Joshua Daniel Gorges (born August 14, 1984) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenseman. He is of German ancestry; his grandparents immigrated from Germany to Canada. Gorges played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the San Jose Sharks, Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres.
| Josh Gorges | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Gorges with the Buffalo Sabres in 2017 | |||
| Born |
August 14, 1984 Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 204 lb (93 kg; 14 st 8 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for |
San Jose Sharks Montreal Canadiens Buffalo Sabres | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 2005–2018 | ||
Playing career
editAs a youth, Gorges played in the 1998 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Kelowna.[1]
Gorges played major junior for his hometown Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League (WHL) from 2000 through 2004. After going undrafted in 2002, he signed as a free agent with the San Jose Sharks. Gorges was named Team WHL captain for the 2003 RE/MAX Canada–Russia Challenge.[2] He was also a member of Team Canada at the 2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where he won a silver medal.[3] In 2004, the Rockets (with Gorges as team captain) won the Memorial Cup.
During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Gorges played for the Sharks' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Cleveland Barons. He made his debut for the Sharks during the 2005-06 season, skating in 49 games.
On February 25, 2007, Gorges and a 2007 first-round pick were traded to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Craig Rivet and a 2008 fifth-round pick.[4] On July 9, 2008, the Canadiens signed Gorges to a three-year, $3.3 million contract extension.[5]
On February 10, 2010, during a game against the Washington Capitals, Gorges was hit on the left side of the head by a slap shot from Mike Green. Gorges remained motionless on the ice for several minutes, with his head bleeding. He eventually was helped up by team doctors and helped to the bench. The Canadiens eventually won the game 6–5 in OT to end the Capitals 14-game win streak.[6] Gorges skated in practice the next day and was quoted as saying "Unless something happens in the next 24 hours, I’ll be in the lineup against the Flyers."[7]
Gorges was widely praised for his performances in the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, with Don Cherry declaring "Josh Gorges should be captain of the Canadiens, there’s no doubt in my mind. He’s a captain’s captain. This isn’t in any way to say that Brian Gionta is bad, it’s only to say that Gorges is so good. He’s exceptional. And I think Brian would be happy to have a little pressure taken off him so he could just play the game. Look up the word ‘leader’ in the dictionary, and you’ll find Gorges’s picture."[8]
On July 22, 2011, the Canadiens re-signed Gorges to a one-year, $2.5 million contract extension.[9]
On January 1, 2012, Gorges signed a six-year, $23.4 million contract extension with the Canadiens.[10]
On July 1, 2014, Gorges was traded to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for the Minnesota Wild's 2016 second-round pick.[11] He refused to waive his no-trade clause to be traded to the Canadiens' rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs.[12]
Upon concluding his contract with the Sabres following the 2017–18 season, Gorges remained an un-signed free agent over the summer and into the 2018–19 season. On January 14, 2019, Gorges announced his retirement from his 13 season NHL career.[13]
Post-hockey career
editGorges served as the West Kelowna Warriors Director of Player Development. He has helped organize a local mental health charity baseball game in Kelowna with other former NHLers.[14]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2000–01 | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | 57 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 24 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 2001–02 | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | 72 | 7 | 34 | 41 | 74 | 15 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 8 | ||
| 2002–03 | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | 54 | 11 | 48 | 59 | 76 | 19 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 16 | ||
| 2003–04 | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | 62 | 11 | 31 | 42 | 38 | 17 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 6 | ||
| 2004–05 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 20 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 49 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 31 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2005–06 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 18 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 47 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Worcester Sharks | AHL | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 62 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 32 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 81 | 4 | 19 | 23 | 37 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 2009–10 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 82 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 39 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 14 | ||
| 2010–11 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 36 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 82 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 39 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 48 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 15 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2013–14 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 66 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 12 | 17 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2014–15 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 46 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 77 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 72 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 66 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 50 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 34 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 783 | 17 | 107 | 124 | 404 | 68 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 35 | ||||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Canada
| ||
| World Junior Championships | ||
 |
2004 Finland | |
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Canada | WJC | 
|
6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
| Junior totals | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | ||||
Awards
edit- 2002–03: WHL – West Second All-Star Team
- 2004: Memorial Cup – George Parsons Trophy (Most Sportsmanlike Player)
- 2003–04: WHL – West First All-Star Team
- 2004: Junior World Championships – Silver medal
- 2004–05: Cleveland Barons rookie of the year
- 2004–05: Cleveland Barons Rubbermaid "Player of the Year" (along with Doug Murray)
- 2011–12: Montreal Canadiens Jacques-Beauchamp-Molson individual team award (Unsung Hero)
References
edit- ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
- ^ "Gorges named Team WHL captain". Canadian Hockey League. Archived from the original on December 28, 2003. Retrieved 2013-06-16.
- ^ Tim Wharnsby (December 20, 2015). "Look back at 2004 WJC final between U.S., Canada". NHL.com. Retrieved February 12, 2019.
- ^ "CANADIENS TRADE AWAY CRAIG RIVET FOR JOSH GORGES AND FIRST-ROUND PICK". The Hockey News. 25 February 2007. Retrieved February 25, 2007.
- ^ "Gorges A Playoff Warrior". National Hockey League Players Association. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
- ^ Capitals vs. Canadiens – 10/02/2010 – Montreal Canadiens – Recap Archived 2012-03-30 at the Wayback Machine. Canadiens.nhl.com (2010-02-10). Retrieved on 2011-12-04.
- ^ The ultimate warrior – MontrĂŠal Canadiens – News. Canadiens.nhl.com (2010-02-10). Retrieved on 2011-12-04.
- ^ Stubbs, Dave (April 7, 2012). "Don Cherry on the Canadiens: 'I've never seen a team in such turmoil'". National Post. Retrieved February 12, 2019.
- ^ "Canadiens sign Gorges to one-year $2.5 million deal". The Sports Network. 2011-07-22. Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ^ "Canadiens extend Gorges". The Sports Network. 2012-01-01. Archived from the original on 2012-01-02. Retrieved 2012-01-01.
- ^ "Sabres acquire D Josh Gorges in trade with Canadiens; Montreal signs D Gilbert to 2-year deal". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
- ^ "Josh Gorges approves trade to Buffalo". Yahoo! Sports. 2014-07-01. Retrieved 2014-07-01.
- ^ "Ex-Habs, Sabres defenseman Gorges retires". The Sports Network. January 14, 2019. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
- ^ "Bases loaded with NHL talent at Kelowna's Homebase charity event". Penticton Western News. June 18, 2022. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database