Michael Zigomanis

Michael Zigomanis
Zigomanis with the Toronto Marlies in 2012
Born	(1981-01-17) January 17, 1981 (age 43) North York, Ontario, Canada
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position	Centre
Shot	Right
Played for	Carolina Hurricanes St. Louis Blues Phoenix Coyotes Pittsburgh Penguins Djurgårdens IF Toronto Maple Leafs
NHL draft	64th overall, 1999 Buffalo Sabres 46th overall, 2001 Carolina Hurricanes
Playing career	2001–2014

Michael Zigomanis (born January 17, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Zigomanis was drafted twice. In the 1999 NHL Entry Draft he was selected 64th overall by the Buffalo Sabres, but was not signed. He re-entered for the 2001 NHL Entry Draft and was selected by the Carolina Hurricanes 46th overall.

Zigomanis was born in North York, Ontario, but grew up in Markham, Ontario.

Early life

He was born to Macedonian parents who emigrated to Canada from Kastoria, Greece. ^[1] As a youth, he played in the 1995 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from North York. ^[2] Zigomanis attended Father Michael McGivney Catholic Academy in Markham, graduating in 2000. ^[3]

Playing career

Zigomanis played four seasons of junior hockey with the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He was chosen in the 2nd round, 25th overall by the Frontenacs in the 1997 OHL Priority Selection Draft. In his first season with the Frontenacs, he scored 23 goals and 74 points in 62 games. His numbers increased the following year, collecting 29 goals and 85 points. His third year saw another increase, marking 40 goals and 94 points, good for fifth best in the league. The 2000–01 season was his last in the OHL, where he scored 40 goals and 77 points in 52 games. He finished his career with the Frontenacs with 330 points, fourth on the team's all-time scoring list. He represented Canada at the 2001 World Junior Hockey Championships, where he scored 2 goals and 6 points on the way to third place (bronze medal). ^[4]

Zigomanis was originally drafted in the 2nd round, 64th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. Zigomanis agreed to terms with the Sabres just before the 5 pm deadline on June 1, 2001, but there was a typographical error in his contract that was faxed to the league offices. By the time the error was discovered, the deadline had passed, and the NHL ruled that he would have to re-enter the NHL draft, as he had not been signed before the deadline. ^[5] He re-entered the draft and was selected in the 2nd round again, this time 46th overall by Carolina Hurricanes in 2001. ^[6] Carolina signed Zigomanis to a three-year contract on October 4, 2001, and he was assigned to the Hurricanes' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lowell Lock Monsters. ^[7]

On January 30, 2006, Zigomanis, Jesse Boulerice, Magnus Kahnberg, first round and fourth round picks in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft and a fourth round pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft were traded to the St. Louis Blues for Doug Weight and Erkki Rajamaki along with some retention of Weight's salary. ^{[8] [9]} He finished the season splitting time with the Blues and their AHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen. ^[6]

In the 2006 offseason, Zigomanis left the Blues and signed a two-year contract with the Phoenix Coyotes. ^[6] He became known as a faceoff specialist with the Coyotes, finished seventh best in the league. The Coyotes signed him to a contract extension through the 2008–09 season on February 16, 2007. ^[10] On October 9, 2008, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for future considerations. ^{[11] [12]} While in Pittsburgh, Zigomanis provided faceoff and penalty killing expertise. ^[13] He played 22 games with the Penguins before he seriously injured his shoulder in December. Zigomanis was only cleared to play in the Stanley Cup finals. ^[13] He won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins that year. ^[14]

An unrestricted free agent after his time in Pittsburgh, Zigomanis signed a professional tryout with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL on October 19, 2009. ^[15] Zigomanis played only seven games but managed to score 13 points (all assists) before leaving for Europe on November 10, 2009, signing a contract for the rest of the 2009–10 season with Djurgårdens IF of the Swedish Elitserien. ^[16]

On July 15, 2010, Zigomanis signed as a free agent to return to Toronto, signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. ^[17] On July 12, 2011, Zigomanis signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Maple Leafs worth $665,000 at the NHL level and $300,000 at the AHL level. ^[18] After recording professional career highs of 61 points during the 2011–12 season, Zigomanis opted to remain with the Marlies and was re-signed to a one-year AHL contract as a free agent on July 30, 2012. ^[19]

On July 10, 2013, Zigomanis signed an AHL-only contract with the Rochester Americans, the minor-league affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres, the team that drafted him in 1999. ^[20]

Brand ambassador

After joining the Toronto Maple Leafs, Cheetah energy drinks CEO Frank D'Angelo signed Zigomanis to a promotional contract. However, after Zigomanis was demoted to the club's minor league affiliate, and nude photos of the player which he had sent to an ex-girlfriend surfaced online, D'Angelo cited breach of contract for allegedly not living up to a morals clause in the contract. D'Angelo released Zigomanis from his contract as a "brand ambassador" for Cheetah. Zigomanis sued for breach of contract and won a settlement. ^{[21] [22] [23]}

Broadcasting career

Zigomanis worked for the Toronto sports radio station Sportsnet 590 The Fan co-hosting the morning show from September 2019 ^[24] until September 2021. ^{[25] [26]}

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1996–97	Wexford Raiders	MetJHL		40	37	48	85	23		—	—	—	—	—
1997–98	Kingston Frontenacs	OHL		62	23	51	74	30		12	1	6	7	2
1998–99	Kingston Frontenacs	OHL		67	29	56	85	36		5	1	7	8	2
1999–2000	Kingston Frontenacs	OHL		59	40	54	94	49		5	0	4	4	0
2000–01	Kingston Frontenacs	OHL		52	40	37	77	44		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Lowell Lock Monsters	AHL		79	18	30	48	24		5	1	1	2	2
2002–03	Lowell Lock Monsters	AHL		38	13	18	31	19		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		19	2	1	3	0		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Lowell Lock Monsters	AHL		61	17	35	52	56		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		17	0	3	3	2		—	—	—	—	—
2004–05	Lowell Lock Monsters	AHL		76	29	31	60	71		11	4	7	11	8
2005–06	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		21	1	0	1	4		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Lowell Lock Monsters	AHL		11	6	7	13	19		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	St. Louis Blues	NHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Peoria Rivermen	AHL		28	10	18	28	16		4	2	4	6	6
2006–07	Phoenix Coyotes	NHL		75	14	9	23	46		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Phoenix Coyotes	NHL		33	2	1	3	6		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	San Antonio Rampage	AHL		27	10	15	25	14		7	0	5	5	10
2008–09	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		22	2	4	6	27		—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Toronto Marlies	AHL		7	0	13	13	0		—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Djurgårdens IF	SEL		27	4	7	11	12		5	0	0	0	8
2010–11	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		8	0	1	1	4		—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Toronto Marlies	AHL		64	14	33	47	66		—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Toronto Marlies	AHL		68	19	42	61	52		13	4	2	6	10
2012–13	Toronto Marlies	AHL		65	7	28	35	42		9	2	7	9	8
2013–14	Rochester Americans	AHL		50	12	17	29	32		—	—	—	—	—
AHL totals				574	155	287	442	411		49	13	26	39	44
NHL totals				197	21	19	40	89		—	—	—	—	—

Medal record
Representing   Canada
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
	2001 Moscow

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1999	Canada	U18			3	2	0	2	0
2001	Canada	WJC			7	2	2	4	0
Junior totals					10	4	2	6	0

Awards and honours

Award	Year
OHL
CHL Top Prospects Game	1999
William Hanley Trophy (Most Gentlemanly Player)	2000
AHL
All-Star Game	2004
Yanick Dupre Memorial Award	2013
NHL
Stanley Cup (Pittsburgh Penguins)	2009

References

1. "Macedonian heritage alive through Stamkos and NHL brass". The King Sentinel. June 5, 2008. Archived from the original on December 23, 2009. Retrieved January 2, 2009.
2. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
3. "Queen's University, Canada". alumnius.net. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
4. Jackson, Jordan (August 14, 2018). "Alumni Profile: Mike Zigomanis". Kingston Frontenacs. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
5. "Three prospects must re-enter NHL draft". USA Today. June 7, 2001. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
6. "Coyotes Sign Center Mike Zigomanis". Phoenix Coyotes. July 21, 2006. Retrieved January 6, 2023– via NHL.com.
7. "Hurricanes Sign Zigomanis, Zepp, Murphy". Carolina Hurricanes. October 6, 2001. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
8. "Hurricanes acquire Weight from Blues". ESPN. Associated Press. January 30, 2006. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
9. "Mike Zigomanis". NHL Trade Tracker. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
10. "Tellqvist, Zigomanis re-sign with Coyotes". TwinCities Pioneer Press. Associated Press. February 16, 2007. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
11. "Phoenix trades Zigomanis to Pittsburgh". NHL.com. Associated Press. October 9, 2008. Retrieved October 10, 2008.
12. "Pittsburgh Penguins Acquire Forward Mike Zigomanis From Phoenix In Exchange For Future Considerations". Pittsburgh Penguins. October 9, 2008. Archived from the original on October 10, 2008. Retrieved October 10, 2008.
13. "Penguins' best faceoff man fit for duty". CBC Sports. June 3, 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
14. "Stanley Cup making stop in Markham". Markham Economist & Sun. July 20, 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2023– via yorkregion.com.
15. "Marlies Sign Zigomanis to PTO". Toronto Marlies. October 19, 2009. Archived from the original on October 23, 2009. Retrieved October 19, 2009.
16. "Mike Zigomanis klar för Djurgården". difhockey.se (in Swedish). Djurgårdens IF Hockey. November 10, 2009. Archived from the original on November 13, 2009. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
17. "Maple Leafs sign Zigomanis, Crabb and Richmond". The Sports Network . July 15, 2010. Retrieved July 16, 2010.
18. "Leafs give Zigomanis another shot". Toronto Sun . July 12, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
19. "Marlies re-sign Zigomanis, Acton, add Yeo". Toronto Marlies. July 30, 2012. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
20. "Amerks sign Zigomanis, Roy and Lepkowski to AHL contracts". Rochester Americans. July 10, 2013. Archived from the original on December 28, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
21. Hopper, Tristin (November 17, 2016). "The Maple Leaf vs. The energy drink tycoon: Hijacked penis photos no reason to fire Zigomanis, judge rules". National Post. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
22. Pazzano, Sam (November 17, 2016). "Former Leaf Mike Zigomanis wins suit against Frank D'Angelo". The Toronto Sun. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
23. Westhead, Rick (November 17, 2016). "Former Leaf player, fired for morals clause, wins lawsuit". TSN.ca. The Sports Network. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
24. Contes, Brandon (September 26, 2019). "Sportsnet 590 The Fan Shuffles Lineup Again". barrettsportsmedia.com. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
25. Fitz-Gerald, Sean (September 29, 2021). "What the dramatic personnel and format changes mean for Sportsnet 590 The Fan" . The Athletic. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
26. Fitz-Gerald, Sean (April 13, 2022). "Here is what happened to Scott MacArthur after Sportsnet cleaned house at The Fan 590" . The Athletic. Retrieved January 8, 2023.

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
• Michael Zigomanis on X