For a self-described late bloomer, Bozak has fashioned a solid NHL career.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound center, a native of Regina, Saskatchewan, took the Tier 2 junior route to the NHL. He played three seasons for Victoria of the British Columbia Hockey League and led the BCHL in scoring in his final season, finishing with 128 points (45 goals) in 59 games.
For a self-described late bloomer, Bozak has fashioned a solid NHL career.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound center, a native of Regina, Saskatchewan, took the Tier 2 junior route to the NHL. He played three seasons for Victoria of the British Columbia Hockey League and led the BCHL in scoring in his final season, finishing with 128 points (45 goals) in 59 games.
Despite those numbers, Bozak was not drafted. But after two seasons of college hockey at the University of Denver, a number of NHL teams pursued him before he signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs as a free agent on April 9, 2009.
During his time with the Maple Leafs, Bozak established himself as a reliable, strong-skating, two-way player, an excellent face-off man and someone who can play on the power play and kill penalties. He was also one of the NHL's most successful players in the shootout, scoring on 20 of 46 attempts (43.5 percent) with the Maple Leafs from 2009-10 through the 2017-18 season.
Bozak's personal career highlight came on March 28, 2015, when he scored three goals in the third period for his first NHL hat trick, then assisted on Eric Brewer's overtime goal that gave the Maple Leafs a 4-3 victory against their provincial rival, the Ottawa Senators. He had another third-period hat trick in a 7-4 victory against the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 21, 2015, becoming the third player in Maple Leafs history to have at least two hat tricks in the third period.
In 2016-17, Bozak had an NHL career-high 55 points (18 goals, 37 assists); and the 23 goals he scored in 2014-15 was also an NHL career best.
After nine seasons in Toronto, Bozak began a new phase of his career when he signed a three-year contract with the St. Louis Blues on July 1, 2018. Bozak had 38 points (13 goals, 25 assists) and won 54.3 percent of his face-offs in 72 games during his first season with St. Louis in 2018-19, then helped the Blues win the Stanley Cup for the first time since entering the NHL in 1967 with 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 26 playoff games.
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- WCHA All-Rookie Team (2008)
- Signed as a free agent by Toronto, April 3, 2009.
- Signed as a free agent by St. Louis, July 1, 2018.
