Jean-Sébastien Giguère

Jean-Sébastien Giguère (; born May 16, 1977) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played with the Halifax Mooseheads in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), and was drafted 13th overall by the Hartford Whalers in the 1995 NHL entry draft. He played in the Calgary Flames organization for three seasons before joining the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in 2000.

In the 2003 NHL playoffs, Giguère anchored the seventh-seeded Mighty Ducks on their run to the Stanley Cup Finals, where he became the fifth player in NHL history to win the Conn Smythe Trophy despite not winning the Stanley Cup in the same season. Giguere ultimately won the Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007.

His later career included stints in Toronto and Colorado. Giguère holds the Anaheim Ducks' franchise record for career wins and shutouts and was the last active NHL player who had played for the Hartford Whalers.

Playing career

Early career As a youth, Giguère played in the 1990 and 1991 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with a minor ice hockey team from the Mille Îles area of Laval, Quebec.

After his four-year major junior career that included QMJHL Second Team All-Star honours in 1997, the Hartford Whalers drafted Giguère 13th overall in the 1995 NHL entry draft with a pick acquired from the New York Rangers in exchange for Pat Verbeek. Giguère made his NHL debut with the Whalers, playing eight games during the 1996–97 season.

On August 25, 1997 (by which time the Whalers had relocated to become the Carolina Hurricanes), Giguère was traded to the Calgary Flames, along with centre Andrew Cassels, for forward Gary Roberts and goaltender Trevor Kidd. Due to only brief stints in the NHL during his tenures with Hartford and Calgary, the 2000–01 season qualified as Giguère's rookie NHL season. He played in 34 games, posting a 2.57 GAA and .911 save percentage.

In the off-season, he was re-signed by the Mighty Ducks on August 17, 2001.

However, the Mighty Ducks' dream of hoisting the Stanley Cup was stopped by the New Jersey Devils, to whom Anaheim lost in a seven-game series. Giguère finished the playoffs undefeated in seven overtime games, setting a record for the longest playoff overtime shutout streak at 168 minutes and 27 seconds. He proceeded to put up a career-high 36 wins in 56 games. Prior to the beginning of the 2007 playoffs, Giguère and his wife welcomed a newborn son. Giguère missed the Ducks' last three regular season games as well as the first three games of their opening round matchup with Minnesota, with Bryzgalov taking over in Giguère's absence. Giguère returned late in the series and was the Ducks' starter the rest of the way. During the second round against Vancouver, his eight-game overtime winning streak in the playoffs was snapped on April 27, 2007, in a 2–1 defeat in game two. Nevertheless, Giguère and the Ducks went on to eliminate the Canucks en route to the 2007 Stanley Cup Final, where they won their first-ever Stanley Cup championship in a 6–2 game five win over the Ottawa Senators on June 6.

On June 21, 2007, the Ducks announced that they had re-signed Giguère to a multi-year contract. Giguère posted a 35–17–6 record with a career-best 2.12 GAA in the 2007–08 season. Despite his personal numbers, however, the defending champion Ducks were defeated in the first round of the 2008 playoffs by the Dallas Stars in six games.

Giguère recorded sub-par numbers during the 2008–09 season, going 19–18–6 with a 3.10 GAA, sharing an increased amount of playing time to his backup Jonas Hiller. This did not deter him from being voted into the 2009 NHL All-Star Game in his hometown of Montreal. As Hiller outplayed Giguère throughout the season, he was chosen over Giguère to start during the 2009 playoffs. Giguère's only appearance for the Ducks in the playoffs was in relief of Hiller in the third period of game four of the Ducks' second round series with the Detroit Red Wings, to whom the Ducks would eventually fall in seven games.

Giguère suffered a groin strain early in the 2009–10 season on October 24, 2009. With Hiller's continued emergence as a bona fide starter, Giguère publicly told L.A. Daily News on November 10 that he "would rather retire than be a backup goalie," fuelling a goaltending controversy on the team. Losing his starting position to Hiller, he did not record his first win of the season until November 23 in a 3–2 shootout victory over the Calgary Flames.

Toronto Maple Leafs (2010–2011)

Giguère was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs on January 31, 2010, in exchange for goaltender Vesa Toskala and forward Jason Blake. Three days later, Giguère played his first game for the Maple Leafs and recorded a 30-save shutout against the New Jersey Devils. He registered another shutout in his next game against Ottawa on February 6 to become the first goalie in franchise history to record shutouts in his first two games. This accomplishment led Giguère to be named the NHL's Second Star of the Week on February 8. After having recorded a 3.14 GAA and .900 save percentage in 20 games with the Ducks before being traded, he improved to a 2.49 GAA and .916 save percentage in 15 games with Toronto.

The following season, Giguère suffered a groin injury in mid-November 2010, sidelining him for three weeks. Upon his return, he played in several games before re-injuring his groin. During that time, the Leafs were in need of a goaltender, forcing them to call-up James Reimer from the AHL's Toronto Marlies, who took over the starter's position in Giguère's absence.

Colorado Avalanche (2011–2014) On July 1, 2011, free agent Giguère signed a two-year, $2.5 million contract with the Colorado Avalanche. He embraced his role in the Colorado locker room as the veteran mentor, especially for young starting goaltender Semyon Varlamov. Giguère's leadership was key in a four-game home stand in mid-December when Varlamov was sidelined with a back ailment; Giguère started all four games and won them all, securing the Avalanche a team-record, eight-straight wins at home. It was the most consecutive home wins the franchise had seen since the Quebec Nordiques won ten-straight in 1995 before the club moved to Denver later that year to become the Avalanche. Giguère was named one of the three NHL's three stars of the week for late December. A groin pull on February 15, 2012, during a losing effort to the Vancouver Canucks, however, sidelined Giguère, allowing Varlamov the opportunity to redeem himself and reclaim the starting position in net for the remainder of the race to the 2012 playoffs, which Colorado ultimately did not qualify for. On August 13, 2012, Giguère signed a one-year, US$1.5 million contract extension through the 2013–14 season.

Post-playing career Giguère announces his retirement in Blainville, Quebec, in August 2014. On May 26, 2014, reports surfaced that Giguère was prepared to retire, and had likely played in his final NHL game, amidst much speculation. In what proved to be his final NHL start, Colorado's regular season finale in Anaheim, he received a video tribute and warm ovation from the crowd. At the end of the game, Giguère shared a victory lap with former teammate Teemu Selänne, who had already confirmed his own retirement and was playing in his final regular season game. On August 21, Giguère formally announced his retirement. He was the last active NHL player to have played for the Hartford Whalers.

Personal life Giguère was born in Montreal, Quebec, but grew up in Blainville, Quebec. Giguère's father died of cancer on December 15, 2008, and this greatly affected his performance for the rest of the season. Giguère went into the All-Star Game that year with a very weak record, with only one win in his last nine games. Giguère's mother died February 2013.

Giguère suffers from aerophagia, a rare gastric condition that causes his body to take in too much air when he drinks fluids. As a result, his body has difficulty absorbing water, leading to severe dehydration when he sweats.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP W L T OTL MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV% 1992–93 Laval-Laurentides QMAAA 27 12 11 2 — 1498 76 0 3.04 — 12 6 5 654 38 0 3.49 — 1993–94 Verdun Collège Français QMJHL 26 13 7 2 — 1288 69 1 3.21 .878 1 0 0 29 2 0 4.14 .889 1994–95 Halifax Mooseheads QMJHL 47 14 27 5 — 2755 181 2 3.94 .889 7 3 4 417 17 1 2.45 .934 1995–96 Halifax Mooseheads QMJHL 55 26 23 2 — 3230 185 1 3.44 .894 6 1 5 354 24 0 4.07 .874 1996–97 Hartford Whalers NHL 8 1 4 0 — 394 24 0 3.65 .881 — — — — — — — — 1996–97 Halifax Mooseheads QMJHL 50 28 19 3 — 3014 170 2 3.38 .902 16 9 7 954 58 0 3.65 .899 1997–98 Saint John Flames AHL 31 16 10 3 — 1758 72 2 2.46 .926 10 5 3 536 27 0 3.02 .897 1998–99 Calgary Flames NHL 15 6 7 1 — 860 46 0 3.21 .897 — — — — — — — — 1998–99 Saint John Flames AHL 39 18 16 3 — 2145 123 3 3.44 .905 7 3 2 304 21 0 4.14 .859 1999–2000 Calgary Flames NHL 7 1 3 1 — 330 15 0 2.73 .914 — — — — — — — — 1999–2000 Saint John Flames AHL 41 17 17 3 — 2243 114 0 3.05 .897 3 0 3 178 9 0 3.03 .880 2000–01 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 34 11 17 5 — 2031 87 4 2.57 .911 — — — — — — — — 2000–01 Cincinnati Mighty Ducks AHL 23 12 7 2 — 1306 53 0 2.43 .917 — — — — — — — — 2001–02 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 53 20 25 6 — 3127 111 4 2.13 .920 — — — — — — — — 2002–03 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 65 34 22 6 — 3775 145 8 2.30 .920 21 15 6 1407 38 5 1.62 .945 2003–04 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 55 17 31 6 — 3210 140 3 2.62 .914 — — — — — — — — 2004–05 Hamburg Freezers DEL 6 — — — — 301 12 0 2.39 .925 2 0 2 100 7 0 4.20 .881 2005–06 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 60 30 15 — 11 3381 150 2 2.66 .911 6 3 3 318 18 0 3.40 .864 2006–07 Anaheim Ducks NHL 56 36 10 — 8 3245 122 4 2.26 .918 18 13 4 1067 35 1 1.97 .922 2007–08 Anaheim Ducks NHL 58 35 17 — 6 3310 117 4 2.12 .922 6 2 4 358 19 0 3.18 .898 2008–09 Anaheim Ducks NHL 46 19 18 — 6 2458 127 2 3.10 .900 1 0 0 17 0 0 0.00 1.000 2009–10 Anaheim Ducks NHL 20 4 8 — 5 1108 58 1 3.14 .900 — — — — — — — — 2009–10 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 15 6 7 — 2 915 38 2 2.49 .916 — — — — — — — — 2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 33 11 11 — 4 1633 78 0 2.87 .900 — — — — — — — — 2011–12 Colorado Avalanche NHL 32 15 11 — 3 1820 69 2 2.27 .919 — — — — — — — — 2012–13 Colorado Avalanche NHL 18 5 4 — 4 908 43 0 2.84 .908 — — — — — — — — 2013–14 Colorado Avalanche NHL 22 11 6 — 1 1212 53 2 2.62 .913 — — — — — — — — NHL totals 597 262 216 25 50 33,717 1423 38 2.53 .913 52 33 17 3167 110 6 2.08 .925

International Year Team Event Result GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV% 2001 Canada WC DNP 5th — — — — — — — — 2002 Canada WC 6th 5 3 1 0 254 8 0 1.89 .921 2004 Canada WC 2 2 0 0 120 1 1 0.50 .975 Senior totals 7 5 1 0 374 9 1 1.44 —

Awards and honours Award Year Ref QMJHL Second All-Star Team 1997 AHL Hap Holmes Memorial Award 1998 NHL Conn Smythe Trophy 2003 Best NHL Player ESPY Award 2003 Stanley Cup champion 2007 NHL All-Star Game 2009

Transactions July 8, 1995 – Drafted by the Hartford Whalers in the first round, 13th overall June 25, 1997 – Rights transferred to the Carolina Hurricanes when the Hartford Whalers relocated August 27, 1997 – Traded to the Calgary Flames with Andrew Cassels in exchange for Gary Roberts and Trevor Kidd June 10, 2000 – Traded to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim for a second-round pick in 2000 (Matt Pettinger) June 21, 2007 – Signed a four-year, $24 million contract with Anaheim January 31, 2010 – Traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for Vesa Toskala and Jason Blake July 1, 2011 – Signed a two-year, $2.5 million contract with the Colorado Avalanche August 13, 2012 – Signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract extension with Colorado