Matt Niskanen
Matthew Niskanen ( born December 6, 1986 in Virginia, Minnesota ) is an American professional ice hockey defender, who plays for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League since February 2011.
Career
During his youth, he played for the University of Minnesota Duluth in the NCAA. He was drafted by the Dallas Stars in the NHL Entry Draft in 2005 in the first round to 28th.
After two successful seasons in Minnesota ( 45 points in 77 games ) Niskanen decided after his sophomore season, immediately switching to professional hockey and even played 25 (including playoffs ) games for the AHL team of the stars, the Iowa Stars. In addition, he was chosen in the season 2006/ 07 for his achievements in Minnesota in the All- WCHA First Team. He signed a three- year contract with the Dallas Stars, in which he directly made the jump to the NHL team with effect from the 2007/ 08 season in training camp. Right at the beginning of the season, he formed the first line of defense with veteran Sergei Zubov and garnered so much experience and minutes of the game. For his achievements, he was nominated for the Young Stars Game 2008.
21 February 2011 Niskanen was delivered in a transfer business with James Neal in exchange for Alex Goligoski to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Awards and achievements
- 2007 All - WCHA First All -Star Team
- 2008 NHL Young Stars Game
Career Stats
Internationally
Represented the U.S. at:
- U20 Junior World Cup 2006
- World Cup 2009
( 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 )