Jeff Hackett

Infobox Ice Hockey Player
position = Goaltender
caught = Left
height_ft = 6
height_in = 1
weight_lb = 198
played_for = "NHL"
New York Islanders
San Jose Sharks
Chicago Blackhawks
Montreal Canadiens
Boston Bruins
Philadelphia Flyers
"AHL"
Springfield Indians
Philadelphia Phantoms
nationality = Canada
birth_date = birth date and age|1968|6|1
birth_place = London, ON, CAN
career_start = 1988
career_end = 2004
draft = 34th overall
draft_year = 1987
draft_team = New York Islanders


image_size = 200px
nickname = Hack

Jeff Hackett (born June 1, 1968 in London, Ontario) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He is currently the goaltending coach of the Colorado Avalanche.

Playing career

Jeff Hackett grew up studying Tony Esposito, his idol, and patterned his game after him. He was drafted by the New York Islanders in the second round of the 1987 NHL Entry Draft after playing in juniors for the London Diamonds and the Oshawa Generals. Behind Billy Smith and Kelly Hrudey on the Islanders' goaltending depth chart, Hackett split his first two seasons with New York and the Springfield Indians of the AHL. He led Springfield to a Calder Cup win in 1990 and was awarded the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy, annually given to the most valuable player of the playoffs.

After spending the entirety of 1990–91 with the Islanders, the San Jose Sharks claimed him in the 1991 NHL Expansion Draft. He played only two seasons with the struggling expansion franchise as he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks prior to 1993–94 and he backed up Ed Belfour for several seasons. His excellent play in 1996–97 allowed the Blackhawks to trade Belfour to San Jose during mid-season. His only full season as Chicago's top goaltender, 1997–98, was highlighted by a career-high eight shutouts.

A month into 1998–99, Hackett was involved in a six-player trade which sent him to the Montreal Canadiens. He quickly became a fan favorite in Montreal as he recorded career highs in games played (63) and wins (26). After another solid season in 1999–2000, Hackett was limited to 15 games in 2000–01 and 18 games in 2001–02 due to injury and lost the starter's job to 2002 Vezina Trophy winner Jose Theodore in the process. This signaled the end of his career with Montreal as mid-way through 2002–03 he was involved in a three-way trade which sent him back to San Jose temporarily and then on to the Boston Bruins. As a member of the Boston Bruins, Hackett mainly played a back-up role but was a fan favorite. He is perhaps most remembered for an incident at practice where Ray Bourque ripped a piece of his finger off with a slapshot. They sewed the tip of his finger back on and Hackett has not suffered any major long-term effects.

Hackett played only 21 games for the Bruins the rest of the season and he signed on the first day of free agency with the Philadelphia Flyers during the off-season. He started his Flyers career by pitching two shutouts in his first two games, also accumulating a record of 9 wins, 2 losses and 6 ties in his first 17 games. However, in December he lost six starts in a row and following a win in early January, lost his next two starts. He was diagnosed with vertigo on January 22 and after playing a game with the AHL's Philadelphia Phantoms on February 6, Hackett retired on February 9, 2004.

Coaching career

*On July 12th, 2006, Hackett was hired as the Goaltending Coach for the Colorado Avalanche.

Awards

*1986–87 - F.W. "Dinty" Moore Trophy (OHL)
*1986–87 - Dave Pinkney Trophy (OHL)
*1989–90 - Jack A. Butterfield Trophy (AHL)

Career statistics

Regular season

External links

* [http://www.hockeygoalies.org/bio/hackett.html Jeff Hackett's profile at Hockey Goalies]
*hockeydb|2083
*legendsofhockey|18280
* [http://avalanche.nhl.com/team/app?service=page&page=NHLPage&bcid=Tea_StaffBio_SID_43 Jeff Hackett's Colorado Avalanche biography]