Derek Stepan

Derek Stepan
Born (1990-06-18) June 18, 1990
Hastings, Minnesota
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb)
Position Center
Shoots Right
NHL team New York Rangers
National team  United States
NHL Draft 51st overall, 2008
New York Rangers
Playing career 2010–present

Derek Kenneth Stepan (/stɛˈpɑːn/ ste-PAHN;[1] born June 18, 1990) is an American professional ice hockey center and an alternate captain for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Stepan was drafted in the second round, 51st overall, by the Rangers in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and afterwards attended the University of Wisconsin, where he played for the Badgers hockey team in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association WCHA. On July 1, 2010, he signed his first professional contract with the Rangers, forgoing his junior and senior years at Wisconsin.[2] On October 9, 2010, he became the first player in Rangers history, and the fourth in NHL history, to score a hat-trick in his NHL debut. On May 13, 2015, Stepan scored the overtime goal vs the Capitals at 11:24 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals to send them to play Tampa Bay in the Eastern Conference Finals.[3]

Playing career

Amateur

Stepan attended high school at Shattuck-Saint Mary's, where he played on the hockey team. He scored 81 points during his junior year and 111 during his senior year at the school.[4] He then attended the University of Wisconsin, where he played for the Badgers hockey program in the WCHA.

Professional

On July 1, 2010, Stepan signed his first professional contract with the Rangers, forgoing his junior and senior years at Wisconsin.[2] In the autumn of 2010, having attended Rangers' training camp and playing for the team during the pre-season, Stepan made the transition from Wisconsin to the NHL. He scored a hat-trick in his first NHL game on October 9, 2010, against Ryan Miller of the Buffalo Sabres, becoming the first rookie in Rangers history to do so, en route to a 6–3 victory.[5] He is only the fourth player in NHL history to have scored a hat-trick in his debut, joining Alex Smart of the Montreal Canadiens (January 14, 1943), Réal Cloutier of the Quebec Nordiques (October 10, 1979) and Fabian Brunnström of the Dallas Stars (October 15, 2008). Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs later accomplished the feat with four goals (October 12, 2016). Stepan was selected as a member of the 2011 NHL All Star roster on January 11, 2011, and performed in the NHL SuperSkills competition on January 29, 2011.

In the 2012–13 season, Stepan finished tied for the NHL lead with four short-handed points.[6] On September 26, 2013, Stepan was signed to a two-year contract extension worth $6.15 million.[6] On September 24, 2014 Stepan suffered a broken leg in a non-contact drill during a Rangers practice.[7]

Following the 2014–15 NHL season Stepan became a restricted free agent under the NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement. The New York Rangers made him a qualifying offer to retain his NHL rights. However, Stepan rejected the initial contract, which was worth $5.2 million a year. On July 5, 2015, Stepan filed for Salary Arbitration, demanding at least $7.25 million per year.[8] On the morning of July 27, 2015, just hours before his arbitration hearing was scheduled to occur, Stepan and the Rangers settled on a six-year, $39 million contract.[9] This contract sets Stepan's salary at $6.5 million, and makes him the 2nd highest paid Rangers forward, behind Rick Nash who receives $7.9 million a year.

International play
Medal record
Men's ice hockey
Representing the  United States
World Junior Championships
2010 Saskatoon

At the 2010 IIHF World U20 Championships, Stepan was the captain of the United States team and led the tournament in scoring with four goals and ten assists in seven games, leading to an All-Star Team selection.[10][11][12][13] He captained the United States to win their second gold medal ever, defeating Canada in overtime.[14]

Stepan joined the United States men's team at the 2011 IIHF World Championship in Slovakia, playing alongside Ranger teammate Ryan McDonagh and Ranger prospect Chris Kreider. He finished the tournament with seven points in seven games, and was selected as a top three player on Team USA.

Personal life

Stepan was born into a hockey family, as his father Brad was also a draft pick of the Rangers in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft. Stepan's younger cousin, Zachary, was selected 112th overall by the Nashville Predators in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.[15] On August 9, 2014, Stepan married his longtime girlfriend Stephanie Kent in their home state, Minnesota. Stephanie gave birth to the couple's first child Maxwell Joseph Stepan on October 27, 2015.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2008–09 University of Wisconsin WCHA 40924336 —————
2009–10 University of Wisconsin WCHA 4112425410 —————
2010–11 New York Rangers NHL 8221244520 50002
2011–12 New York Rangers NHL 8217345122 201894
2012–13 KalPa SM-l 122240 —————
2012–13 New York Rangers NHL 4818264412 12 4 1 5 2
2013–14 New York Rangers NHL 8217405718 24510152
2014–15 New York Rangers NHL 6816395522 19 5 7 12 10
2015–16 New York Rangers NHL 7222315320 52020
NHL totals 434111194305114 8517264320

International

Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
2010 United States WJC 1st, gold medalist(s) 7 4 10 14 4
2011 United States WC 8th 7 2 5 7 2
2014 United States OG 4th 1 0 0 0 0
2016 United States WCH 7th 3 0 1 1 0
Junior totals 7 4 10 14 4
Senior totals 11 2 6 8 2

References

  1. ↑ 2014–15 National Hockey League (NHL) Player Pronunciations.
  2. 1 2 "Stepan making jump to pro game". New York Rangers. Retrieved 2010-07-07.
  3. ↑ "Stepan scores 3 in NHL debut in Rangers 6-3 win". yahoo.com. October 9, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Prospect: Derek Stepan". hockeysfuture.com. January 14, 2010.
  5. ↑ "NHL - New York Rangers/Buffalo Sabres Box Score Saturday October 9, 2010". Retrieved 2010-10-09.
  6. 1 2 Podell, I. (September 26, 2013). "Stepan, Rangers agree to 2-year contract". Associated Press. Retrieved 2013-09-26.
  7. ↑ Leonard, Pat (September 24, 2014). "Derek Stepan suffers broken leg, NY Rangers center will be out indefinitely". New York Daily News. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Arbitration cases scheduled". National Hockey League. 2015-07-05. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
  9. ↑ "Rangers sign Stepan to 6-year $39 million contract". CBS Sports. 2015-07-27. Retrieved 2015-07-27.
  10. ↑ "Scoring Leaders" (PDF). iihf.com. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  11. ↑ "Media All Stars" (PDF). iihf.com. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  12. ↑ "Goalscoring Leaders" (PDF). iihf.com. Retrieved 2010-12-28.
  13. ↑ "Player Statistics by Team: USA" (PDF). iihf.com. Retrieved 2010-12-29.
  14. ↑ "New champs: USA stuns Canada". iihf.com. January 14, 2010.
  15. ↑ "Stepan bloodlines run in the NHL". National Hockey League. 2015-02-03. Retrieved 2015-02-03.
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