- New Jersey Devils players
- New York Islanders players
- Örebro HK players
- People from Beaconsfield, Quebec
- Providence Bruins players
- EC Red Bull Salzburg players
- UMass Lowell River Hawks men's ice hockey players