There is something to be said for having something to prove. As a fifth-round pick (No. 151) of the Vancouver Canucks in the 2001 NHL Draft, Bieksa did not begin his professional hockey career with much hype, but the Grimsby, Ontario, native established himself as a strong all-around defenseman.
A bit undersized for a shutdown defenseman at 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, the Bowling Green University product has a good shot from the point and will get physical along the boards or in front of the net. Bieksa's all-out style has contributed to injuries, though he remained an instrumental part of the highly successful Canucks teams that qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs seven times in nine seasons between 2007 and 2015.
There is something to be said for having something to prove. As a fifth-round pick (No. 151) of the Vancouver Canucks in the 2001 NHL Draft, Bieksa did not begin his professional hockey career with much hype, but the Grimsby, Ontario, native established himself as a strong all-around defenseman.
A bit undersized for a shutdown defenseman at 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, the Bowling Green University product has a good shot from the point and will get physical along the boards or in front of the net. Bieksa's all-out style has contributed to injuries, though he remained an instrumental part of the highly successful Canucks teams that qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs seven times in nine seasons between 2007 and 2015.
In a sign of what was to come - Bieksa took a roughing penalty 10 seconds into his NHL debut on Dec. 19, 2005 - he racked up 77 penalty minutes in 39 games as a rookie. His first NHL point came on an assist in a 3-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Jan. 5, 2006. He scored his first NHL goal Oct. 13, 2006, as part of a three-point game against the San Jose Sharks.
He finished 2006-07, his first full NHL season, with the most points (42) and the second most goals (12) among Canucks defensemen. He also led Vancouver with 134 penalty minutes and led Canucks skaters in ice time (1,966 minutes). Bieksa had a memorable NHL postseason debut, playing a team-leading 54:27 in Vancouver's quadruple-overtime, 5-4 win against the Dallas Stars in Game 1 of the first round April 11, 2007. After the season he was named Vancouver's top defenseman and unsung hero.
Bieksa missed at least 10 games in each of the next four seasons, though he still led Vancouver defensemen in points (43) and hits (112) in 2008-09. Bieksa, named an alternate captain before 2010-11, helped lead the Canucks to the 2011 Stanley Cup Final. The NHL's leader in postseason hits that spring (88), Bieksa scored five playoff goals, including one in double overtime in Game 5 of the 2011 Western Conference Final against the Sharks that sent Vancouver to the Final.
The Canucks traded Bieksa to the Anaheim Ducks for a 2016 second-round draft pick on June 30, 2015, and two days later he signed a two-year contract extension through 2018.
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- AHL All-Rookie Team (2005)
- Traded to Anaheim by Vancouver for Anaheim's 2nd round pick (later traded to Pittsburgh -- Pittsburgh selected Filip Gustavsson) in 2016 NHL Draft, June 30, 2015.
