Chris Wagner

Christopher Wagner (born May 27, 1991) is an American professional ice hockey forward for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). Wagner was selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the fifth-round (122nd overall) of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

For other people named Chris Wagner, see Chris Wagner (disambiguation).

Chris Wagner
Wagner with the New York Islanders in 2018
Born (1991-05-27) May 27, 1991
Walpole, Massachusetts, U.S.
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 198 lb (90 kg; 14 st 2 lb)
Position Center
Shoots Right
NHL team
Former teams		 Boston Bruins
Anaheim Ducks
Colorado Avalanche
New York Islanders
NHL Draft 122nd overall, 2010
Anaheim Ducks
Playing career 2012–present

Playing career

Early career

As a youth, Wagner played in the 2004 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the South Shore Kings. Attended and played hockey at Xaverian Brothers High School in Westwood, Massachusetts.[1]

Amateur

Wagner as a Massachusetts native played junior hockey in the Eastern Junior Hockey League with the South Shore Kings where he and his family moved. In his second season with the Kings in 2009–10 as an 18-year-old, Wagner matched an EJHL single-season scoring record with 83 points in only 44 games. He captained the team to the Southern Division Championship before committing to play collegiate hockey with the Colgate Raiders of the ECAC conference in the NCAA. Wagner's development promise gained notice and as a result was he was selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

In his freshman season with the Raiders in 2010–11, he led rookies in team scoring with nine goals and 28 points in 41 games. Wagner continued his upswing in potential the following season by leading Colgate and placing second in the ECAC in scoring. His 51 points in 38 games led all NCAA underclassmen and he was selected in the Second All-Star Team.[2] His two-way presence was noticed as he finished as a finalist for the ECAC's best defensive forward. On April 3, 2012, Wagner ended his collegiate career prematurely when he was signed to a three-year entry level contract with the Anaheim Ducks.[3]

Professional

Wagner made his professional debut with the Ducks' AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals to open the 2012–13 season, in a contest against the Worcester Sharks on October 12, 2012.[4] In remaining with the Admirals for the duration of the year, Wagner appeared in 70 games with 8 goals and 21 points. In his second season, Wagner continued his development in Norfolk, ending the 2013–14 season, as the only player to appear in every game.

Wagner at the 2015 AHL All Star Game

Approaching the final year of his entry-level deal, Wagner was amongst the last cuts to make the Ducks opening night roster for the 2014–15 season. Wagner immediately responded in Norfolk to earn AHL player-of-week honors to open the season.[5] He was soon recalled by the Ducks from the Admirals and made his NHL debut in 2-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild on October 17, 2014.[6][7] Wagner was recalled on several occasions during the season, used in a physical checking-line role finishing scoreless over 9 games. He increased his scoring presence in the AHL with the Admirals, earning a selection to the AHL All-Star Game. At the conclusion of the Admirals season he was recalled for the Ducks post-season and made his playoff debut in the opening round victory over the Winnipeg Jets.[8]

As a restricted free agent, Wagner was signed by the Ducks to a one-year extension on July 17, 2015.[9] Wagner was amongst the Ducks' most impressive during the pre-season, and made his first NHL opening night roster to begin the 2015–16 season.[10] As the Ducks extra forward, he featured in one game before he was exposed to his waiver eligibility, upon being assigned to new AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls on October 21, 2015. He was recalled to Anaheim after three games with the Gulls and played in a further 10 scoreless games with the Ducks as their fourth-line center before he was again placed on waivers. On November 15, 2015, Wagner was claimed off waivers by the Colorado Avalanche.[11] He made his Avalanche debut two days later on the November 17, in a 5-1 road loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.[12] In his fifth game with the Avalanche, Wagner scored his first NHL goal in a 5-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators on November 25, 2015.[13] Wagner remained on the Avalanche in a rotating role on the fourth-line. After 26 games posting 4 goals, Wagner was placed back on waivers by the Avalanche on February 24, 2016. The following day he was re-claimed by the Anaheim Ducks and directly assigned to AHL affiliate in the Gulls.[14]

On February 26, 2018, the day of the trade deadline in the 2017–18 season, Wagner was traded to the New York Islanders in exchange for Jason Chimera.[15] Wagner played out the remainder of the season, posting just 1 goal in 15 games as the Islanders finished out of playoff contention.

On July 1, 2018, having left the Islanders as a free agent, Wagner signed a two-year deal worth $2.5 million with his hometown club the Boston Bruins.[16] In returning home, Wagner quickly found his role in the Bruins bottom six forwards for the 2018–19 season, establishing career highs with 12 goals and 19 points in 76 regular season games. Adding depth to the Bruins in the post-season, Wagner recorded 2 goals in 12 games before suffering a season ending injury which rendered him unavailable to participate in the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals where the Bruins fell to the St. Louis Blues in seven games.

On November 27, 2019, Wagner (in the final year of his contract) signed a three-year, $4.05 million contract extension with the Bruins.[17]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2005–06Xaverian Brothers High SchoolHS-MA
2006–07Xaverian Brothers High SchoolHS-MA
2007–08Xaverian Brothers High SchoolHS-MA
2008–09South Shore KingsEJHL382014347222020
2009–10South Shore KingsEJHL443449837043698
2010–11Colgate UniversityECAC419101926—————
2011–12Colgate UniversityECAC3817345169—————
2012–13Norfolk AdmiralsAHL708132165—————
2013–14Norfolk AdmiralsAHL76141428681023510
2014–15Norfolk AdmiralsAHL4815132865—————
2014–15Anaheim DucksNHL9000220000
2015–16Anaheim DucksNHL170221920000
2015–16San Diego GullsAHL1564102272244
2015–16Colorado AvalancheNHL264049—————
2016–17Anaheim DucksNHL436176173036
2016–17San Diego GullsAHL301271918—————
2017–18Anaheim DucksNHL64691535—————
2017–18New York IslandersNHL151012—————
2018–19Boston BruinsNHL761271951122022
2019–20Boston BruinsNHL67641047122134
NHL totals 317 35 23 58 171 45 7 1 8 12

Awards and honors
Award Year
EJHL
MVP 2009–10
Offensive Player of the Year 2009–10
College
All-ECAC Hockey Second Team 2011–12
Boston Bruins
NESN Boston Bruins 7th Player Award 2019 [18]

References
  1. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  2. "2011-12 All-ECAC teams". ECACHockeybog.com. March 8, 2012. Retrieved March 8, 2012.
  3. "Colgate's Wagner signs with Ducks after 51-point season". USCHO.com. April 3, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  4. "Admirals double up Sharks to open season". American Hockey League. October 12, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
  5. "Wagner named AHL player of the Week". American Hockey League. October 12, 2014. Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved October 12, 2014.
  6. "Former Xavier star Wagner makes NHL debut". Boston Herald. October 17, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  7. "Chris Wagner to make NHL debut against Wild". National Hockey League. October 17, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  8. "Perry leads Ducks to comeback win over Jets". National Hockey League. April 16, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  9. "Ducks sign centers Wagner, Sgarbossa to one-year deals". Anaheim Ducks. July 17, 2015. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  10. "Three things to keep an eye on tonight". pucksofafeather.com. October 1, 2015. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  11. "Avalanche claim Wagner". Colorado Avalanche. November 15, 2015. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
  12. "Avalanche special teams falter in loss at Toronto". Denver Post. November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  13. "Avs struggles continue in loss to Senators at home". Denver Post. November 25, 2015. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
  14. "Chris Wagner claimed from Avalanche by Anaheim Ducks". Denver Post. February 25, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  15. "Islanders Acquire Wagner". NHL.com. February 26, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
  16. "Bruins announce 7 transactions on July 1". Boston Bruins. July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
  17. "Coyle, Wagner sign contracts with Bruins". National Hockey League. November 27, 2019. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  18. "Chris Wagner Receives NESN's 7th Player Award". NHL.com. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
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