Antoine Roussel (born 21 November 1989) is a French former professional ice hockey left winger. He most recently played for the Arizona Coyotes of the National Hockey League (NHL).[1] Born in France, Roussel first played hockey there before moving to Quebec at the age of 16. After four years in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), he turned professional and played in the American Hockey League (AHL) and ECHL, minor leagues in North America. Signed by the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League (NHL) in 2012, he made his NHL debut in 2013 for the club. Regarded as a physical player, Roussel has consistently been one of the NHL's leaders in penalty minutes since he entered the league. He has scored 10 or more goals and earned 100 PIM in the same season six times in his career. Internationally Roussel has represented the French national team both at the junior and senior level, including multiple World Championships.
| Antoine Roussel | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Roussel with the Dallas Stars in 2014 | |||
| Born |
21 November 1989 Roubaix, France | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) | ||
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) | ||
| Position | Left wing | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for |
Dallas Stars Vancouver Canucks Arizona Coyotes | ||
| National team |
 France | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 2010–2022 | ||
Early life
editRoussel was born in Roubaix, France. He first played rugby as a child, but was released from his team after repeatedly running off the field during the heated summer practices. As a result, his mother Sarah enrolled him in hockey, deciding the cooler rink would benefit Roussel.[2] As a youth, he played in the 2002 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Nantes.[3] At the age of 16, Roussel and his family moved to Canada, settling in Quebec. He also holds Canadian citizenship.[4]
Playing career
editJunior
editAfter arriving in Canada in 2006, Roussel played midget hockey for the Collège Charles-Lemoyne Riverains in Longueuil. Later that season, Roussel joined the Chicoutimi Saguenéens of the QMJHL, where he played for four years.[5]
Professional
editUndrafted in the NHL Entry Draft, Roussel signed an AHL contract on 9 August 2010 with the Providence Bruins, where he played the 2010–11 season. After being a healthy scratch for several Providence games, he was temporarily reassigned to the Reading Royals of the ECHL, where he played in five games.[6]
Roussel was not offered another contract by the Bruins, but was later invited to attend the Vancouver Canucks' prospect camp.[7] His performance there led to him signing a contract with the Chicago Wolves, which at the time were the Canucks' minor league affiliate in the AHL.[8] He played for the Wolves for the 2011–12 season.
Dallas Stars
editOn 2 July 2012, Roussel signed a contract with the Dallas Stars.[9] During the 2012–13 season, Roussel split his time between Dallas and their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars. For the 2013–14 season, Roussel played with the Dallas Stars for the entire season, playing 81 games. On 22 July 2014, the Stars announced that Roussel had signed a four-year, $8 million contract extension with the team.[10]
During the 2016–17 season on 18 February 2017, Roussel scored his first NHL hat trick against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was the second ever French-born NHL player to do so, joining Paul MacLean. A hand injury would end his season in early March.[11]
Vancouver Canucks
editAfter six seasons with the Stars, Roussel left as a free agent and on 1 July 2018, he signed a four-year, $12 million contract with the Vancouver Canucks.[12] Roussel set a career-high in points in 2018–19 with the Canucks, with 31, before suffering a season-ending knee injury on 13 March 2019, during a game against the New York Rangers.[13] Roussel's injury was later revealed to be a torn anterior cruciate ligament or ACL. After undergoing surgery in late-March, Roussel's recovery carried over into the 2019–20 NHL season. Expected to miss the first two months of the season,[14] Roussel made his return to the lineup on 3 December in a 5–2 win over the Ottawa Senators, scoring two goals, including one on his first shift since the injury.[15]
Arizona Coyotes
editOn 23 July 2021, Roussel was traded, along with Jay Beagle, Loui Eriksson, a 2021 first-round pick, a 2022 second-round pick and a 2023 seventh-round pick, to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Conor Garland.[16][17][18]
International play
editRoussel was a member of the French national team at the 2012,[19] 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017 IIHF World Championships. At the end of the 2014 tournament, he was selected as a Media All-Star after a very successful tournament, scoring 11 points in eight games.[20]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2004–05 | Rouen | FRA U18 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2006–07 | Collège Charles-Lemoy Riverains | QMAAA | 12 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Chicoutimi Saguenéens | QMJHL | 56 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 55 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | ||
| 2007–08 | Chicoutimi Saguenéens | QMJHL | 70 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 121 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 29 | ||
| 2008–09 | Chicoutimi Saguenéens | QMJHL | 58 | 15 | 20 | 35 | 110 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 15 | ||
| 2009–10 | Chicoutimi Saguenéens | QMJHL | 68 | 24 | 23 | 47 | 131 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 10 | ||
| 2010–11 | Providence Bruins | AHL | 42 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 88 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Reading Royals | ECHL | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 14 | ||
| 2011–12 | Chicago Wolves | AHL | 61 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 177 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 2012–13 | Texas Stars | AHL | 43 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 107 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 39 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 85 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 81 | 14 | 15 | 29 | 209 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 27 | ||
| 2014–15 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 80 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 148 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 80 | 13 | 16 | 29 | 123 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 16 | ||
| 2016–17 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 60 | 12 | 15 | 27 | 115 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 73 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 126 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 65 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 118 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 41 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 43 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 46 | ||
| 2019–20 | Utica Comets | AHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 35 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | Arizona Coyotes | NHL | 53 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 607 | 85 | 112 | 197 | 1,063 | 36 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 89 | ||||
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | France | U18 D1 | 18th | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
| 2009 | France | WJC D1 | 15th | 5 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2012 | France | WC | 9th | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | |
| 2013 | France | WC | 13th | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | |
| 2014 | France | WC | 8th | 8 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 16 | |
| 2015 | France | WC | 12th | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 34 | |
| 2017 | France | WC | 9th | 7 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 18 | |
| Junior totals | 10 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 10 | ||||
| Senior totals | 36 | 16 | 11 | 27 | 84 | ||||
Awards and honors
edit| Award | Year | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| International | ||
| WC All-Star Team | 2014 | |
References
edit- ^ "Stars sign Petersen, Roussel". theahl.com. 2 July 2012. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
- ^ Brown, Erin (5 November 2015). "Roussel eyes international stage". IIHF. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
- ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
- ^ MacIntyre, Iain (20 June 2020). "Why Antoine Roussel might be Canucks' most 'Canadian' player". sportsnet.ca. Sportsnet. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
- ^ "Antoine Roussel". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ "Roussel Assigned to Reading". ProvidenceBruins.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ Mooney, Harrison (3 October 2011). "Antoine Roussel gets his contract". Vancouver Sun. Archived from the original on 27 July 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
- ^ "Climie and Roussel Sent to Wolves". ChicagoWolves.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ "Antoine Roussel agrees to four-year deal with Dallas Stars". Associated Press. 22 July 2014. Archived from the original on 22 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ "Roussel, Stars agree to four-year contract". NHL.com. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ "Antoine Roussel of Stars to miss rest of season". NHL.com. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
- ^ "Canucks sign Antoine Roussel". Vancouver Canucks. 1 July 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
- ^ "Canucks' Roussel (knee) out for season". TSN. 13 March 2019. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
- ^ Johnston, Patrick (17 April 2019). "Patrick Johnston: Ever-upbeat Roussel faces long summer of recovery, with numbers on his mind". The Province. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
- ^ "Roussel scores in season debut for Canucks in win against Senators". NHL.com. 3 December 2019. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
- ^ "Report: Ekman-Larsson, No. 9 Pick Involved in Blockbuster Canucks, Coyotes Trade". TSN.ca. 23 July 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
- ^ "Canucks acquire Ekman-Larsson, Garland from Coyotes in blockbuster deal". Sportsnet. 23 July 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
- ^ "Arizona Coyotes trade Oliver Ekman-Larsson to Vancouver Canucks as part of multiplayer, multipick swap". EPSN. 23 July 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
- ^ "2012 IIHF World Championships France Roster". IIHF. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
- ^ "2014 IIHF World Championships Media All-Stars" (PDF). IIHF. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 December 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
External links
edit
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- Antoine Roussel profile and statistics at TheAHL.com