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Michael Grabner

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Michael Grabner
File:Michael Grabner 10132010.jpg
Born (1987-10-05) October 5, 1987 (age 37)
Villach, Austria
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 188 lb (85 kg; 13 st 6 lb)
Position Right wing
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 New York Islanders
Vancouver Canucks
EC VSV (Austria)
National team  Austria
NHL draft 14th overall, 2006
Vancouver Canucks
Playing career 2003–present

Michael René Grabner (born October 5, 1987) is an Austrian professional ice hockey player playing for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). Grabner grew up playing for the local team in Villach, EC VSV. He moved to North America at the age of 17 and joined the Spokane Chiefs of the major junior Western Hockey League (WHL) to further his hockey career. After his second season with the Chiefs, he was selected 14th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Grabner played one more season in the WHL before moving to the American Hockey League (AHL), where he has played two seasons in the Canucks' farm system. He was traded during the 2010 NHL Entry Draft to the Florida Panthers, but was claimed by the Islanders after Florida placed him on waivers with the intention of assigning him to their AHL affiliate.

Grabner is one of three Austrians in the NHL (and the only one who began his playing career in Austria); the others, Thomas Vanek of the Buffalo Sabres and Andreas Nodl of the Philadelphia Flyers, both played junior and collegiate hockey in the United States.

Playing career

Early career

Born in Villach, Grabner began playing hockey at the age of five.[1] He joined his EC VSV's junior team, scoring 10 points over 13 games in 2002–03. The following year, he improved to 32 goals and five assists over 23 games, while also debuting with EC VSV's men's team in the Austrian Hockey League. In the subsequent off-season, he was selected 22nd overall by the Spokane Chiefs in the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft.[2] Grabner believed that playing major junior in North America would help his goal of making it to the NHL. He had been exposed to Chiefs general manager Tim Speltz through a connection with his head coach in EC VSV, Greg Holst.[3]

Grabner left Austria to join Spokane for the 2004–05 WHL season, but suffered a broken collarbone in his first exhibition game.[4] He missed approximately a month with the injury and scored his first WHL goal on October 29, 2004, in a 4–2 loss against the Seattle Thunderbirds.[5] He went on to record 13 goals and 24 points in his rookie campaign.

The following season, he improved to 36 goals and 50 points. Playing in his NHL draft year, he competed in the CHL Top Prospects Game and scored a goals and two assists.[6] Shortly thereafter, he notched his first WHL career hat trick on February 4, 2007, in a 7–5 win against the Tri-City Americans.[7] Grabner's draft stock went up significantly in the second half of the season, as he scored 22 goals in the final 23 games of 2005–06.[8]

He entered the 2006 NHL Entry Draft having been ranked 23rd overall among prospects playing in North America by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau. He was chosen 14th overall by the Vancouver Canucks. Grabner was admittedly surprised to be chosen in that position of the draft, as he was projected to be a late first-round to early second-round pick.[8] He had been scouted as highly-skilled offensively with his speed and his shot his strengths.[1]

He participated in his first NHL training camp in 2006, before being returned to the Chiefs for the 2006–07 season. Early in his third WHL campaign, he suffered a hip pointer after receiving a slash.[9] Due to lingering pain from the injury he was in and out of the lineup for several games before being sidelined for a month in November and early-December.[9] In mid-February, he recorded six goals in a span of three games to be named WHL and CHL Player of the Week (February 12–18, 2007).[10] Grabner with 39 goals and 16 assists in 55 games for a point-per-game pace over the course of the season. However, he was criticized by his coach for his lack of physical play.[11]

Professional career

After the Chiefs were eliminated from the 2007 WHL playoffs, Grabner joined the Canucks' American Hockey League affiliate, the Manitoba Moose for their final two games of the regular season and the playoffs. Grabner joined the Moose for his first full professional season in 2007–08, recording 44 points in 74 games as a rookie.

The following season, on February 26, 2009, Grabner was recalled by the Canucks to replace Pavol Demitra who suffered a fractured finger the night before. However, later that day, Grabner was reassigned to Manitoba after Demitra was deemed fit to play.[12] He finished his second season with the Moose improving to 30 goals, tied for the team lead with Jason Krog, and 48 points in 66 games, helping the Moose to the league's best regular season record. After eliminating the Toronto Marlies and Grand Rapids Griffins in the first two rounds of the 2009 playoffs, Grabner scored the series-clinching goal in the sixth game of the semifinals, a 3–1 win over the Houston Aeros.[13] Grabner finished with 17 points in 20 games as the Moose finished as Calder Cup runners-up.

Grabner while a member of the Vancouver Canucks in 2009.

Coming off a successful second AHL season, Grabner was expected to challenge for a roster spot at the Canucks' 2009–10 training camp, but was sent back down to the Moose before the start of the regular season.[14] After a quick start with the Moose, however, scoring four goals in five games, he was called up by the Canucks on October 14, 2009, to replace injured star winger Daniel Sedin.[15] Grabner then scored his first NHL goal on October 21 on the powerplay against Antti Niemi in a 3–2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks.[16] Nine games into his initial stint with the Canucks, however, he injured himself during a pre-game warmup on November 1. Grabner was kicking a soccer ball around with teammates before a game against the Colorado Avalanche when he rolled over his ankle.[17]

Upon recovering, he returned to the Moose on December 27, 2009,[18] until being recalled on March 17, 2010, following an injury to Canucks forward Mikael Samuelsson.[19] On April 2, Grabner scored his first NHL career hat trick in a 5–4 shootout win against the Anaheim Ducks.[20] Remaining with the club for the 2010 playoffs, Grabner notched his first career NHL post-season goal against Antti Niemi (the same goaltender he scored his first regular season goal against) on May 1, 2010, in the opening game of the second round against the Chicago Blackhawks.[21]

On June 25, 2010, during the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, Grabner was traded, along with Steve Bernier and the Canucks first round choice in the draft, the twenty-fifth selection (used to select Quinton Howden) to the Florida Panthers for Keith Ballard and Victor Oreskovich.[22]

Grabner attended the Panthers training camp, where it was expected he would compete for a position on the team, but failed to do so. On October 3, 2010, it was announced Grabner was placed on waivers by the Panthers, who intended to assign him to their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans. However he was claimed by the New York Islanders two days later.[23] He played his first game with the Islanders on October 11, 2010 against the New York Rangers.[24] His first point with the Islanders came on October 13.[25] Grabner's first goal with the Islanders came against Craig Anderson of the Colorado Avalanche on October 16.[26] In January 2011 Grabner was selected to participate in the 2011 SuperSkills as one of twelve rookies in the competition, winning the fastest skater competition with times of 14.061 and 14.238.[27][28] In February Grabner led all rookies in scoring with 10 goals and 16 points. He also had a six game goal scoring streak which was the longest rookie streak since the 2006–07 season when Evgeni Malkin also scored in six straight. For his efforts Grabner was named rookie of the month.[29] He finished his rookie year with 34 goals and 52 points, his goal total led all rookies, as well as the Islanders. Ranking third in points by a rookie Grabner earned a Calder Memorial Trophy nomination for NHL rookie of the year.[30][31]

International play

Grabner made his international debut with Austria in Division I play of the 2004 IIHF World U18 Championships in Minsk, Belarus. Underaged for the tournament at sixteen-years-old,[2] he scored three goals and an assist in five games.[32] The following year, he competed for Austria in Division I of the 2005 World Junior Championships, held in Great Britain.[33] He recorded three points in four games as Austria finished third in Group A. Several months later, he was named to his second under-18 team for the 2005 IIHF World U18 Championships, where Austria again competed in Division I play. Grabner tied for second in team-scoring with four goals and an assists over five games.[34] Austria finished in fifth place out of six teams in Group A, coming within a loss of being relegated to Division II for the next year.[35] He joined Austria in their qualifying tournament for the 2010 Winter Olympics in early 2009 and led the four team tournament in scoring with five goals; Austria finished second to Germany and failed to qualify for the Olympics.[36]

Awards

  • Rookie of the Month, February 2011
  • Fastest Skater, NHL All-Star Game 2011 SuperSkills Competition
  • Named as a 2011 finalist for the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2002–03 VSV EC Aut U20 13 6 4 10 4 — — — — —
2003–04 VSV EC Aut U20 23 32 5 37 58 — — — — —
2003–04 VSV EC Aut 14 2 1 3 0 4 1 0 1 0
2004–05 Spokane Chiefs WHL 58 13 11 24 18 — — — — —
2005–06 Spokane Chiefs WHL 67 36 14 50 28 — — — — —
2006–07 Spokane Chiefs WHL 55 39 16 55 34 6 0 1 1 2
2006–07 Manitoba Moose AHL 2 1 1 2 0 6 0 0 0 0
2007–08 Manitoba Moose AHL 74 22 22 44 8 6 3 0 3 2
2008–09 Manitoba Moose AHL 66 30 18 48 20 20 10 7 17 2
2009–10 Manitoba Moose AHL 38 15 11 26 6 — — — — —
2009–10 Vancouver Canucks NHL 20 5 6 11 8 9 1 0 1 0
2010–11 New York Islanders NHL 76 34 18 52 10 — — — — —
WHL totals 180 88 41 129 80 6 0 1 1 2
AHL totals 180 68 52 120 34 32 13 7 20 4
NHL totals 96 39 24 63 18 9 1 0 1 0

International statistics

Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
2004 Austria U18 Div I 5 3 1 4 4
2005 Austria WJC Div I 4 1 2 3 2
2005 Austria U18 Div I 4 4 1 5 29
Junior totals 13 8 4 12 35

References

  1. ^ a b Kinghorn, Kevin (2006-09-26). "Grabner On Top". Canucks.com. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
  2. ^ a b "Chiefs select Austrian in Import Draft". OurSports Central. 2004-06-30. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  3. ^ "Climb every mountain". National Hockey League. 2010-05-11. Retrieved 2010-05-12. {{cite news}}: Text "VAN" ignored (help); Text "home" ignored (help)
  4. ^ "Chiefs with back-to-back home games". OurSports Central. 2004-10-21. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  5. ^ "Thunderbirds rally in third for 4-2 victory". OurSports Central. 2004-10-30. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  6. ^ "Spokane Chiefs weekly release". OurSports Central. 2006-02-20. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  7. ^ "Chiefs rally last, top Americans Grabner's hat trick helps Spokane turn back Tri-City". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. 2006-02-05. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |newspaper= (help)
  8. ^ a b MacInnis, Matt (2006-06-26). "Q&A with Michael Grabner". HockeysFuture.com. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
  9. ^ a b Jeff Bunch (2007-01-10). "Grabner's moment". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 2010-04-02. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ CHL (2007-02-23). "Michael Grabner Named CHL Player of the Week". Hockey's Future. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  11. ^ "Prospect Michael Grabner Profile". HockeysFuture.com. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
  12. ^ Devji, Farhan (2009-03-07). "Ever so close". canucks.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  13. ^ "Manitoba, Hershey to play for AHL's Calder Cup". CBC. 2009-05-25. Retrieved 2009-05-25.
  14. ^ "Canucks send Schneider, Grabner to AHL". The Sports Network. 2009-09-28. Retrieved 2009-09-28.
  15. ^ "Canucks recall Grabner from AHL". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 2009-10-14. Retrieved 2009-10-15.
  16. ^ CBC Sports (2009-10-21). "Canucks rally over Blackhawks". CBC.ca. Retrieved 2009-10-21.
  17. ^ "Soccer warm-up leads to ankle injury for Grabner". winnipeg Free Press. 2009-11-02. Retrieved 2009-11-02. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  18. ^ Dhiren Mahiban (2010-01-22). "Timing is everything". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
  19. ^ "Canucks lose Samuelsson for 2-to-3-weeks; Grabner recalled". The Sports Network. 2010-03-17. Retrieved 2010-03-17.
  20. ^ Kreiser, John (2010-04-02). "Canucks beat Ducks in shootout to clinch playoff berth". NHL.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  21. ^ Lozo, Dave (2010-05-01). "Canucks get jump on Hawks with 5-1 win in opener". NHL.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  22. ^ NHL.com (2010-06-25). "Florida Deals D Ballard To Vancouver". FloridaPanthers.com. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
  23. ^ LeBourdais, Dyan (2010-10-06). "Grabner Happy to get Another Chance". NewYorkIslanders.com. Retrieved 2011-01-29.
  24. ^ Hornick, Eric (2010-10-12). "The Skinny — Game 2". NewYorkIslanders.com. Retrieved 2011-01-29.
  25. ^ Hornick, Eric (2010-10-14). "The Skinny — Game 3". NewYorkIslanders.com. Retrieved 2011-01-29.
  26. ^ Compton, Brian (2010-10-17). "Islanders roll over Avs 5-2". NHL.com. Retrieved 2011-01-29.
  27. ^ LeBourdias, Dyan (2011-01-11). "http://islanders.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=549185". NewYorkIslanders.com. Retrieved 2011-01-29. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  28. ^ Morreale, Mike G. (2011-01-29). "Grabner bests Hall in rookie speed-skating duel". NHL.com. Retrieved 2011-01-30.
  29. ^ "Isles' Grabner named February 'Rookie of the Month'". National Hockey League. 2011-03-02. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
  30. ^ "2010–11 Rookie goal leaders". NHL.com. Retrieved 2011-04-20.
  31. ^ "Couture, Grabner, Skinner vie for NHL rookie honor". NHL.com. Associated Press. 2011-04-19. Retrieved 2011-04-20.
  32. ^ "Player Statistics For Team" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  33. ^ "Grabner Joins Austrian National Team". OurSports Central. 2004-12-09. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  34. ^ "Player Statistics By Team". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  35. ^ "2005 IIHF World U18 Championships Div I Group A". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  36. ^ Jory, Derek (2009-02-18). "An attention Grabner". Canucks.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
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Awards and achievements
Preceded by Vancouver Canucks first round draft pick
2006 		Succeeded by

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