David Aebischer

David Aebischer
Aebischer with the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers in 2012
Born	(1978-02-07) February 7, 1978 (age 46) Geneva, Switzerland [1]
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position	Goaltender
Caught	Left
Played for	HC Fribourg-Gottéron Colorado Avalanche HC Lugano Montreal Canadiens Phoenix Coyotes Rapperswil-Jona Lakers HC Thurgau
National team	Switzerland
NHL draft	161st overall, 1997 Colorado Avalanche
Playing career	1996–2015

David Aebischer (born February 7, 1978) is a Swiss former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League with the Colorado Avalanche, Montreal Canadiens and the Phoenix Coyotes. He was a member of the 2001 Stanley Cup champion Avalanche team, becoming the first Swiss native to achieve the feat. Aebischer also played several seasons in his native Switzerland with HC Fribourg-Gottéron, HC Lugano and the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers of the National League (NL).

Aebischer is currently a goalie coach for HC Fribourg-Gottéron.

Playing career

As a youth, Aebischer played in the 1992 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Switzerland. ^[2]

Aebischer was drafted 161st overall by the Colorado Avalanche in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. He moved to North America in 1997 and spent the 1997–98 season in the ECHL, first with the Chesapeake Icebreakers and then with the Wheeling Nailers. He spent the next two seasons with Colorado's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hershey Bears, with whom he compiled a 46-33-7 record. When the Avalanche traded backup goaltender Marc Denis to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the summer of 2000, Aebischer became the full-time backup to starting goaltender Patrick Roy.^{[ citation needed ]}

Aebischer played 26 games during his rookie season with Colorado. Aebischer made his NHL debut, and first NHL start on October 18, 2000 against the Columbus Blue Jackets in Columbus for his first NHL victory. ^[3] On October 26, 2000 in his second career start, Aebischer shut out the Chicago Blackhawks in Chicago for his first NHL career shutout. ^[4] The year would prove a successful one, as Roy backstopped the Avalanche to their second Stanley Cup championship, defeating the New Jersey Devils in a seven-game final series. ^[5] With the win, Aebischer became the first Swiss hockey player to win the Stanley Cup. ^[6]

Following two more seasons as the Avalanche backup, Aebischer became Colorado's starting goaltender following Roy's retirement in the summer of 2003. He played 62 games and posted 32 wins during the 2003–04 season. That season, he started his first career playoff game for the Avalanche and led Colorado to the second round, where they lost to the San Jose Sharks in six games. The following season, due to the NHL lockout, Aebischer returned to Switzerland and played for HC Lugano in the Nationalliga A.^{[ citation needed ]}

Aebischer returned to the Avalanche for the 2005–06 season. He was unable to duplicate his pre-lockout form and his inconsistent play led to him being traded to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for goaltender José Théodore on March 8, 2006, a day before the NHL trade deadline. ^[7]

That summer, Montreal re-signed him to a one-year deal worth $1.9 million. ^[8] He served as Cristobal Huet's backup for the 2006–07 season and posted a 13–12–3 record. The Canadiens failed to make the playoffs and Montreal opted not to re-sign Aebischer.^{[ citation needed ]}

On July 19, 2007, Aebischer signed a one-year, $600,000 contract with the Phoenix Coyotes. ^{[9] [10]} However, he lost the goaltending battle in training camp to Alex Auld and Mikael Tellqvist, and was waived. He went unclaimed and was subsequently assigned to the Coyotes AHL affiliate, the San Antonio Rampage. On November 23, 2007, Aebischer was loaned to HC Lugano to make room on the San Antonio roster for goaltender Alex Auld. ^[11]

Medal record
Representing    Switzerland
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
	1998 Helsinki

In August, 2011, after four seasons back in his native Switzerland, Aebischer was invited to the training camp of the Winnipeg Jets for the 2011–12 season on a tryout contract. ^[12] On October 5, 2011, it was announced that Aebischer would play with the Jets' AHL affiliate, the St. John's IceCaps. ^[13]

On July 1, 2012, Aebischer again left North America and signed a one-year contract with the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers of the National League A. ^[14]

In the 2014–15 season, Aebischer played five games with HC Thurgau of the National League B before announcing his retirement from his playing career to focus for a coaching role on January 25, 2015. ^[15]

International play

Aebischer has represented Switzerland internationally on many occasions. His first international experience came in the 1997 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, hosted by Switzerland. The Swiss finished in 7th place. Aebischer returned as Switzerland's starting goaltender the following year at the 1998 World Juniors and led the team past the quarterfinal round and to a bronze medal finish, defeating the heavily favoured Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Aebischer has also appeared for Switzerland in five IIHF World Championships and two Winter Olympic Games.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season											Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	W	L	T	OTL	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%		GP	W	L	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%
1994–95	HC Fribourg–Gottéron	SUI U20		27	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	3.58	—		2	—	—	—	—	—	2.50	—
1995–96	HC Fribourg–Gottéron	SUI U20		29	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	3.20	—		3	—	—	—	—	—	3.01	—
1996–97	HC Fribourg–Gottéron	SUI U20		24	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2.65	—		2	—	—	—	—	—	2.22	—
1996–97	HC Fribourg–Gottéron	NDA		10	—	—	—	—	577	34	0	3.54	—		3	1	2	184	13	0	4.24	—
1997–98	Chesapeake Icebreakers	ECHL		17	5	7	2	—	930	52	0	3.35	.897		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1997–98	Wheeling Nailers	ECHL		10	5	3	1	—	564	30	1	3.19	.858		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1997–98	Hershey Bears	AHL		2	0	0	1	—	79	5	0	3.76	.853		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1997–98	HC Fribourg–Gottéron	NDA		1	1	0	0	—	60	1	0	1.00	—		4	—	—	240	17	—	4.25	—
1998–99	Hershey Bears	AHL		38	17	10	5	—	1932	79	2	2.45	.920		3	1	2	152	6	0	2.37	.925
1999–00	Hershey Bears	AHL		58	29	23	2	—	3259	180	1	3.31	.902		14	7	6	788	40	2	3.05	.917
2000–01	Colorado Avalanche	NHL		26	12	7	3	—	1393	52	3	2.24	.903		1	0	0	1	0	0	0.00	—
2001–02	Colorado Avalanche	NHL		21	13	6	0	—	1184	37	2	1.88	.931		1	0	0	34	1	0	1.79	.929
2002–03	Colorado Avalanche	NHL		22	7	12	0	—	1235	50	1	2.43	.916		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Colorado Avalanche	NHL		62	32	19	9	—	3703	129	4	2.09	.924		11	6	5	662	23	1	2.08	.922
2004–05	HC Lugano	NLA		18	12	2	3	—	1019	41	0	2.41	.933		4	1	3	240	10	0	2.50	.939
2005–06	Colorado Avalanche	NHL		43	25	14	—	2	2477	123	3	2.98	.900		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		7	4	3	—	0	418	26	0	3.73	.892		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		32	13	12	—	3	1760	93	0	3.17	.900		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Phoenix Coyotes	NHL		1	0	1	—	0	60	3	0	3.00	.909		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	San Antonio Rampage	AHL		5	2	3	—	0	302	13	0	2.58	.898		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	HC Lugano	NLA		26	12	14	—	—	1576	69	2	2.63	.921		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	HC Lugano	NLA		49	27	22	—	—	2953	140	2	2.84	.923		7	3	4	452	26	0	3.45	.895
2009–10	HC Lugano	NLA		48	23	24	—	—	2897	156	2	3.23	.916		4	0	4	240	22	0	5.50	.836
2010–11	HC Lugano	NLA		35	10	18	—	3	2038	109	3	3.21	.872		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	St. John's IceCaps	AHL		31	15	12	—	2	1722	82	1	2.86	.895		1	0	0	26	2	0	4.56	.833
2012–13	Rapperswil–Jona Lakers	NLA		40	13	21	—	1	2256	146	2	3.88	.897		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Rapperswil–Jona Lakers	NLA		43	9	28	—	3	2364	148	0	3.76	.872		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	HC Thurgau	NLB		5	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	4.93	.856		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
NDA/NLA totals				270	—	—	—	—	15,740	844	11	3.22	—		22	—	—	1356	88	—	3.89	—
NHL totals				214	106	74	12	5	12,230	513	13	2.52	.912		13	6	5	697	24	1	2.07	.922

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	W	L	T	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%
1996	Switzerland	EJC		5	—	—	—	—	—	—	3.95	.884
1997	Switzerland	WJC		5	3	1	1	300	10	0	2.00	.917
1998	Switzerland	WJC		6	4	2	0	379	10	0	1.58	.951
1998	Switzerland	WC		7	2	4	1	376	18	0	2.87	.895
1999	Switzerland	WC		4	1	3	0	173	13	1	4.51	.833
2002	Switzerland	OLY		2	1	0	0	81	6	0	4.44	.806
2005	Switzerland	WC		1	0	0	1	60	3	0	3.00	.903
2006	Switzerland	OLY		4	1	0	2	200	7	0	2.10	.940
2006	Switzerland	WC		6	2	2	2	359	16	0	2.67	.882
2007	Switzerland	WC		1	0	1	0	60	6	0	6.00	.793
Senior totals				25	7	10	6	1309	69	1	3.16	.876

References

1. Alain, Thévoz; David, Aebischer (2001). David Aebischer, Le récit d'une conquête[David Aebischer, The Story of a Conquest] (in French). Fribourg. p. 196. ISBN   2-9700313-0-2..
2. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-02-02.
3. "Avs beat Blue Jackets". hockeyreference.com. 2000-10-18. Retrieved 2012-02-04.
4. "Avalanche shut-out Blackhawks". hockeyreference.com. 2000-10-26. Retrieved 2012-02-26.
5. Kevin Allen (2001-06-10). "Avalanche beat Devils to capture Stanley Cup". USA Today . Retrieved 2010-11-21.
6. "Swiss ice hockey star steps out of the shadows". swissinfo. 2003-06-10. Retrieved 2010-11-19.
7. "Habs acquire Aebischer from Colorado". canadiens.nhl.com. 2006-03-08. Archived from the original on 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
8. "Canadiens re-sign Aebischer". canadiens.nhl.com. 2006-07-12. Archived from the original on 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
9. "Coyotes sign David Aebischer". coyotes.nhl.com. 2007-07-19. Archived from the original on 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
10. Boeck, Greg (2007-09-25). "Ex-Av Aebischer embraces shot in Phoenix". USAtoday.com. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
11. "Phoenix Coyotes loan goalie David Aebischer to Swiss team Lugano". NHL.com. 2007-11-23. Retrieved 2010-11-21.
12. Ed Tait (2011-08-19). "David versus Goliaths... and more". Winnipeg Free Press . Retrieved 2011-08-20.
13. "Jets sign G Aebischer to AHL contract". TSN. 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2011-10-10.
14. "Lakers sign Aebischer" (in German). Rapperswil-Jona Lakers. 2012-07-01. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2012-07-01.
15. "David Aebischer ends his career" (in German). National League A. 2015-01-25. Archived from the original on 2020-10-22. Retrieved 2015-01-25.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  Hockey-Reference.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database
• Aebischer at hockeygoalies.org