Josh Gorges
Gorges with the Buffalo Sabres in 2017
Born (1984-08-14) August 14, 1984 (age 39)
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 204 lb (93 kg; 14 st 8 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Left
Played for San Jose Sharks
Montreal Canadiens
Buffalo Sabres
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 2005–2018

Joshua Daniel Gorges (born August 14, 1984) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenseman. He is of German ancestry; his grandparents immigrated from Germany to Canada. Gorges played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the San Jose Sharks, Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres.

Playing career

As a youth, Gorges played in the 1998 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Kelowna.[1]

Gorges played major junior for his hometown Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League (WHL) from 2000 through 2004. After going undrafted in 2002, he signed as a free agent with the San Jose Sharks. Gorges was named Team WHL captain for the 2003 RE/MAX Canada–Russia Challenge.[2] He was also a member of Team Canada at the 2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where he won a silver medal.[3] In 2004, the Rockets (with Gorges as team captain) won the Memorial Cup.

During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Gorges played for the Sharks' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Cleveland Barons. He made his debut for the Sharks during the 2005-06 season, skating in 49 games.

Gorges with the Sharks in 2006.

On February 25, 2007, Gorges and a 2007 first-round pick were traded to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Craig Rivet and a 2008 fifth-round pick.[4] On July 9, 2008, the Canadiens signed Gorges to a three-year, $3.3 million contract extension.[5]

On February 10, 2010, during a game against the Washington Capitals, Gorges was hit on the left side of the head by a slap shot from Mike Green. Gorges remained motionless on the ice for several minutes, with his head bleeding. He eventually was helped up by team doctors and helped to the bench. The Canadiens eventually won the game 6–5 in OT to end the Capitals 14-game win streak.[6] Gorges skated in practice the next day and was quoted as saying "Unless something happens in the next 24 hours, I’ll be in the lineup against the Flyers."[7]

Gorges was widely praised for his performances in the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, with Don Cherry declaring "Josh Gorges should be captain of the Canadiens, there’s no doubt in my mind. He’s a captain’s captain. This isn’t in any way to say that Brian Gionta is bad, it’s only to say that Gorges is so good. He’s exceptional. And I think Brian would be happy to have a little pressure taken off him so he could just play the game. Look up the word ‘leader’ in the dictionary, and you’ll find Gorges’s picture."[8]

On July 22, 2011, the Canadiens re-signed Gorges to a one-year, $2.5 million contract extension.[9]

Gorges with the Canadiens in May 2010.

On January 1, 2012, Gorges signed a six-year, $23.4 million contract extension with the Canadiens.[10]

On July 1, 2014, Gorges was traded to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for the Minnesota Wild's 2016 second-round pick.[11] He refused to waive his no-trade clause to be traded to the Canadiens' rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs.[12]

Upon concluding his contract with the Sabres following the 2017–18 season, Gorges remained an un-signed free agent over the summer and into the 2018–19 season. On January 14, 2019, Gorges announced his retirement from his 13 season NHL career.[13]

Post-hockey career

Gorges served as the West Kelowna Warriors Director of Player Development. He has helped organize a local mental health charity baseball game in Kelowna with other former NHLers.[14]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2000–01 Kelowna Rockets WHL 57 4 6 10 24 6 1 1 2 4
2001–02 Kelowna Rockets WHL 72 7 34 41 74 15 1 7 8 8
2002–03 Kelowna Rockets WHL 54 11 48 59 76 19 3 17 20 16
2003–04 Kelowna Rockets WHL 62 11 31 42 38 17 2 13 15 6
2004–05 Cleveland Barons AHL 20 3 3 6 4 — — — — —
2005–06 San Jose Sharks NHL 49 0 6 6 31 11 0 1 1 4
2005–06 Cleveland Barons AHL 18 2 3 5 12 — — — — —
2006–07 San Jose Sharks NHL 47 1 3 4 26 — — — — —
2006–07 Worcester Sharks AHL 7 0 1 1 2 — — — — —
2006–07 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2007–08 Montreal Canadiens NHL 62 0 9 9 32 12 0 3 3 0
2008–09 Montreal Canadiens NHL 81 4 19 23 37 4 0 1 1 7
2009–10 Montreal Canadiens NHL 82 3 7 10 39 19 0 2 2 14
2010–11 Montreal Canadiens NHL 36 1 6 7 18 — — — — —
2011–12 Montreal Canadiens NHL 82 2 14 16 39 — — — — —
2012–13 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 2 7 9 15 5 0 0 0 4
2013–14 Montreal Canadiens NHL 66 1 13 14 12 17 0 2 2 6
2014–15 Buffalo Sabres NHL 46 0 6 6 16 — — — — —
2015–16 Buffalo Sabres NHL 77 2 10 12 72 — — — — —
2016–17 Buffalo Sabres NHL 66 1 5 6 50 — — — — —
2017–18 Buffalo Sabres NHL 34 0 2 2 17 — — — — —
NHL totals 783 17 107 124 404 68 0 9 9 35
Medal record
Representing  Canada
World Junior Championships
Silver medal – second place 2004 Finland

International

Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
2004 Canada WJC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 6 0 3 3 4
Junior totals 6 0 3 3 4

Awards

References

  1. ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  2. ^ "Gorges named Team WHL captain". Canadian Hockey League. Archived from the original on December 28, 2003. Retrieved 2013-06-16.
  3. ^ Tim Wharnsby (December 20, 2015). "Look back at 2004 WJC final between U.S., Canada". NHL.com. Retrieved February 12, 2019.
  4. ^ "CANADIENS TRADE AWAY CRAIG RIVET FOR JOSH GORGES AND FIRST-ROUND PICK". The Hockey News. 25 February 2007. Retrieved February 25, 2007.
  5. ^ "Gorges A Playoff Warrior". National Hockey League Players Association. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
  6. ^ Capitals vs. Canadiens – 10/02/2010 – Montreal Canadiens – Recap Archived 2012-03-30 at the Wayback Machine. Canadiens.nhl.com (2010-02-10). Retrieved on 2011-12-04.
  7. ^ The ultimate warrior – MontrĂŠal Canadiens – News. Canadiens.nhl.com (2010-02-10). Retrieved on 2011-12-04.
  8. ^ Stubbs, Dave (April 7, 2012). "Don Cherry on the Canadiens: 'I've never seen a team in such turmoil'". National Post. Retrieved February 12, 2019.
  9. ^ "Canadiens sign Gorges to one-year $2.5 million deal". The Sports Network. 2011-07-22. Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
  10. ^ "Canadiens extend Gorges". The Sports Network. 2012-01-01. Archived from the original on 2012-01-02. Retrieved 2012-01-01.
  11. ^ "Sabres acquire D Josh Gorges in trade with Canadiens; Montreal signs D Gilbert to 2-year deal". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  12. ^ "Josh Gorges approves trade to Buffalo". Yahoo! Sports. 2014-07-01. Retrieved 2014-07-01.
  13. ^ "Ex-Habs, Sabres defenseman Gorges retires". The Sports Network. January 14, 2019. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  14. ^ "Bases loaded with NHL talent at Kelowna's Homebase charity event". Penticton Western News. June 18, 2022. Retrieved October 12, 2022.

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