Zack Fitzgerald

Zackary John Fitzgerald (born June 16, 1985) is a former American professional ice hockey player. He was most recently the Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations for the Glasgow Clan of the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL).

Zack Fitzgerald
Born (1985-01-25) January 25, 1985
Two Harbors, Minnesota, U.S.
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 214 lb (97 kg; 15 st 4 lb)
Position Defense
Shot Left
Played for Sheffield Steelers
NHL Draft 88th overall, 2003
St. Louis Blues
Playing career 2005–2019

He played major junior hockey for the Seattle Thunderbirds in the Western Hockey League WHL, where he was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the third round, 88th overall, in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. Fitzgerald began his professional career in the Blues organization before he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks, ultimately playing his lone NHL game for the Canucks in 2007–08. He is mostly known as an enforcer. Fitzgerald was born in Two Harbors, Minnesota, but grew up in Duluth, Minnesota. He is the brother of Rusty Fitzgerald.

Playing career

Juniors

Fitzgerald played for the Seattle Thunderbirds in the Western Hockey League (WHL)[1] where he became a physical presence and learned the art of fighting. He stated that "When I got into junior I didn't know anything about fighting and the doors just kind of opened to it. We had a pretty tough team and I always played physical when I was young so fighting just became a part of my game."[2] Thanks to his willingness to drop the gloves, Fitzgerald led the Thunderbirds in penalty minutes twice during his four-year stay (he was second on the team in his other two years) and led the league with 244 penalty minutes for the 2004–05 season.[1] Following the 2002–03 WHL season, which Fitzgerald finished fourth in the league with 232 PIMs in 64 games, the St. Louis Blues drafted Fitzgerald in the 3rd round number 88 overall.

Professional

Fitzgerald made his professional debut for the Peoria Rivermen in the American Hockey League (AHL) in 2005–06, however he split the season between Peoria and the Alaska Aces in the ECHL. He continued to play in both leagues the following season[3] before he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks for Francois-Pierre Guenette in August 2007.[4]

Thanks to a blue-line opening created by injuries and call-ups, Fitzgerald received more playing time with Vancouver's AHL affiliate the Manitoba Moose. The additional ice time allowed Fitzgerald to refine his game causing his then coach Scott Arniel to say "He's had an opportunity to play and play regularly and his game has been very good. He's been very responsible in our end of the rink, he's done a great job of making that first pass and you can see he has confidence because he's playing a lot. I think what he's trying to do is show people that he's more than just a fighter."[2] Fitzgerald was also called up to the NHL during the 2007–08 season; he played one game for Vancouver against the Dallas Stars on February 5, 2008.

Following the 2008–09 season, Fitzgerald was not re-signed by the Canucks despite leading the Moose in PIMs, setting AHL career highs in assists and PIMs, being third on the team amongst defensemen at +13, and playing in 16 playoff games.[1] On July 15, 2009 he signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Carolina Hurricanes.[4] Fitzgerald attended Carolina's training camp but was assigned to their AHL affiliate the Albany River Rats.[1] Fitzgerald set several career highs with the River Rats during the 2009–10 season including, games played (77), assists (12), points (14), and PIMs (311). His 311 PIMs lead the AHL.[5] For the 2010–11 season Carolina changed AHL affiliates. As member of the Charlotte Checkers Fitzgerald recorded 8 assists and led the team with 229 PIMs, which also ranked him ninth in the league.[6][7] After two seasons in the Hurricanes system Fitzgerald left via free agency and signed a one-year deal with the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs.[6]

Fitzgerald signed with the Adirondack Phantoms on July 3, 2012.[8]

On July 14, 2014, Fitzergald signed abroad on a one-year deal for a player/coach role with the Braehead Clan of the EIHL in Scotland.[9]

After one season he moved to the Sheffield Steelers where he was named an assistant captain. He remained with the Steelers for three seasons before returning to the Clan (now known as the Glasgow Clan) for the 2018-19 season where he captained the team.

On May 30, 2019, Fitzgerald was named Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations for the Glasgow Clan, retiring him as a player in the process - although he did appear sporadically as injury cover throughout the season.[10] He left his position at the end of the 2019-20 EIHL season.[11]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
2001–02 Seattle Thunderbirds WHL 613710214 1002219
2002–03 Seattle Thunderbirds WHL 6481422232 1504433
2003–04 Seattle Thunderbirds WHL 5841519163 —————
2004–05 Seattle Thunderbirds WHL 6571825244 903324
2005–06 Alaska Aces ECHL 12112108 —————
2005–06 Peoria Rivermen AHL 1311247 —————
2006–07 Peoria Rivermen AHL 2902286 —————
2006–07 Alaska Aces ECHL 1001148 1423582
2007–08 Manitoba Moose AHL 48538158 300014
2007–08 Vancouver Canucks NHL 10000 —————
2008–09 Manitoba Moose AHL 56088209 1601114
2009–10 Albany River Rats AHL 7721214311 20000
2010–11 Charlotte Checkers AHL 76088229 1001132
2011–12 Hamilton Bulldogs AHL 74235268 —————
2012–13 Adirondack Phantoms AHL 36101202 —————
2013–14 Adirondack Phantoms AHL 38011231 —————
2014–15 Braehead Clan EIHL 4421214304 20008
2015–16 Sheffield Steelers EIHL 483811197 —————
2016–17 Sheffield Steelers EIHL 4721214197 40002
2017–18 Sheffield Steelers EIHL 37088181 401110
2018–19 Glasgow Clan EIHL 5641317178 20004
2019–20 Glasgow Clan EIHL 40000 —————
AHL totals 4471138491741 3102260
NHL totals 10000 —————
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See also

References
  1. "Zack Fitzgerald's AHL Player Profile". theAHL.com. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
  2. "More than just a fighter". Derek Jory - Canucks.com. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
  3. "Zack Fitzgerald's LOH Profile". Legends of Hockey.com. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
  4. "Zack Fitzgerald's SB Nation Profile". SB Nation .com. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
  5. "2009-10 AHL League Leaders". Hockey DB.com. Retrieved June 28, 2010.
  6. "Bulldogs Sign Defenseman Zack Fitzgerald to One-Year Contract". American Hockey League. September 9, 2011. Retrieved September 9, 2011.
  7. "2010-11 AHL League Leaders". Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved September 9, 2011.
  8. "Phantoms and Flyers Sign Five". Adirondack Phantoms. July 3, 2012. Archived from the original on July 5, 2013. Retrieved July 3, 2012.
  9. "Fitzgerald joins from AHL". Braehead Clan. July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
  10. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/ice-hockey/48466692
  11. https://clanihc.com/post/news-clan-part-company-with-fitzgerald/
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