Benjamin N. Lovejoy (born February 20, 1984 in Concord, New Hampshire) is a professional ice hockey defenceman currently with the Pittsburgh Penguins organization.
| Ben Lovejoy | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
February 20, 1984 Concord, NH, USA | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 215 lb (98 kg; 15 st 5 lb) | ||
| Position | Defenceman | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| NHL team | Pittsburgh Penguins | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 2007–present | ||
Playing career
Ben Lovejoy was offered an NHL contract by Montreal during his second year of college. Lovejoy turned down the offer to finish school and grow more as a player. Undrafted, Lovejoy played one year for Boston College and three years for Dartmouth College of the NCAA. He graduated from Dartmouth with the class of 2007. He began his professional career a few days after graduation and played five games with the Norfolk Admirals of the American Hockey League to end the 2006–07 season. That summer, Lovejoy signed an AHL contract with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Ben Lovejoy scored his first pro goal at home during the Saint Patrick's Day game. Lovejoy end the season with notable 20 points (2+18) appearing in 72 games and a plus-16 rating.
On July 7, 2008, Lovejoy signed an NHL contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.[1] On December 7, 2008, when a replacement was needed for Pittsburgh blueliner Hal Gill, Lovejoy received his first recall to the Penguins. At the time of his recall, Ben was ranked in the top ten among the AHL defensemen with 14 points (4+10) and placed in the top ten among all AHL players with a plus/-14 rating in 24 games. He made his NHL debut on December 8, 2008, in a 4-3 loss against the Buffalo Sabres.
Ben Lovejoy was named to the PlanetUSA squad for the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic, which was held January 25-26th, 2009 at the DCU Center in Worcester, MA. During the Skills Competition, Ben took part in the hardest shot and breakaway.
On April 11, 2009, Ben Lovejoy received the 2nd team AHL All-Star award along with Most Valuable Defenseman. Lovejoy ended the regular 2008–09 campaign leading the entire AHL with a Plus/Minus rating of 42
Lovejoy earned his first NHL point with an assist during a 6-5 Penguins win over the Boston Bruins on November 14, 2009.
On June 21, 2010 the Pittsburgh Penguins resigned Ben Lovejoy to a three year, two-way contract. [2]
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2002–03 | Boston College | HE | 22 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Dartmouth College | ECAC | 32 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Dartmouth College | ECAC | 32 | 2 | 16 | 18 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Dartmouth College | ECAC | 32 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Norfolk Admirals | AHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 72 | 2 | 18 | 20 | 63 | 23 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 18 | ||
| 2008–09 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 76 | 7 | 24 | 31 | 84 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | ||
| 2008–09 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| AHL totals | 153 | 9 | 42 | 51 | 153 | 35 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 32 | ||||
References
External links
- Ben Lovejoy career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
- Ben Lovejoy's blog/weekly column
- Pens Universe interviews Ben Lovejoy
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