Arron Asham

Arron Miles Asham (born April 13, 1978) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). Over his 15 seasons, he played for 6 different teams.

Arron Asham
Asham with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2011
Born (1978-04-13) April 13, 1978
Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Right
Played for Montreal Canadiens
New York Islanders
New Jersey Devils
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins
New York Rangers
NHL Draft 71st overall, 1996
Montreal Canadiens[1]
Playing career 1998–2014

Playing career

Asham was drafted 71st overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft and made his NHL debut with Montreal during the 1998–99 season. After parts of four seasons with Montreal, he was traded to the New York Islanders on June 22, 2002, along with a 2002 5th round draft pick for Mariusz Czerkawski. After years of going back and forth between the Canadiens and their American Hockey League affiliate, Asham became a mainstay in the Islanders line-up with his most productive offensive season to date coming during his first season with his new team in 2002–03, when he scored 15 goals and 19 assists for 34 points in 78 games. After four seasons with the Islanders, Asham signed a one-year contract with the New Jersey Devils on August 7, 2007.

After the 2007–08 season, Asham became a free agent again, this time signing a two-year contract with the Philadelphia Flyers on July 7, 2008. On signing with the Flyers, Asham said, "I've always loved the way the Flyers play and I fit in here. They play hard every night. They play tough hockey and I've always admired that. I always thought I should play here and when the chance came up last summer to come here, I thought it was the best place for me and a place where I'd really have a chance to win a Stanley Cup in the next couple of years."[2]

In the 2010 playoffs, Asham scored four goals as the Flyers defied expectations and reached the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1997. His biggest goal came in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals vs. Montreal when he scored in the 2nd period to give the Flyers a 2–1 lead of an eventual 4–2 victory that eliminated the Canadiens and propelled the Flyers into a Finals matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks. Asham netted one goal in the finals as the Flyers lost to the Blackhawks 4 games to 2.

Asham signed a one-year contract worth $700,000 with the Pittsburgh Penguins on August 20, 2010.[3] During the following off-season, the contract was extended for another year.

During Game 3 of the 2012 NHL Eastern Conference quarterfinals, in retaliation to a hit on a teammate, Asham cross-checked Brayden Schenn of the Philadelphia Flyers in the upper body, and then threw a punch while Schenn was down on the ice. Schenn sustained no apparent injury due to the hit. For his actions, Asham received a four-game suspension, his first disciplinary action from the NHL Commissioner since joining the NHL.[4]

Asham signed a two-year contract with the New York Rangers on July 1, 2012. With this, Asham had played for all 5 teams in the former Atlantic division during his career. On February 10, 2013, Asham scored his first goal as a Ranger in a 5-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning. He is also the only player to score a goal with every Atlantic division team. On May 13, 2013, he scored the series-winning goal in Game 7 of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs to push the Rangers into the second round and eliminate the Washington Capitals.

Asham saw limited action with the Rangers during the 2013–14 season, playing in only six games. He spent most of the season with the Hartford Wolf Pack. The Rangers did not offer to extend Asham's contract and on July 1, 2014, he became an unrestricted free agent, effectively ending his professional career.

In September 2015, Asham signed an amateur playing contract with the Gander Flyers of the Central West Senior Hockey League.[5]

Personal life
Arron Asham with the Flyers.

Asham's hometown is Portage La Prairie, where he still has many friends and family. He has 4 children: daughters Azilyn and Oceane, and sons Dexter and Cruz. Asham is Métis Canadian.[6]

Asham also has his own charity called "Arron's Chance to Play Hockey" (chance2play.com)[7] This foundation's mission is to work in partnership with the community to provide opportunities that will enhance the emotional, physical, social and intellectual well being of children. The overall goal is to enhance the lives of children and families.[8]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1994–95 Red Deer Rebels WHL 62 11 16 27 126 — — — — —
1995–96 Red Deer Rebels WHL 70 32 45 77 174 10 6 3 9 20
1996–97 Red Deer Rebels WHL 67 45 51 96 149 16 12 14 26 36
1997–98 Red Deer Rebels WHL 67 43 49 92 153 5 0 2 2 8
1997–98 Fredericton Canadiens AHL 2 1 1 2 0 2 0 1 1 0
1998–99 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
1998–99 Fredericton Canadiens AHL 60 16 18 34 118 13 8 6 14 11
1999–2000 Quebec Citadelles AHL 13 4 5 9 32 2 0 0 0 2
1999–2000 Montreal Canadiens NHL 33 4 2 6 24 — — — — —
2000–01 Quebec Citadelles AHL 15 7 9 16 51 7 1 2 3 2
2000–01 Montreal Canadiens NHL 46 2 3 5 59 — — — — —
2001–02 Montreal Canadiens NHL 35 5 4 9 55 3 0 1 1 0
2001–02 Quebec Citadelles AHL 24 9 14 23 35 — — — — —
2002–03 New York Islanders NHL 78 15 19 34 57 5 0 0 0 16
2003–04 New York Islanders NHL 79 12 12 24 92 5 0 1 1 4
2004–05 EHC Visp NLB 5 2 4 6 6 4 1 1 2 8
2005–06 New York Islanders NHL 63 9 15 24 103 — — — — —
2006–07 New York Islanders NHL 80 11 12 23 63 5 1 0 1 0
2007–08 New Jersey Devils NHL 77 6 4 10 84 5 0 1 1 2
2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 78 8 12 20 155 6 1 1 2 6
2009–10 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 72 10 14 24 126 23 4 3 7 10
2010–11 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 44 5 6 11 46 7 3 1 4 2
2011–12 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 64 5 11 16 76 3 0 0 0 10
2012–13 New York Rangers NHL 27 2 0 2 50 10 2 0 2 6
2013–14 New York Rangers NHL 6 0 0 0 14 — — — — —
2013–14 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 25 3 2 5 32 — — — — —
2015–16 Gander Flyers CWSHL 15 11 10 21 18 3 0 3 3 13
2015–16 Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts AC — — — — — 3 0 1 1 2
2016–17 Boutouche JCs AC — — — — — 2 1 0 1 2
NHL totals 789 94 114 208 1004 72 11 8 19 56
Asham playing for the New Jersey Devils during the 2007–08 season.

International
Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
1995 Canada PC[9] 5 2 3 5 4
Junior totals 5 2 3 5 4

Transactions

References
  1. "NHL Entry Draft Year by Year Results". National Hockey League.
  2. Lawless, Gary (1 April 2009). "Asham a fabulous fit in Philly". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 23 April 2009.
  3. "Penguins Sign Forward Arron Asham". Pittsburgh Penguins. 20 August 2010. Retrieved 20 August 2010.
  4. "Arron Asham suspended 4 games". NHL.com. National Hockey League. 17 April 2012. Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
  5. "Former NHLer Arron Asham signs with Gander Flyers". CBC News. 2015-09-29. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2010-09-26.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "Penguins media guide" (PDF). Pittsburgh Penguins. 2011-10-02. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  8. "CFS Central Manitoba Foundation". CFS Central Manitoba Foundation. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
  9. 1995 National Men's Under-18 Team. Retrieved on 29 April 2009.
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