Scott Gomez
First Alaska-born NHL player and Calder Trophy winner.
Last updated
Scott Carlos Gomez is an American ice hockey coach and former player. He currently serves as head coach of the Chicago Steel in the USHL. Before that, he was an assistant coach for the NHL’s New York Islanders. As a player, Gomez suited up for the New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, San Jose Sharks, Florida Panthers, St. Louis Blues, and Ottawa Senators.
New Jersey Devils
Gomez was the first player born in Alaska to reach the NHL. The New Jersey Devils picked him 27th overall in the 1998 draft.
At the time, he was with the Tri-City Americans of the WHL and had already made the league’s All-Rookie team. The season after being drafted, he put up 108 points in 58 games for the Americans, earning a spot on the WHL West First All-Star Team. A year earlier, he had led the South Surrey Eagles of the BCHL to the gold medal game of the 1997 Royal Bank Cup, where they lost 4–3 to the Summerside Western Capitals.
Gomez joined the Devils for the 1999–2000 season. In his rookie year, he recorded 51 assists and 70 points, winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s top rookie and playing in the NHL All-Star Game. He added 10 points in the playoffs as the Devils won the Stanley Cup. The next season, he totaled 63 points, and the Devils returned to the Stanley Cup Final but lost to the Colorado Avalanche in seven games.
In 2001–02, his numbers dipped to 10 goals and 48 points, and the Devils were eliminated in the first round by the Carolina Hurricanes; Gomez missed that series due to injury. He bounced back in 2002–03 with 55 points, helping the Devils win another Stanley Cup and scoring 12 points in the playoffs. The 2003–04 season was his best since his rookie year, with 70 points and a tie for the NHL lead in assists (56), though the Devils lost in the first round to the Philadelphia Flyers.
When the 2004–05 NHL lockout wiped out the season, Gomez initially went to Russia but returned to his hometown of Anchorage to play for the Alaska Aces of the ECHL. He became the face of the franchise and the league, leading the ECHL in scoring and winning MVP honors. His season ended early when Bakersfield Condors enforcer Ashlee Langdone checked him into an open bench door during Game 4 of the Pacific Division Semifinals, breaking Gomez’s pelvis.
After the lockout, Gomez returned to form in 2005–06, setting career highs with 33 goals and 84 points.
Lore & Background
Gomez began his major junior career with the Tri-City Americans of the Western Hockey League (WHL), where he was named to the WHL All-Rookie team before being drafted. In the season after his draft, he scored 108 points in 58 games, earning a spot on the WHL West First All-Star Team. He also played for the Alaska Aces of the ECHL during the 2004–05 NHL lockout, leading the league in scoring and winning MVP honors before suffering a broken pelvis from a check into an open bench door. Gomez returned to the Aces during the 2012–13 lockout, posting 13 points in 11 games.
Reader's Guide
Gomez's NHL career was defined by early success and later scrutiny. After winning the Calder Trophy as a rookie with the Devils, he helped the team win two Stanley Cups (2000 and 2003). He set career highs in goals (33) and points (84) in 2005–06 but never again reached 20 goals in a season. In 2007, he signed a seven-year, $51.5 million contract with the New York Rangers, a deal that drew criticism as his production declined.
Traded to the Montreal Canadiens in 2009, he endured a 60-game goal-scoring drought spanning parts of two seasons. The 2012–13 collective bargaining agreement prevented the Canadiens from burying his salary in the AHL, and he was directed to stay home during the shortened season to ensure a buyout. Gomez later served as an assistant coach for the New York Islanders before becoming head coach of the Chicago Steel.
Career statistics and honours
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1994–95 | East Anchorage High School | HS-AK | 28 | 30 | 48 | 78 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1995–96 | East Anchorage High School | HS-AK | 27 | 56 | 49 | 105 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1995–96 | Anchorage North Stars AAA | Midget | 40 | 67 | 70 | 137 | 44 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1996–97 | South Surrey Eagles | BCHL | 56 | 48 | 76 | 124 | 94 | 21 | 18 | 23 | 41 | 57 |
| 1997–98 | Tri-City Americans | WHL | 45 | 12 | 37 | 49 | 57 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1998–99 | Tri-City Americans | WHL | 58 | 30 | 78 | 108 | 55 | 10 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 31 |
| 1999–00 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 82 | 19 | 51 | 70 | 78 | 23 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 4 |
| 2000–01 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 76 | 14 | 49 | 63 | 46 | 25 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 24 |
| 2001–02 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 76 | 10 | 38 | 48 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2002–03 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 80 | 13 | 42 | 55 | 48 | 24 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 2 |
| 2003–04 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 80 | 14 | 56 | 70 | 70 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| 2004–05 | Alaska Aces | ECHL | 61 | 13 | 73 | 86 | 69 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| 2005–06 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 82 | 33 | 51 | 84 | 42 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
| 2006–07 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 72 | 13 | 47 | 60 | 42 | 11 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 14 |
| 2007–08 | New York Rangers | NHL | 81 | 16 | 54 | 70 | 36 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 8 |
| 2008–09 | New York Rangers | NHL | 77 | 16 | 42 | 58 | 60 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| 2009–10 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 78 | 12 | 47 | 59 | 60 | 19 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 25 |
| 2010–11 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 80 | 7 | 31 | 38 | 48 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 |
| 2011–12 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 38 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2012–13 | Alaska Aces | ECHL | 11 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2012–13 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 39 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 22 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| 2013–14 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 46 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014–15 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 58 | 7 | 27 | 34 | 23 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 21 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 18 | 4 | 20 | 24 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL totals | 1,079 | 181 | 575 | 756 | 655 | 149 | 29 | 72 | 101 | 95 | ||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | United States | WJC | 5th | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 1999 | United States | WJC | 8th | 6 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 4 |
| 2004 | United States | WCH | SF | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| 2006 | United States | OG | 8th | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 10 |
| Junior totals | 13 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 6 | |||
| Senior totals | 11 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 10 | |||
Awards and honours
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| BCHL | ||
| Bruce Allison Memorial Trophy | 1997 | |
| Abbott Cup | 1997 | |
| Doyle Cup | 1997 | |
| Mowat Cup | 1997 | |
| Fred Page Cup | 1997 | |
| CJHL | ||
| Top Forward | 1997 | |
| WHL | ||
| All-Rookie team | 1998 | |
| First All-Star Team | 1999 | |
| NHL | ||
| All-Rookie team | 2000 | |
| All-Star Game | 2000, 2008 | |
| Calder Memorial Trophy | 2000 | |
| Stanley Cup champion | 2000, 2003 | |
| ECHL | ||
| Leading Scorer Award | 2005 | |
| CCM TACKS Most Valuable Player | 2005 | |
| New York Rangers | ||
| Victoria Cup | 2008 | |
Tables copied from the source article, totals included as the source gives them: Wikipedia: Scott Gomez (CC BY-SA 4.0). Wide tables scroll sideways.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Scott Gomez (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Statistics, medals and awards: the tables of the source article.
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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