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Jason LaBarbera
Jlabarbera
Born January 18, 1980 (1980-01-18) (age 44)
Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
Height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight 232 lb (105 kg; 16 st 8 lb)
Position Goaltender
Catches Left
NHL team
Former teams
Philadelphia Flyers
New York Rangers
Los Angeles Kings
Vancouver Canucks
Phoenix Coyotes
Edmonton Oilers
Anaheim Ducks
NHL Draft 66th overall, 1998
New York Rangers
Playing career 2001–present

Jason LaBarbera (born Antonio Jason LaBarbera on January 18, 1980) is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender currently under contract with the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Jason was originally drafted by the New York Rangers in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft during his major junior career in the Western Hockey League (WHL) and has also additionally played for the Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks, Phoenix Coyotes and Edmonton Oilers.

Playing Career[]

Jason played major junior in the Western Hockey League (WHL) primarily with the Portland Winterhawks for four seasons and briefly with the Tri-City Americans and Spokane Chiefs. He was drafted by the New York Rangers in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft in the 3rd round, 66th overall.

Jason saw his first NHL action with the New York Rangers in his first season out of junior in relief of Kirk McLean, his childhood hero on October 14, 2000. He recorded two saves in 10 minutes of play in an 8–6 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

He spent his first four seasons with the Rangers' organization, however, in the minor leagues with the Charlotte Checkers of the ECHL and the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL).

The 2003–04 season brought a bit more playing time for Jason with the New York Rangers. In the midst of a spectacular season with the Wolf Pack that culminated in a Les Cunningham Award as league MVP and an Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award as top goaltender, he was called up to the Rangers and played in four games that season.

Jason recorded a 1–2–0 record, 4.85 goals against average (GAA) and a .824 save percentage during his brief stint. His lone NHL victory that season, the first of his career, was a 3–2 win over the Washington Capitals on March 5, 2004.

Continuing to play with the Wolf Pack during the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Jason earned the Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award for allowing the fewest goals in the league. Despite another successful season in the AHL, the Rangers did not re-sign him likely due to the Rangers' depth in goal, with standout draft picks Henrik Lundqvist and Al Montoya. Instead, Jason was signed as a free agent by the Los Angeles Kings in the off-season.

Jason's first full season in the NHL was spent backing up Kings starting goalie Mathieu Garon. He got off to a quick start with the Kings, going undefeated in his first seven starts. On April 17, 2006, Jason earned his first NHL shutout, blanking the San Jose Sharks in a 4–0 victory.

In 2006–07, Jason played for the Kings' minor league affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs of the AHL. Despite injuries to Kings goalies Mathieu Garon and Dan Cloutier during the season, the Kings were hesitant to call Jason up because he was waiver eligible, therefore requiring him to clear waivers in order to be called up and sent back down, making it likely that he would be claimed by another team.

Jason completed the season with the Monarchs and earned the second Harry Holmes Memorial Award and Aldege Bastien Memorial Award of his AHL career. In the off-season, LaBarbera re-signed with the Kings to a two-year contract on July 3, 2007.

Jason earned more playing time in 2007–08, appearing in a career-high 45 games with a 3.00 GAA and a .910 save percentage. The following season, on December 30, 2008, LaBarbera was traded to his hometown team, the Vancouver Canucks, for a seventh round draft pick in 2009.

The Canucks dealt for Jason in light of injuries to Roberto Luongo and backup Curtis Sanford. He earned his first win with the Canucks in his club debut, making 31 saves in a 2–1 victory over the Nashville Predators on January 1, 2009.

Jason was signed to a two year, $2 million contract by the Phoenix Coyotes to back up Coyotes starter Ilya Bryzgalov on July 1, 2009. He compiled a total record of 15-11-4 in his first two seasons in Phoenix. On June 6, 2011, he was re-signed by the Coyotes to another two-year contract.

On July 5, 2013, during the free agency of 2013, Jason signed to a one-year, $1 million deal with the Edmonton Oilers. He competed with Richard Bachman to be the backup to Devan Dubnyk and after Bachman was cut, he won the backup job.

On December 14, 2013, Jason was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for future considerations. On January 4, 2014, it was announced that Jason was reassigned to the Rockford IceHogs.

On July 1, 2014, the Anaheim Ducks signed Jason as a free agent to a one-year, $750,000 contract. He attended the Ducks' training camp before ultimately being assigned to their AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, after clearing waivers.

Career Statistics[]

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L T/OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
1996–97 Tri-City Americans WHL 2 1 0 0 64 4 0 3.77 .857
1996–97 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 9 5 1 0 443 18 0 2.44 .907
1997–98 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 23 18 4 0 1305 72 1 3.31 .891
1998–99 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 51 18 20 3 2994 170 4 3.41 .904 4 0 4 252 19 0 4.52 .899
1999–00 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 34 8 24 2 2005 123 1 3.68 .903
1999–00 Spokane Chiefs WHL 21 12 6 2 1146 50 0 2.62 .900 9 6 1 435 18 1 2.48 .890
2000–01 New York Rangers NHL 1 0 0 0 10 0 0 0.00 1.000
2000–01 Charlotte Checkers ECHL 35 18 10 7 2100 112 1 3.20 .910 2 1 1 143 5 0 2.10 .945
2000–01 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 4 1 1 0 156 12 0 4.61 .871
2001–02 Charlotte Checkers ECHL 13 9 3 1 744 29 0 2.34 .924 4 2 2 212 12 0 3.40 .910
2001–02 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 20 7 11 1 1058 55 0 3.12 .912
2002–03 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 46 18 17 6 2452 105 2 2.57 .915 2 0 2 117 6 0 3.07 .867
2003–04 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 59 34 9 9 3393 90 13 1.59 .936 16 11 5 1043 30 3 1.73 .935
2003–04 New York Rangers NHL 4 1 2 0 198 16 0 4.85 .824
2004–05 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 53 31 16 2 2937 90 6 1.84 .934 4 1 3 238 9 0 2.27 .940
2005–06 Los Angeles Kings NHL 29 11 9 2 1433 69 1 2.89 .900
2005–06 Manchester Monarchs AHL 3 1 1 1 185 10 0 3.25 .907
2006–07 Manchester Monarchs AHL 62 39 20 1 3619 133 7 2.20 .933 13 6 7 824 38 1 2.77 .911
2007–08 Los Angeles Kings NHL 45 17 23 2 2421 121 1 3.00 .910
2008–09 Los Angeles Kings NHL 19 5 8 4 995 47 2 2.83 .893
2008–09 Vancouver Canucks NHL 9 3 2 2 451 20 0 2.66 .915
2009–10 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 17 8 5 1 928 33 0 2.13 .928
2010–11 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 17 7 6 3 883 48 2 3.26 .909
2011–12 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 19 3 9 3 1015 43 0 2.54 .911
2012–13 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 15 4 6 2 726 32 0 2.64 .923
2013–14 Edmonton Oilers NHL 7 1 3 0 348 19 0 3.28 .870
2013–14 Oklahoma City Barons AHL 2 0 1 1 124 4 0 1.53 .953
2013–14 Rockford IceHogs AHL 32 15 15 2 1859 91 0 2.94 .901
2014–15 Norfolk Admirals AHL 34 9 16 7 1948 85 3 2.62 .912
2014–15 Anaheim Ducks NHL 5 2 0 1 207 9 0 2.61 .909
NHL totals 187 62 73 20 9615 457 6 2.85 .907

Awards & Achievements[]

  • Named to the WHL All-Star Team in 2000.
  • Named to the AHL First All-Star Team in 2004 and 2007.
  • Awarded the Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award (AHL Top Goaltender) in 2004 and 2007.
  • Awarded the Les Cunningham Award (AHL MVP) in 2004.
  • Awarded the Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award (AHL, fewest team goals against) in 2005 and 2007.

Records[]

  • Most shutouts in one season in the AHL-13 (2003-04)

Personal Life[]

Jason and his wife have a child named Ryder (born on February 26, 2009).

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