Center

Shoots: Right

Height: 5'10"

Weight: 185 lbs.

Born: January 3, 1978
Waterford, Michigan

Off-Season Home: East Lansing, Michigan

Info: (from Rangers home page and Rangers 2000-2001 Media Guide)

Collge Career:

Is one of only 14 Michigan State players to record 200-or-more career points Finished his collegiate career tied for 12th all-time in career points (201), 18th in career goals (79), and tied for 15th in career assists (122) Was the first Spartan in 20 years to lead the team in scoring three times and the only player to lead the team in assists for four years Is the third Michigan State player to be a two-time Hobey Baker Award finalist Is the only player to win the teams Outstanding Offensive Player Award three times. 1995-96: Named to the CCHA All-Rookie Team and captured the clubs Outstanding Rookie Award Led all first-year Spartans and was tied for second on the team in scoring with 12 goals and a team-leading 27 assists for 39 points Led the team in power play goals with four and ranked fifth in the CCHA with 22 power play points Ranked first on the team in post-season scoring with five assists in five outings. 1996-97: Appeared in 37 games, missing three games for the World Junior Championships, and captured his first of three consecutive Michigan States Outstanding Offensive Player Award while leading the team in scoring with 47 points (18 goals, 29 assists) Led the Spartans in assists and ranked third in goals Was the first sophomore to lead the team in scoring since former NHL forward Craig Simpson in 1984-85 Tallied a team high four game-winning goals and seven-game winning assists Ranked first on the club with 18 power play assists/points Led the team with 11 multiple-point games Notched three shorthanded goals MSU recorded an 11-3-2 record when he scored a goal Was also named an All-CCHA honorable mention. 1997-98: Was named First-Team All-American, Second-Team All-CCHA and Hobey Baker Award finalist Captured Michigan States Outstanding Offensive Player Award by leading the team in scoring for the second consecutive season, collecting 27 goals and 34 assists for 61 points Tallied 11 points (three goals, eight assists) and was named the Most Valuable Player in the CCHA Tournament, while also being selected to the All-Tournament Team Served as assistant captain, finishing second in the CCHA in scoring and among the NCAA leaders in points per game (ninth), goals per game (18th) and assists per game (13th) Ranked third in the nation in power play goals with 13, while his 25 power play points (13 goals, 12 assists) were tops at MSU Led the team with 17 multiple-point games and posted six multiple-goal games Named the CCHA Offensive Player of the Week for Nov. 22 after notching one goal and three assists Missed four games while playing in the World Junior Championships in Finland.

Minor League Career:

Minor League Career
Joined the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL) immediately following his collegiate season on April 15, Notched two assists in his professional debut on April 16 vs. Portland (AHL) Tallied two goals for the Wolf Pack on April 17 at Portland (AHL) and scored the game-winning goal in his first professional playoff game on Apr. 23 vs. Springfield.

1999-2000 Season:

Tied for third on the team and placed third among NHL rookies with 50 points (26 goals, 24 assists) in 82 matches Ranked first on the club and led all NHL rookies with 26 goals, becoming the first Rangers rookie to lead all NHL rookies in goals since Tony Amonte netted 35 goals during the 1991-92 campaign Tied for fourth on the club and placed sixth among NHL rookies with 24 assists Ranked first among league rookies and tied for first on the team with four game-winning tallies Placed second among NHL rookies and fifth on the club with 177 shots on goal Ranked first on the team with 18 even strength goals Tied for first among NHL rookies and placed second on the club with eight power play tallies Tallied 38 of his 50 points (18 goals, 20 assists) at even strength, ranking third on the team Placed fourth among NHL rookies and ranked fifth on the club with 12 power play points (eight goals, four assists) Tied for first among league rookies and led the team with two game-tying goals Ranked fourth among league rookies with a 14.7 shooting percentage Led all NHL rookies and ranked third on the team with 1131 total face-offs Placed first among league rookies and third on the club with 544 face-off wins Is one of only two Rangers to appear in all 82 games this season (Sylvain Lefebvre) Was selected as the 1999-2000 Rangers Fan Club Rookie of the Year Posted a plus or even rating in 51 of the 82 games Tallied the game-tying goal on April 1 at Boston, becoming the first Rangers rookie since Tony Amonte (69 points, 1991-92) and Sergei Nemchinov (58 points, 1991-92) to reach the 50-point plateau (26 goals, 24 assists) Posted a four-game point streak from March 19 to March 26, collecting four points (three goals, one assist) over the span Tallied a power play goal on February 25 at Buffalo, becoming the first Rangers rookie to score 20 goals in a season since Alexei Kovalev notched 20 during the 1992-93 campaign Posted a four-game point streak from January 31 to February 8, collecting five points (three goals, two assists) over the span Notched an assist on Kevin Stevens goal on October 11 at Long Island, marking his first career NHL assist Collected the game-winning tally, the first of his NHL career, on October 10 vs. Phoenix Tallied his first career NHL goal/point on October 2 at Vancouver (Kevin Weekes) Made his Rangers/NHL debut on October 1 at Edmonton.