Jay Leach (ice hockey)
Jay Christopher Leach ( born September 2, 1979 in Syracuse, New York ) is an American professional ice hockey player on the position of the defender, which is since February 2011 the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League contract. His uncle Stephen Leach also played in the National Hockey League.
- 2.1 International
Career
Leach began his career as a hockey player in 1994 in the teams of John Marshall High School in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the Capital District Selects of the Eastern Junior Hockey League. In the summer of 1997 he decided to study at Providence College, for its hockey team he was also active in the Hockey East, a division in the game operation of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Overall, the defender played for four years until 2001 at the College. In his last season graduated from the now 21 -year-old his best season, when he was able to record 25 points scorer in 40 games. In the three years before he had scored only nine points on average and was selected in the summer of 1998 in the NHL Entry Draft in the fifth round as a total of 115 players from the Phoenix Coyotes.
After Leach was taken in the fall of 2001 by the Phoenix Coyotes under contract, he sent them to their farm team, the Mississippi Sea Wolves, from the East Coast Hockey League. There he became already in his rookie year for regular players. He came in 70 games available for use, and posted 16 points scorer. The following year, he moved within the league the new Coyotes Famrteam Augusta Lynx, where he improved slightly compared to last year. Furthermore, the Americans came to nine appearances at the Springfield Falcons in the American Hockey League. In summer 2003, two-year contract ran out with the Coyotes and was not renewed. Then Leach took the Boston Bruins under contract. For the ECHL and AHL farm team, he played the next four years and developed into a solid defender with a defensive orientation. His performance earned him increase in the 2005/06 season his NHL debut when he was deployed in two games of the Boston Bruins. As a free agent the defender was committed by the franchise of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the summer of 2007. There he came primarily for the Norfolk Admirals in the AHL for use, but also played again twice in the NHL for Tampa. However, he only stayed half a year in the team because he was discharged on 26 February 2008 for Brandon Segal and a seventh -round vote in NHL Entry Draft 2008 to the Anaheim Ducks. This set him up to the end of the season 2007/08 exclusively with their farm team, the Portland Pirates.
Since Leach had just signed a one-year contract in Tampa last year, he found in the summer of 2008 in the New Jersey Devils a new team. In the course of the season 2008/ 09 he came in both New Jersey Devils in the NHL and AHL Lowell Devils of 24 inserts. But its place in the NHL squad could the Americans over the summer break away not defend and found himself at the beginning of the game year 2009/10 at the Lowell Devils again. As the management of New Jersey retrieve early November 2009, tried to get him in the NHL squad, voted him the Montreal Canadiens of the waiver list, on the Leach had to stay for 24 and was selected for the remaining 29 NHL teams. As the Canadiens suffered in November under a lot of bad luck with injuries, the defender came to seven inserts, before the Canadiens tried in early December, to send him on the waiver back in the American Hockey League. This time chose him from the San Jose Sharks, who were looking for an inexpensive, seventh defender for their NHL squad.
In February 2011, Leach was discharged together with Steven Zalewski in a barter transaction to the New Jersey Devils, in return, received the Sharks, the two attackers Michael Swift and Patrick Davis.
Internationally
For the U.S., Leach took part in the U20 World Youth Championship in 1998. The team finished fifth. Leach came in the tournament to seven missions, where he managed an assist and he had to serve eight penalty minutes.
Career Stats
Internationally
Represented the U.S. at:
- Junior World Cup 1998
( 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 )