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Nick Leddy

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Nick Leddy
Leddy with the New York Islanders in January 2015
Born (1991-03-20) March 20, 1991 (age 33)
Eden Prairie, Minnesota, U.S.
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 191 lb (87 kg; 13 st 9 lb)
Position Defense
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 St. Louis Blues
Chicago Blackhawks
New York Islanders
Detroit Red Wings
NHL draft 16th overall, 2009
Minnesota Wild
Playing career 2010–present

Nicholas Michael Leddy (born March 20, 1991) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted in the first round, 16th overall, by the Minnesota Wild in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. He previously played for the Chicago Blackhawks, New York Islanders and Detroit Red Wings. He won a Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in 2013.

Playing career

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Amateur

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After a solid sophomore year at Eden Prairie High School, Leddy recorded 5 goals and 22 assists for a total of 27 points in his junior year. These numbers propelled Leddy to second-team all-Metro and earned him an honorable mention for all-state honors in Minnesota. The USA Hockey National Team Development Program (U.S. NTDP) and USA Hockey acknowledged Leddy as one of the best young players in the nation, but instead of heading to Ann Arbor, Michigan, to join the U.S. NTDP, Leddy chose to finish his high school career with his teammates, and returned to Eden Prairie for his senior year. Leddy posted 12 goals and 33 assists for a total of 45 points during that 2008–09 season, earning him the prestigious Minnesota "Mr. Hockey" award and the title of Metro Player of the Year by the Minneapolis Star-Tribune en route to a state title win over Moorhead High School.[1] In addition, the Associated Press named Leddy to first-team all-state. Leddy was also awarded a position on the Class AA all-state tournament team.

As a freshman at the University of Minnesota in 2009–10, Leddy scored a power-play goal in a 6–1 rout of the University of British Columbia in his NCAA debut.[2] However, shortly afterward, Leddy suffered a broken jaw against University of Alaska Anchorage on October 30, 2009.[3] This injury caused Leddy to miss eight early-season games. When he returned to the lineup Leddy scored his first career goal in his second game back in a win at Minnesota State University on December 5, 2009.[4] In early January 2010, Leddy collected an assist in each game of the Golden Gophers' rout of Harvard University, and soon followed up with two more assists against Alaska Anchorage later in the month. He was named WCHA Rookie of the Week after a three-point game against Colorado College on February 20, 2010, scoring the game-winning goal with two assists. Shortly after having his NHL draft rights traded from Minnesota to Chicago on February 12, 2010, Leddy heated up in February, tallying four assists, five points, 21 shots on goal and a plus-4 rating for the month. He carried that momentum into March, scoring yet another power-play goal against the University of Wisconsin on March 7, 2010. Leddy ultimately was named the team's Rookie of the Year after playing 30 games and ranking third among the team's defensemen in points with 11.[5] He led the team in plus/minus (plus-6), all while maintaining excellent discipline on the ice: Leddy committed just two penalties all season. The Golden Gophers were 7–1 when Leddy had at least one point.

Professional

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Leddy with the Chicago Blackhawks in October 2010

Leddy was drafted in the first round, 16th overall by the Minnesota Wild in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. On February 12, 2010, the Minnesota Wild traded Leddy's NHL rights to the Chicago Blackhawks, along with Kim Johnsson in exchange for Cam Barker.[6] University of Minnesota head coach Don Lucia stated in September 2009 that he foresaw Leddy spending at least two years in development with the Golden Gophers before making his transition to the NHL and a professional career.[2] On July 27, 2010, it was reported by the Chicago Tribune that the Blackhawks had agreed to terms on a three-year, $2.7 million contract with defenseman Nick Leddy, who was to turn professional and leave the University of Minnesota after playing one season, according to his agent, Neil Sheehy. "[Leddy] is really smooth out there and I think he's going to be a Blackhawk for many years," Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said July 12 at the conclusion of the Hawks' Prospects Camp.[7]

Leddy played his first NHL game in the 2010–11 season opener on October 7, 2010, against the Colorado Avalanche and scored his first NHL goal four days later on October 11, against Ryan Miller of the Buffalo Sabres. On March 20, 2011, Leddy's 20th birthday, Leddy recorded his first career assist on a goal by Duncan Keith in a 2–1 win over the Phoenix Coyotes.[8] After ending the 2010–11 season, his rookie season in the NHL, with the defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks narrowly making the playoffs as the eighth and final seed in the West and Leddy playing in 46 games with four goals, three assists and seven points, Leddy made his Stanley Cup playoff debut in the first game in the first round against the Presidents' Trophy-winning Vancouver Canucks on April 13.

Leddy played all 82 games in the 2011–12 season with three goals, 34 assists and 37 points. On April 14, 2012, Leddy recorded his first career playoff assist and point with an assist on a goal scored by Brandon Bollig in a 4–3 OT win against the Phoenix Coyotes in game two of the first round of the 2012 playoffs. In game five a week later on April 21 where the Blackhawks defeated the Coyotes 2–1 in OT, Leddy scored his first career playoff goal against Coyotes goaltender Mike Smith.[9]

After playing all 48 games with six goals, 12 assists and 18 points recorded in the lockout-shortened 2012–13 season to help the Blackhawks clinch the Presidents' Trophy as the regular season champions, he was a member of the Blackhawks team that won the 2013 Stanley Cup by defeating the Boston Bruins in six games in the finals.

On July 3, 2013, Leddy signed a two-year contract extension with the club. Leddy kept up his durability in the 2013–14 season by playing in all 82 games with seven goals, 24 assists and 31 points produced for the Blackhawks.[10]

On October 4, 2014, just five days before the 2014–15 season began and with only one more season left on his contract, Leddy was traded to the New York Islanders in exchange for prospects, Ville Pokka, T. J. Brennan and Anders Nilsson.[11] On February 24, 2015, Leddy and the Islanders agreed to a seven-year, $38.5 million contract.[12]

On October 25, 2019, shortly into the 2019–20 season, Leddy registered two goals on goaltender Anders Nilsson in a 4-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators, including becoming the first Islanders defensemen in franchise history to score on a penalty shot.[13][14]

Following the pandemic-shortened 2020–21 season, Leddy, with one year remaining on his contract, was traded by to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Richard Pánik and a second-round pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.[15]

On March 21, 2022, at the 2022 trade deadline, he was traded to the St. Louis Blues, along with Luke Witkowski, in exchange for Oskar Sundqvist, Jake Walman and a second-round pick in 2023 NHL Entry Draft.[16] Leddy signed a four-year $16 million contract extension with the Blues on July 13.[17]

Leddy with the St. Louis Blues defending against Kraken forward Jaden Schwartz in January 2024

On March 23, 2024, Leddy played his 1,000th NHL game against the team that drafted him but never played for, the Minnesota Wild.[18]

International play

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Medal record
Representing United States USA
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2011 USA

Leddy's high school and post-secondary career was supplemented with intermittent international play and development. He was a member of the U.S. squad in both the under-17 and under-18 Five Nations tournaments in the Czech Republic. In addition, Leddy participated in the 2009 U.S. under-18 evaluation camp in Lake Placid, New York, in association with USA Hockey and the USA Olympic team. Leddy had three goals and two assists in just five games at Lake Placid.[19]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2006–07 Eden Prairie Eagles HS-MN 28 2 16 18 10 — — — — —
2007–08 Eden Prairie Eagles HS-MN 27 6 22 28 14 — — — — —
2007–08 U.S. NTDP U18 USDP 4 0 2 2 2 — — — — —
2008–09 Eden Prairie Eagles HS-MN 25 8 29 37 22 6 4 4 8 4
2009–10 University of Minnesota WCHA 30 3 8 11 4 — — — — —
2010–11 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 46 4 3 7 4 7 0 0 0 0
2010–11 Rockford IceHogs AHL 22 2 8 10 2 — — — — —
2011–12 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 82 3 34 37 10 6 1 2 3 0
2012–13 Rockford IceHogs AHL 31 3 13 16 12 — — — — —
2012–13 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 48 6 12 18 10 23 0 2 2 4
2013–14 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 82 7 24 31 10 18 1 4 5 6
2014–15 New York Islanders NHL 78 10 27 37 14 7 0 5 5 0
2015–16 New York Islanders NHL 81 5 35 40 25 11 1 3 4 0
2016–17 New York Islanders NHL 81 11 35 46 12 — — — — —
2017–18 New York Islanders NHL 80 10 32 42 20 — — — — —
2018–19 New York Islanders NHL 82 4 22 26 18 8 1 0 1 0
2019–20 New York Islanders NHL 60 3 18 21 14 22 3 4 7 0
2020–21 New York Islanders NHL 56 2 29 31 8 19 0 6 6 2
2021–22 Detroit Red Wings NHL 55 1 15 16 16 — — — — —
2021–22 St. Louis Blues NHL 20 2 6 8 6 9 1 4 5 2
2022–23 St. Louis Blues NHL 78 2 21 23 20 — — — — —
2023–24 St. Louis Blues NHL 82 3 25 28 14 — — — — —
NHL totals 1,011 73 338 411 201 130 8 30 38 14

International

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Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2008 United States U18 7th 4 0 2 2
2011 United States WJC 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 6 0 3 3 0
Junior totals 10 0 5 5 0

Awards and honors

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Award Year
NHL
Stanley Cup champion 2013

References

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  1. ^ Loren Nelson. "Minnesota's 100 Greatest Players." MN Hockey Hub. Star Tribune. Web. 11 Dec. 2014.
  2. ^ a b Michael Russo (October 9, 2009). "Wild sees Leddy at U for two or three years". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on October 12, 2009. Retrieved July 28, 2010.
  3. ^ Murphy, Brian (October 30, 2009). "U hockey freshman Leddy out until January with broken jaw". twincities.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  4. ^ "SEASON'S FIRST HALF CONCLUDES AT MICHIGAN TECH". gophersports.com. Archived from the original on January 31, 2018. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  5. ^ Scifo, Dan (September 22, 2017). "Islanders' Leddy Owes a Lot to Hometown Roots". teamusa.usahockey.com. Retrieved March 9, 2018.
  6. ^ "Wild send Johnsson, Leddy to Blackhawks for Barker". TSN. archive.is. February 12, 2010. Archived from the original on January 10, 2013. Retrieved December 23, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. ^ Chris Kuc (July 27, 2010). "Nick Leddy: Chicago Blackhawks prospect signs three-year deal". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on July 29, 2010. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  8. ^ CBS News (March 20, 2011). "Blackhawks Beat Coyotes, But Sharp Is Out". cbsnews.com. CBS News. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
  9. ^ The Columbian (April 21, 2012). "OT experts Coyotes, Blackhawks head to Game 6". columbian.com. The Columbian. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
  10. ^ Scott Powers (June 12, 2024). "Hawks player reviews: Nick Leddy". ESPN. ESPN. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
  11. ^ "Islanders acquire defencemen Boychuk, Leddy". The Sports Network. October 4, 2014. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  12. ^ Craig Custance (February 24, 2015). "Nick Leddy's deal worth $38.5M". ESPN. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  13. ^ "Nick Leddy scores twice, Islanders beat Senators 4-2". ESPN. October 25, 2019. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
  14. ^ "Islanders Leddy scores 1st penalty shot". Sportsnet.ca. October 25, 2019. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
  15. ^ "Leddy traded to Red Wings by Islanders for Panik, pick". National Hockey League. July 16, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  16. ^ DiFilippo, Alex (March 21, 2022). "Detroit acquires Sundqvist, Walman and 2023 2nd-round pick from St. Louis". NHL.com. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  17. ^ "Leddy agrees to 4-year deal with Blues". NHL. July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  18. ^ Pierce, Jessi (March 23, 2024). "Leddy celebrates 1,000th NHL game with Blues in home state of Minnesota". NHL.com. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  19. ^ "Nick Leddy Bio - Gophersports.com - Official Web Site of University of Minnesota Athletics". Gopher Sports. Retrieved July 28, 2010. [permanent dead link‍]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nick Leddy.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by Minnesota Mr. Hockey
2008–09 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minnesota Wild first round draft pick
2009 		Succeeded by
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