Brett Lebda

Brett Lebda
Born	(1982-01-15) January 15, 1982 (age 42) Buffalo Grove, Illinois, U.S.
Height	5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight	195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position	Defense
Shot	Left
Played for	Detroit Red Wings Toronto Maple Leafs Columbus Blue Jackets
National team	United States
NHL draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2004–2013

Brett Steven Lebda (born January 15, 1982) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman, who last played with the Binghamton Senators of the American Hockey League (AHL). He has played in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings, Columbus Blue Jackets and Toronto Maple Leafs.

He was a member of the Stanley Cup winning Red Wings team of 2007-08.

Playing career

As a youth, Lebda played in the 1996 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Chicago Young Americans minor ice hockey team. ^[1]

Lebda attended Buffalo Grove High School in Buffalo Grove, Illinois for two years. In addition to hockey, he also played golf and volleyball.^{[ citation needed ]} He then relocated to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he was a participant on the USA National Under-18 Team. Lebda graduated from Pioneer High School. ^[2]

Lebda played college hockey at the University of Notre Dame. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Detroit Red Wings in 2004, and was assigned to the Grand Rapids Griffins, the Wings' minor league affiliate in the American Hockey League. Lebda was unable to suit up for an NHL game until the 2005–06 NHL season due to the NHL lockout. He became the first Red Wing since Greg Johnson in 1993 to score his first NHL goal on opening night. ^[3] He played in 46 games that regular season and all of Detroit's six opening round playoff games.^{[ citation needed ]}

He played in 76 games during the 2006–07 NHL season to go with 12 games that playoff year. He set a career high in points with 18, and participated in the only fight of his career when he squared off against Mikael Holmqvist.^{[ citation needed ]}

In the 2007–08 NHL season, Lebda suited up for 78 games, as well as 19 playoff games as the Red Wings won the 2008 Stanley Cup.^{[ citation needed ]}

Due to sub-par play to start the 2008–09 NHL season, Lebda found himself a healthy scratch for three straight games before returning to the lineup.^{[ citation needed ]}

During his career with the Red Wings, Lebda was often paired with Chris Chelios, a fellow Chicago suburban native who is 20 years his elder. While growing up in suburban Chicago, Lebda considered Chelios an idol, and modeled his game after his. ^[4]

On July 7, 2010, Lebda signed a two-year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. ^[5] However, he struggled during his time in Toronto, playing only 41 games and posting a career-worst -14. His one and only goal came against the Montreal Canadiens on February 24, 2011. ^[6]

Lebda and Robert Slaney were traded to the Nashville Predators for Cody Franson and Matthew Lombardi on July 3, 2011. On August 10, 2011, the Predators bought out Lebda's contract. ^[7]

Following the 2010–11 NHL season Lebda became a free agent, ^[8] and on November 7, 2011, the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League signed Lebda to a professional tryout agreement. ^[9] With NHL affiliate, the Columbus Blue Jackets, suffering injuries on the defense he was subsequently signed to a one-year deal for the remainder of the season with the Jackets on January 19, 2012. ^[10]

On February 5, 2013, Lebda signed a professional try-out contract with the Binghamton Senators of the American Hockey League. ^[11]

International play

Lebda made his international debut for United States at the 2002 World Junior Championships, where he recorded two goals in seven games.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1998–99	US NTDP Juniors	USHL		3	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	US NTDP U17	USDP		11	1	7	8	4		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	US NTDP U18	NAHL		52	11	17	28	56		—	—	—	—	—
1999–2000	US NTDP Juniors	USHL		22	6	7	13	28		—	—	—	—	—
1999–2000	US NTDP U18	USDP		4	0	0	0	6		—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	Chicago Steel	USHL		1	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	University of Notre Dame	CCHA		39	7	19	26	109		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	University of Notre Dame	CCHA		34	6	8	14	54		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	University of Notre Dame	CCHA		40	7	14	21	48		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	University of Notre Dame	CCHA		39	6	18	24	42		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Grand Rapids Griffins	AHL		6	0	1	1	0		4	0	0	0	2
2004–05	Grand Rapids Griffins	AHL		80	2	10	12	34		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Grand Rapids Griffins	AHL		25	4	14	18	42		11	1	4	5	8
2005–06	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		46	3	9	12	20		6	0	0	0	4
2006–07	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		74	5	13	18	61		12	0	2	2	8
2007–08	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		78	3	11	14	48		19	0	2	2	6
2008–09	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		65	6	10	16	48		23	0	6	6	22
2009–10	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		63	1	7	8	24		2	0	0	0	0
2010–11	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		41	1	3	4	14		—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Springfield Falcons	AHL		26	1	9	10	18		—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Columbus Blue Jackets	NHL		30	1	3	4	14		—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Rockford IceHogs	AHL		27	0	11	11	18		—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Binghamton Senators	AHL		32	3	15	18	23		3	0	0	0	12
AHL totals				196	10	60	70	135		18	1	4	5	22
NHL totals				397	20	56	76	229		62	0	10	10	40

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2002	United States	WJC	5th		7	2	0	2	6
Junior totals					7	2	0	2	6

Awards and honors

Award	Year
All-CCHA Rookie Team	2000-01
All-CCHA Second Team	2003-04
Stanley Cup (Detroit Red Wings)	2007–08

References

1. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2019. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
2. Frisk, Bob (December 11, 2001). "Lebda has interesting holiday plans; Runtz will receive coaching award". Daily Herald . Arlington Heights, Illinois. p. 9. Retrieved June 17, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
3. Mike G. Morreale (January 1, 2009). "Lebda returns home to haunt Hawks at Winter Classic". NHL.com. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
4. Bradley Holland (December 31, 2008). "Can't get much better for Wings' Lebda". NHL.com. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
5. "Lebda signs 2-year deal with Toronto". ESPN.com. July 7, 2010. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
6. "Kessel productive as Maple Leafs rally to beat Habs". cbssports.com. February 24, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2019. James Reimer made 31 saves and Brett Lebda scored his first goal of the season for Toronto, which is on an 8-2-2 run.
7. "Nashville Predators buy out Brett Lebda". sportingnews.com. August 10, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
8. "Leafs acquire Lombardi and Franson in swap". NHL.com. National Hockey League . Retrieved July 3, 2011.
9. "Springfield Falcons Sign Lebda To PTO contract". Springfield Falcons. November 7, 2011. Archived from the original on November 9, 2011. Retrieved November 7, 2011.
10. "Blue Jackets Radek Martinek to miss rest of season; sign defenseman Brett Lebda". Columbus Blue Jackets. January 19, 2012. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
11. "B-SENS SIGN BRETT LEBDA". February 5, 2013.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Hockey-Reference.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database
• Brett Lebda Notre Dame player bio at CSTV.com