Michael Zigomanis

Michael Zigomanis (born January 17, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Zigomanis was drafted twice. In the 1999 NHL Entry Draft he was selected 64th overall by the Buffalo Sabres, but was not signed. He re-entered for the 2001 NHL Entry Draft and was selected by the Carolina Hurricanes 46th overall.

Michael Zigomanis
Born (1981-01-17) January 17, 1981
North York, Ontario, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Right
Played for Carolina Hurricanes
St. Louis Blues
Phoenix Coyotes
Pittsburgh Penguins
Djurgårdens IF
Toronto Maple Leafs
NHL Draft 64th overall, 1999
Buffalo Sabres
46th overall, 2001
Carolina Hurricanes
Playing career 2001–2014

Zigomanis was born in North York, Ontario, but grew up in Markham, Ontario.

Early life

He was born to Macedonian parents who emigrated to Canada from the Kastoria, Greece.[1] As a youth, he played in the 1995 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from North York.[2] Zigomanis attended Father Michael McGivney Catholic Academy in Markham, graduating in 2000.[3]

Playing career

Zigomanis was originally drafted in the 2nd round, 64th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. Zigomanis agreed to terms with the Sabres just before the 5 pm deadline on June 1, 2001, but there was a typographical error in his contract that was faxed to the league offices. By the time the error was discovered, the deadline had passed, and the NHL ruled that he would have to re-enter the NHL draft, as he had not been signed before the deadline.[4] He re-entered the draft and was selected 46th overall by Carolina Hurricanes in 2001. Zigomanis has played 134 career NHL games, scoring 19 goals and 14 assists for 33 points. Zigomanis played four seasons of Junior Hockey with the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League. He represented Canada at the 2001 World Junior Hockey Championships.

Having terrific vision, soft hands and adept in a passing touch, and great skill on the faceoff, Zigomanis has molded his role as a third-line playmaker. The Coyotes signed him to a contract extension through the 2008–09 season on February 16, 2007. On October 9, 2008, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for future considerations.[5][6] Zigomanis provided faceoff and penalty killing expertise to Pittsburgh.

He signed a professional tryout with the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League on October 19, 2009.[7] Zigomanis played only seven games but managed to score 13 points (all assists) before leaving for Europe on November 10, 2009, signing a contract for the rest of the 2009–10 season with Djurgårdens IF of the Swedish Elitserien.[8]

On July 15, 2010, Zigomanis signed as a free agent to return to Toronto, signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Maple Leafs.[9] On July 12, 2011, Zigomanis signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs worth $665,000 at the NHL level and $300,000 at the AHL level.[10]

After recording professional career highs of 61 points during the 2011–12 season, Zigomanis opted to remain with the Marlies and was re-signed to a one-year AHL contract as a free agent on July 30, 2012.[11]

On July 10, 2013, Zigomanis signed an AHL-only contract with the Rochester Americans, the minor-league affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres, the team that drafted him in 1999.[12]

Current career

He now works for Toronto sports radio station Sportsnet 590 The Fan co-hosting the morning show.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1997–98 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 62 23 51 74 30 12 1 6 7 2
1998–99 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 67 29 56 85 36 5 1 7 8 2
1999–00 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 59 40 54 94 49 5 0 4 4 0
2000–01 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 52 40 37 77 44 — — — — —
2001–02 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 79 18 30 48 24 5 1 1 2 2
2002–03 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 38 13 18 31 19 — — — — —
2002–03 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 19 2 1 3 0 — — — — —
2003–04 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 61 17 35 52 56 — — — — —
2003–04 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 17 0 3 3 2 — — — — —
2004–05 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 76 29 31 60 71 11 4 7 11 8
2005–06 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 21 1 0 1 4 — — — — —
2005–06 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 11 6 7 13 19 — — — — —
2005–06 St. Louis Blues NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2005–06 Peoria Rivermen AHL 28 10 18 28 16 4 2 4 6 6
2006–07 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 75 14 9 23 46 — — — — —
2007–08 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 33 2 1 3 6 — — — — —
2007–08 San Antonio Rampage AHL 27 10 15 25 14 7 0 5 5 10
2008–09 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 22 2 4 6 27 — — — — —
2009–10 Toronto Marlies AHL 7 0 13 13 0 — — — — —
2009–10 Djurgårdens IF SEL 27 4 7 11 12 5 0 0 0 8
2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 8 0 1 1 4 — — — — —
2010–11 Toronto Marlies AHL 64 14 33 47 66 — — — — —
2011–12 Toronto Marlies AHL 68 19 42 61 52 13 4 2 6 10
2012–13 Toronto Marlies AHL 65 7 28 35 42 9 2 7 9 8
2013–14 Rochester Americans AHL 50 12 17 29 32 — — — — —
NHL totals 197 21 19 40 89 — — — — —
Medal record
Representing  Canada
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
2001 Moscow

International
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2001 Canada WJC 7 2 2 4 0
Junior totals 7 2 2 4 0

Awards and honours
Award Year
OHL
CHL Top Prospects Game 1999
William Hanley Trophy (Most Gentlemanly Player) 2000
AHL
All-Star Game 2004
Yanick Dupre Memorial Award 2013
NHL
Stanley Cup (Pittsburgh Penguins) 2009

References
  1. "Macedonian heritage alive through Stamkos and NHL brass". The King Sentinel. June 5, 2008. Archived from the original on December 23, 2009. Retrieved January 2, 2009.
  2. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  3. "Alumni US | Queen's University, Canada". alumnius.net. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  4. "Three prospects must re-enter NHL draft". USA Today. June 7, 2001. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  5. "Phoenix trades Zigomanis to Pittsburgh". NHL.com. Associated Press. October 9, 2008. Retrieved October 10, 2008.
  6. "Pittsburgh Penguins Acquire Forward Mike Zigomanis From Phoenix In Exchange For Future Considerations". Pittsburgh Penguins. October 9, 2008. Archived from the original on October 10, 2008. Retrieved October 10, 2008.
  7. "Marlies Sign Zigomanis to PTO". Toronto Marlies. October 19, 2009. Archived from the original on October 23, 2009. Retrieved October 19, 2009.
  8. "Mike Zigomanis klar för Djurgården". difhockey.se (in Swedish). Djurgårdens IF Hockey. November 10, 2009. Archived from the original on November 13, 2009. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  9. "Maple Leafs sign Zigomanis, Crabb and Richmond". The Sports Network. July 15, 2010. Retrieved July 16, 2010.
  10. "Leafs give Zigomanis another shot". Toronto Sun. July 12, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  11. "Marlies re-sign Zigomanis, Acton, add Yeo". Toronto Marlies. July 30, 2012. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  12. "Amerks sign Zigomanis, Roy and Lepkowski to AHL contracts". Rochester Americans. July 10, 2013. Archived from the original on December 28, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
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