Brian Pothier
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Brian Pothier (born April 15, 1977) is an American former professional
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...
defenseman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to ...
. Pothier played in the
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
(NHL) from 2000 until 2010.


Playing career

As a youth, Pothier played in the 1991
Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament (french: Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec) is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, ...
with a
minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from c ...
team from Beverly, Massachusetts. Undrafted to the NHL, Pothier played collegiate hockey with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. After his senior year he was signed as a
free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...
by the Atlanta Thrashers on March 27, 2000. After two seasons with the Thrashers he was moved to the
Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...
prior to the 2002–03 season in a trade for
Shawn McEachern Shawn Kenneth McEachern (born February 28, 1969) is an American ice hockey coach and former professional ice hockey player. He is the current head boys' varsity ice hockey coach at The Rivers School, an independent 6–12 school in Weston, Massa ...
, and was later signed by the
Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...
as a free agent in the summer of 2006. On January 3, 2008, Pothier suffered a concussion, possibly when
Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
right winger
Milan Lucic Milan Lucic (; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played major junior hockey with the Vancouver Giants in the Western Hockey League (WHL) for three seas ...
hit him hard into the boards, resulting in the fourth reported concussion of his career, which sidelined him for the next fourteen months. Pothier later attributed his post-concussion symptoms and long recovery period to an undiagnosed
astigmatism Astigmatism is a type of refractive error due to rotational asymmetry in the eye's refractive power. This results in distorted or blurred vision at any distance. Other symptoms can include eyestrain, headaches, and trouble driving at n ...
resulting from his latest concussion. He stated that he had recovered from the concussion two to three months after the injury, but his astigmatism led to the symptoms previously thought to be
post-concussion syndrome Post-concussion syndrome (PCS) is a set of symptoms that may continue for weeks, months, or a year or more after a concussion – medically classified as a so-called mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). About 34 to 35% of people with concussi ...
until it was properly diagnosed in December 2008. On December 17, 2008, he practiced in full gear for the first time since the injury. On March 4, 2009, Pothier was assigned to the Capitals'
American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...
affiliate, the
Hershey Bears The Hershey Bears are a professional ice hockey team based in Hershey, Pennsylvania, a town located 14 miles east of the state capital of Harrisburg. The current Bears club has played in the American Hockey League since the 1938–39 season maki ...
, for conditioning and to see if he experienced any post-concussion symptoms. Pothier was recalled to the Capitals, returning to the ice on March 16, 2009, fourteen months after the initial injury. He then scored his first goal since his injury on March 31, 2009, against the
Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play th ...
. On March 3, 2010, having registered 11 points in 41 games to that point in the 2009–10 season, Brian was traded along with prospect
Oskar Osala Oskar Osala (born 26 December 1987) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey player. He played in three National Hockey League (NHL) games with the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes and represented Finland in Olympic Winter Games 20 ...
to the
Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ...
in exchange for defenseman
Joe Corvo Joseph Edward Corvo (born June 20, 1977) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played 11 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Los Angeles Kings, Ottawa Senators, Carolina Hurricanes, Washington Capitals, and Bosto ...
. On July 27, 2010, Pothier ended his North American career and signed a two-year contract with European team Genève-Servette HC of the Swiss
National League A The National League (NL) is a professional ice hockey league in Switzerland and is the top tier of the Swiss league system. Prior to the 2017–18 season, the league was known as National League A. During the 2018–19 season, the league h ...
(NLA). After two seasons in Switzerland, Pothier signed a two-year contract extension to remain with Genève-Servette. However he was unable to take the ice, due to lingering concussion symptoms that ultimately ended his professional career. While in his recovery and still of the intention to fulfill his contract obligation to Genève-Servette HC, Pothier served as a voluntary assistant coach with the
University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medical ...
at Dartmouth.


Career statistics


Regular season and playoffs


International


Awards and honors


Transactions

* March 27, 2000 – Signed as a free agent by the Atlanta Thrashers * June 29, 2002 – Traded to the Ottawa Senators for
Shawn McEachern Shawn Kenneth McEachern (born February 28, 1969) is an American ice hockey coach and former professional ice hockey player. He is the current head boys' varsity ice hockey coach at The Rivers School, an independent 6–12 school in Weston, Massa ...
and a sixth round selection in 2004. * July 1, 2006 – Signed as a free agent by the Washington Capitals * March 3, 2010 – Traded to the Carolina Hurricanes, along with
Oskar Osala Oskar Osala (born 26 December 1987) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey player. He played in three National Hockey League (NHL) games with the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes and represented Finland in Olympic Winter Games 20 ...
and second round selection in 2011 for
Joe Corvo Joseph Edward Corvo (born June 20, 1977) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played 11 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Los Angeles Kings, Ottawa Senators, Carolina Hurricanes, Washington Capitals, and Bosto ...
.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pothier, Brian 1977 births Living people American men's ice hockey defensemen Atlanta Thrashers players Binghamton Senators players Carolina Hurricanes players Chicago Wolves players Genève-Servette HC players Hershey Bears players Ice hockey players from Massachusetts Orlando Solar Bears (IHL) players Ottawa Senators players People from New Bedford, Massachusetts RPI Engineers men's ice hockey players Undrafted National Hockey League players Washington Capitals players AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans