Damien Riat

Damien Riat
Born	(1997-02-26) February 26, 1997 (age 28) Geneva, Switzerland
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	181 lb (82 kg; 12 st 13 lb)
Position	Winger
Shoots	Right
NL team Former teams	Lausanne HC Genève-Servette HC EHC Biel
National team	Switzerland
NHL draft	117th overall, 2016 Washington Capitals
Playing career	2015–present

Damien Riat (born 26 February 1997) is a Swiss professional ice hockey winger for Lausanne HC of the National League (NL). Riat was drafted 117th overall by the Washington Capitals in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. ^{[1] [2]}

Playing career

Riat spent the 2014–15 season with Malmö Redhawks junior teams. ^[3] At the end of the season, he joined his hometown team, Genève-Servette HC on a three-year deal. ^[4]

Riat made his professional debut with Genève-Servette HC in the 2015–16 season, appearing in 45 National League games this season and putting up 21 points (9 goals). He went on to play three more seasons with Geneva, playing 139 regular season games (59 points) and 13 playoffs games (4 points).

On February 3, 2018, Riat agreed to a two-year contract with EHC Biel beginning from the 2018–19 season. ^{[5] [6]}

On March 5, 2020, Riat was signed to a two-year entry-level contract by the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). ^[7] On August 4, 2020, the Washington Capitals agreed to return Riat on loan to former club Genève-Servette HC for the beginning of the 2020–21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic delaying the North American season. ^[8] On January 11, 2021, Riat was suspended for 7 games and fined CHF 6,000 for a hit from behind that sent HC Lugano's Elia Riva head first into the boards on January 8, 2021. ^[9] Riva left the ice on his skates and was brought to the hospital on a stretcher. On January 27, 2021, with one game remaining on his suspension, Riat was reassigned to the Hershey Bears of the AHL for the start of the shortened season. ^[10]

On August 12, 2021, Riat joined Lausanne HC for the 2021–22 season, on loan from the Washington Capitals. ^[11] In 35 regular season games with Lausanne, Riat collected 11 goals and 28 points. Following a first-round defeat in the post-season, Riat was signed to a two-year contract extension to remain with Lausanne on 22 April 2022. ^[12]

International play

Medal record
Representing   Switzerland
Ice hockey
World Championships
	2018 Denmark
	2025 Sweden/Denmark

Riat was named to Switzerland's under-20 team for the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championships in Helsinki, Finland. He played 6 games with the team, putting up 2 goals and 2 assists. Riat also made the team for the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championships in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He appeared in 5 games and scored 1 goal and 5 assists.

Riat made his IIHF World Championship debut in 2018 and won silver with Switzerland. ^[13] He made the trip to Bratislava, Slovakia for the 2019 IIHF World Championship with team Switzerland and was a healthy scratch for the first two games before being sent back home to make room for Sven Andrighetto. ^[14]

Riat was a part of the Swiss team for the 2025 IIHF World Championship and won Silver. ^[15]

Personal life

Riat is the older brother of HC Sierre's player, Arnaud Riat.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2012–13	Notre Dame Argos	SMHL		36	4	9	13	58		3	0	0	0	2
2013–14	Notre Dame Argos	SMHL		44	18	38	56	56		12	5	7	12	28
2014–15	Malmö Redhawks	J20		40	7	7	14	70		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Malmö Redhawks	Allsv		3	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Genève-Servette HC	Elite Jr. A		4	3	5	8	10		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Genève-Servette HC	NLA		45	9	12	21	34		4	1	2	3	10
2016–17	Genève-Servette HC	NLA		46	7	7	14	36		4	0	0	0	4
2017–18	Genève-Servette HC	NL		48	12	12	24	30		5	0	1	1	2
2018–19	EHC Biel	NL		48	11	14	25	38		12	3	1	4	0
2019–20	EHC Biel	NL		36	11	11	22	57		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Genève-Servette HC	NL		20	7	11	18	29		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Hershey Bears	AHL		33	3	6	9	12		—	—	—	—	—
2021–22	Lausanne HC	NL		35	11	17	28	12		8	1	1	2	2
2022–23	Lausanne HC	NL		52	9	16	25	24		—	—	—	—	—
NL totals				330	77	100	177	260		33	5	5	10	18

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2013	Switzerland	IH18	6th		4	1	0	1	2
2014	Switzerland	U18	7th		5	1	1	2	0
2014	Switzerland	IH18	7th		4	1	2	3	25
2015	Switzerland	U18	4th		7	3	2	5	4
2016	Switzerland	WJC	9th		6	2	2	4	8
2017	Switzerland	WJC	7th		5	1	5	6	8
2018	Switzerland	WC			6	0	0	0	0
2022	Switzerland	WC	5th		5	1	0	1	2
2023	Switzerland	WC	5th		5	1	3	4	0
2025	Switzerland	WC			10	6	1	7	2
Junior totals					31	9	12	21	47
Senior totals					26	8	4	12	4

References

1. "Damien Riat drafted 117th overall by the Capitals". swisshockeynews.ch. 2016-06-26. Retrieved 2016-06-26.
2. "A closer look at the six selections on the second day of the 2006 NHL Draft". russianmachineneverbreaks.com. 2016-06-26. Retrieved 2016-06-26.
3. "Three players to Malmo junior team" (in Swedish). expressen.se. 2014-07-24. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
4. "Damien Riat returns to GSHC" (in French). Genève-Servette HC. 2015-04-01. Retrieved 2015-04-01.
5. "Damien Riat signs with Biel" (in German). EHC Biel. 2018-02-03. Retrieved 2018-02-03.
6. "EHC Biel can count on Riat in the upcoming season". swisshockeynews.ch. 2018-08-14. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
7. "The Washington Capitals sign Damien Riat to a two-year contract". swisshockeynews.ch. 2020-03-05. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
8. "Damien Riat returns on loan" (in French). Genève-Servette HC. 4 August 2020. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
9. "GSHC's Damien Riat suspended for seven games". swisshockeynews.ch. 2021-01-11. Retrieved 2021-01-11.
10. "To North America - Damien Riat has been called back by the Capitals". swisshockeynews.ch. 2021-01-27. Retrieved 2021-01-27.
11. "Lausanne HC inks Damien Riat for the upcoming season". swisshockeynews.ch. 2021-08-12. Retrieved 2021-08-12.
12. "Damien Riat extends with LHC" (in French). Lausanne HC. 22 April 2022. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
13. "The Swiss provisional roster for Worlds is set". swisshockeynews.ch. 2018-05-01. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
14. "Due to Andrighetto's arrival, Damien Riat has to return home". swisshockeynews.ch. 2019-05-12. Retrieved 2019-05-12.
15. "Switzerland team roster". IIHF International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2025-05-26.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database