Joe Piskula

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Joe Piskula
Joe Piskula.png
Born (1984-07-05) July 5, 1984 (age 40)
Antigo, Wisconsin, USA
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 214 lb (97 kg; 15 st 4 lb)
Position Defense
Shot Left
Played for Los Angeles Kings
Calgary Flames
Nashville Predators
Leksands IF
Ilves
HC TPS
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2006–2020

Joseph J. Piskula (born July 5, 1984) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). Piskula ended his playing career serving as an alternate captain for HC TPS in the Finnish Liiga. [1]

Contents

Playing career

A native of Antigo, Wisconsin, of Croatian ancestry, [2] Piskula played junior hockey with the Chicago Steel and Des Moines Buccaneers of the United States Hockey League (USHL). [3] He was recruited to play with the Wisconsin Badgers hockey program, and was a member of the team for three seasons between 2004 and 2007. He appeared in 112 games for the Badgers and was given the Otto Breitenbach Award as the team's most improved player in 2005–06. An undrafted player, Piskula chose to forgo his senior year of eligibility by signing as a free agent with the Los Angeles Kings on March 21, 2007. [4] He made his NHL debut two nights later, against the Chicago Blackhawks, and played in five games with Los Angeles at the end of the 2006–07 NHL season. [5]

Piskula spent the following three seasons playing in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Kings' affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs. He appeared in 189 games over that time, scoring 2 goals and 29 assists. [3] As a free agent in 2010, he was offered a try-out with the Philadelphia Flyers, but [6] ultimately signed a contract with the AHL's Abbotsford Heat. His play in Abbotsford during the 2010–11 season impressed the Heat's parent club, leading the Calgary Flames to sign him to an NHL two-way contract on July 1, 2011. [7] He spent the majority of the season with Abbotsford, but earned a recall to Calgary on December 1, 2011. [8] He appeared in five games with the Flames before being returned to Abbotsford. [9]

During the 2012–13 season whilst with the Abbotsford Heat, Piskula was traded by the Flames to the Nashville Predators in exchange for Brian McGrattan on February 28, 2013 and was reassigned to AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. [10] On October 9, 2014, Piskula was named Captain of the Milwaukee Admirals. [11]

On July 1, 2015, Piskula joined his fourth organization as a free agent in signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Anaheim Ducks. [12] Primarily added to add depth to the Ducks, Piskula was reassigned and named the captain of the San Diego Gulls of the AHL. During the 2015–16 season, Piskula was recalled to the Ducks for 1 game but ended up being a healthy scratch.

As a free agent from the Ducks, Piskula opted to pursue a career abroad, signing a one-year deal with Swedish club, Leksands IF of the SHL on September 13, 2016. [13]

Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
2002–03 Chicago Steel USHL 1300018—————
2002–03 Des Moines Buccaneers USHL322681840114
2003–04 Des Moines BuccaneersUSHL582466830110
2004–05 U. of Wisconsin–Madison WCHA 4006624—————
2005–06 U. of Wisconsin–MadisonWCHA34291122—————
2006–07 U. of Wisconsin–MadisonWCHA3814534—————
2006–07 Los Angeles Kings NHL 50006—————
2007–08 Manchester Monarchs AHL 550665740004
2008–09 Manchester MonarchsAHL670121240—————
2009–10 Manchester MonarchsAHL7221012511622412
2010–11 Abbotsford Heat AHL711111273—————
2011–12 Abbotsford HeatAHL593151848—————
2011–12 Calgary Flames NHL50002—————
2012–13 Abbotsford HeatAHL46281051—————
2012–13 Milwaukee Admirals AHL231341540000
2013–14 Milwaukee AdmiralsAHL73320235630114
2013–14 Nashville Predators NHL20000—————
2014–15 Milwaukee AdmiralsAHL671161730—————
2014–15 Nashville PredatorsNHL10002—————
2015–16 San Diego Gulls AHL430553050004
2016–17 Leksands IF SHL 5118947—————
2017–18 Ilves Liiga 5024653—————
2018–19 TPS Liiga481111244—————
2019–20 TPSLiiga51191052—————
NHL totals1300010—————

References

  1. ↑ "Piskula brings NHL experience to Liiga". aamulehti.fi (in Finnish). June 7, 2017. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
  2. ↑ "'CRONUCKSI' ĆE PREPLAVITI LEDENU Stižu Drazenovic, Dekanich, Murovich, Piskula, Gazdic..." Jutarnji list (in Croatian). April 28, 2013. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Joe Piskula profile". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Off to the pros". Badgernation.com. March 22, 2007. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
  5. ↑ "Joe Piskula profile". American Hockey League. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Flyers reduce training camp roster". Philadelphia Flyers Hockey Club. September 26, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
  7. ↑ "Heat standouts Bancks, Piskula, Laing sign new contracts". Abbotsford News. July 1, 2011. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
  8. ↑ Tucker, Cam (December 1, 2011). "Flames recall Abbotsford Heat defenceman Joe Piskula". Abbotsford Times. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Wilson recalled by Flames, Piskula returns to Heat". Abbotsford News. December 30, 2011. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Milwaukee add Wisconsin native in trade". American Hockey League. February 28, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Piskula named Admirals Captain". Milwaukee Admirals. October 9, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Ducks sign Hackett, Mueller and Piskula to contracts". Anaheim Ducks. July 1, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  13. ↑ "American back amplifies blueline" (in Swedish). Leksands IF. September 13, 2016. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
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