Ben Eager
Benjamin Eager ( born January 22, 1984 in Ottawa, Ontario ) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who plays for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League for the position of left winger since July 2011.
Career
Eager began his junior career at the age of 15 years in his native city at the Ottawa Junior Senators in the Central Junior A Hockey League, a league of the Federation of Canadian unterklassigen Hockey League. After 19 points from 50 games in his only game year he moved in the fall of 2000 to the Oshawa Generals in the Ontario Hockey League. A total of four seasons The forward played at the traditional team and made aware of this through both his scoring qualities as well as his physical game. After acclimatization difficulties in his rookie year Eager surpassed in the next three years is always the mark of 35 points, but also sat each on the penalty bench over 200 minutes. At this time the attackers embodied the type of player the power forwards and raised by his solid play the interest of the Scouts of the National Hockey League. In the NHL Entry Draft 2002, he was therefore selected in the first round at 23 out of the Phoenix Coyotes. A few months earlier Eager had participated with the Canadian national team at the U18 World Youth Championship in 2002, when the team had reached the sixth place. It was the first tournament participation of Canadians in this age group.
In the spring of 2004 - after the junior season - moved the Canadians finally in the professional sector, when he signed a three year contract. However, instead aground for the Phoenix Coyotes, he came for the Philadelphia Phantoms, the farm team of the Philadelphia Flyers of the American Hockey League, are used. This had along with Sean Burke and Branko Radivojevic get his transfer rights on 9 February 2004 in exchange for Mike Comrie of the Coyotes. After first appearances for the Phantoms in the season 2003/ 04 Eager promoted in the 2004 /05 an integral part of the phantom. At the end of the season he won with the team the prestigious Calder Cup. Also, the following year, the Canadian spent mainly in the farm team, but was also his debut in the NHL for the Flyers. At the end of the season he had completed 25 season and two playoff games. His performances earned him the 2006/07 season finally a place in a Flyers squad. Despite 233 penalty minutes the striker completed a good season and received at the end of the season the Pelle Lindbergh Memorial, an award from the Philadelphia Flyers for the player who had improved compared to the previous season the most. The election had been held under his teammates. As a result of its good performance extended the Flyers his contract by two years.
After Eager had started the season with the Flyers, he was discharged on 18 December 2007 in exchange for Jim Vandermeer to the Chicago Blackhawks. Multiple concussions and a shoulder injury meant that Eager could deny after 23 appearances for Philadelphia early in the season only nine more games this season for the Blackhawks. Only in the 2008/ 09 season was the left winger way into the emerging franchise Chicago's back and completed 75 games in which he, despite 15 points scorer mostly filled the role of an enforcer. This brought him in the course of the season some temporary suspensions from the league management. Nevertheless, the Blackhawks extended his contract by one year. The season 2009/10 was finally once again characterized by many violations of the striker. In time for the playoffs, the Canadians announced but fit. In addition to 60 regular season games he played in all 18 playoff appearances his team who were crowned with winning the Stanley Cup. It was the first Cup win of the Blackhawks since the 1960/61 season.
In the summer of 2010 there was due to the possible overrun of the salary cap in the season 2010/11 to some restructuring of the cadres of the reigning Stanley Cup winner. These concerns were also Eager, which was issued on 24 June 2010 together with Dustin Byfuglien, Brent Sopel and Akim Aliu to the Atlanta Thrashers. In return, Marty Reasoner, Joey Crabb and Jeremy Morin changed as well as the 27th and 54th franchise in the NHL Entry Draft in 2010 in the Windy City. After Eager to the Thrashers could not initially agree on a new contract, he is a new one-year contract was assured by an arbitration award. In Atlanta Eager remained only half a year. At the middle of the season, on 18 January 2011, he was given for a fifth -round vote in the NHL Entry Draft in 2011 to the San Jose Sharks.
On July 1, 2011 Eager signed as a free agent a contract for three years with the Edmonton Oilers.
Awards and achievements
- 2002 CHL Top Prospects Game
- 2005 Calder Cup - winning Philadelphia Phantoms with the
- 2010 Stanley Cup win with the Chicago Blackhawks
Career Stats
Internationally
Represented Canada at:
- U18 Junior World Cup 2002
( Key to Career statistics: Sp or GP = Games Played, T or G = goals scored, V or A = achieved assists; Pts or Pts = scored points scorer, SM or PIM = received penalty minutes, / - = Plus / Minus balance sheet; PP = scored majority gates; SH = scored shorthanded goals, GW = achieved victory gates; Play-downs/Relegation 1 )