Jerry D'Amigo

Jerry Vincent D'Amigo (born February 19, 1991) is an American former professional ice hockey right winger. He is currently an assistant coach for the Elmira Aviators of the NAHL. He most recently played for HK 32 Liptovský Mikuláš in the Slovak Extraliga. D'Amigo was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the sixth round, 158th overall, of the 2009 NHL entry draft.

Playing career

Amateur D'Amigo graduated from Johnson City High School in 2009 in Johnson City, New York, prior to attending college. D'Amigo played college ice hockey for Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) of the ECAC conference in the NCAA. He finished fifth nationally in points per game by a rookie (0.97), led RPI in game-winning goals and finished second on the team in short-handed goals. In his single season in the NCAA, he won the ECAC Rookie of the Year award and was also named to the ECAC Rookie Team.

Professional

D'Amigo was selected in the sixth round, 158th overall of the 2009 NHL entry draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs. On August 11, 2010, D'Amigo signed a three-year, National Hockey League (NHL) entry-level contract with Maple Leafs. Due to his contract status with the Maple Leafs, D'Amigo was not allowed to return to the NCAA. D'Amigo attended Maple Leafs training camp ahead of the 2010–11 season, with Toronto having the option to keep him on their NHL roster or assign him to either the American Hockey League (AHL) or to the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)'s Kitchener Rangers, who owned his major junior playing rights. He was ultimately sent to the Toronto Marlies, the Maple Leafs AHL affiliate with the open option to send him to Kitchener prior to February 10, 2011, an option the Maple Leafs eventually exercised just prior to the deadline. Before his assignment to the OHL, he had recorded 14 points in 41 games played with the Marlies. With Kitchener, he finished the 2010–11 OHL season with 12 goals and 16 assists (28 points) in just 21 games played.

The following season, D'Amigo again attended the Maple Leafs training camp, but was cut and sent to the Marlies. He was a key checking forward for the Marlies that season, playing on the team's penalty kill unit. He was cut after only five days at the 2013 Maple Leafs training camp and was assigned to the Marlies. In the 2013–14 season, D'Amigo was named an alternate captain for the Marlies while playing at home in Toronto. On December 5, 2013, D'Amigo was called up to the Maple Leafs for the first time in his career, later making his NHL debut 3–2 Toronto win over the Dallas Stars. On December 14, D'Amigo scored his first career NHL goal against Antti Raanta of the Chicago Blackhawks, also registering his first career NHL assist in the game. D'Amigo played in 22 games registering the one goal and three points.

On July 1, 2014, D'Amigo, along with a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2015 NHL entry draft, was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for former Maple Leaf Matt Frattin. D'Amigo and the Blue Jackets agreed to terms on a one-year, two-way contract on July 29, though he never played for Columbus at the NHL level during his brief tenure with the organization. Later that same year, on December 16, D'Amigo was traded to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for forward Luke Adam. D'Amigo made his debut with the Sabres on March 3, 2015, against the Tampa Bay Lightning. D'Amigo spent the 2015–16 season with Rochester.

He was unable to attract an NHL contract as a free agent, D'Amigo ventured to Finland for the following season, signing with Ilves of the country's top-flight Liiga on October 16, 2016. In his first season abroad, D'Amigo quickly transitioned to the European style game in the 2016–17 campaign, contributing with 13 goals and 33 points in 48 regular season games and adding 1 point in 10 playoff games. Following Ilves postseason exit, D'Amigo left the club as a free agent. Without a contract over the summer, he belatedly opted to continue in Finland, agreeing to a one-year contract with KalPa on October 12, 2017, for the 2017–18 season. D'Amigo finished the season with 18 goals and 43 points in 52 games. He re-signed the following off-season for a second season with Ingolstadt. In his second season D'Amigo registered 9 goals and 22 points in 41 games. He made 3 regular season appearances with the Eagles, registering 7 penalty minutes, before he was released from his PTO and returned to the Solar Bears on February 23, 2021.

As a free agent following the season, D'Amigo returned for a second stint in Germany, agreeing to a one-year contract with Düsseldorfer EG of the DEL on August 4, 2021. D'Amigo collected 9 goals and 25 points in 53 games. He signed as a free agent with Löwen Frankfurt of the DEL on November 7, 2022. In his fourth season in the DEL in 2022–23 season, D'Amigo helped Frankfurt in their first season in the top tier by recording 4 goals and 14 points through 38 regular season games. Following their defeat in the playoff qualifiers to former club Düsseldorfer EG, D'Amigo left Löwen Frankfurt at the conclusion of his contract on March 19, 2023.

On November 26, 2024, D'Amigo signed with the Slovak Extraliga team HK 32 Liptovský Mikuláš. On January 11, 2025, he departed the Slovak team and became an assistant coach with the Elmira Aviators of the North American Hockey League the following day on January 12, 2025.

International play

D'Amigo represented the under-18 United States team for the first time in his career at the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championships, where he helped them win the gold medal and led Team USA in scoring; he was also fifth overall in tournament scoring, with 13 points. He represented the United States at the junior level at the 2010 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where he won gold and finished fourth in tournament scoring, with 12 points. He represented the U.S. at the junior level once again at the 2011 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where he won bronze and finished with two points scored.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2006–07 Binghamton Jr. Senators AtJHL 4117163342 30110 2007–08 U.S. National Under-18 Team NAHL 445121758 31126 2008–09 U.S. National Under-18 Team Ind. 5323335661 ————— 2008–09 U.S. National Under-18 Team NAHL 1186144 ————— 2009–10 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute ECAC 3510243437 ————— 2010–11 Toronto Marlies AHL 435101523 ————— 2010–11 Kitchener Rangers OHL 2112162812 76390 2011–12 Toronto Marlies AHL 7615264139 17851312 2012–13 Toronto Marlies AHL 7017122940 918910 2013–14 Toronto Marlies AHL 5120133317 1468148 2013–14 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 221230 ————— 2014–15 Springfield Falcons AHL 2834726 ————— 2014–15 Rochester Americans AHL 316131921 ————— 2014–15 Buffalo Sabres NHL 90002 ————— 2015–16 Rochester Americans AHL 5912122442 ————— 2016–17 Ilves Liiga 4813203347 100112 2017–18 KalPa Liiga 386111720 621325 2018–19 ERC Ingolstadt DEL 5218254330 72020 2019–20 ERC Ingolstadt DEL 419132234 ————— 2020–21 Orlando Solar Bears ECHL 5210162614 ————— 2020–21 Colorado Eagles AHL 30007 ————— 2021–22 Düsseldorfer EG DEL 467121925 72466 2022–23 Löwen Frankfurt DEL 384101416 20000 2023–24 Jacksonville Icemen ECHL 448182631 71120 2024–25 HK 32 Liptovský Mikuláš Slovak 3 0 1 1 0 — — — — — NHL totals 31 1 2 3 2 — — — — —

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2009 United States WJC18 7 4 9 13 8 2010 United States WJC 7 6 6 12 0 2011 United States WJC 6 1 1 2 2 Junior totals 20 11 16 27 10

Awards and honors Award Year AtJHL Rookie of the Year 2007 College ECAC All-Rookie Team 2010 ECAC Rookie of the Year 2010 ECAC All-Academic Team 2010 International WJC18 First Team All-Star 2009