David K. Littman (born June 13, 1967) is an American former

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 ...

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

. He played three games 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 ...

: two with the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

and one with 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 ...

between 1991 and 1993. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1989 to 2000, was mainly spent in the minor International Hockey League. He was drafted in the eleventh round, 211th overall, of the

1987 NHL Entry Draft The 1987 NHL Entry Draft was the 25th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan, and was the first draft held in the United States. The National Hockey League (NHL) teams selected 252 players eligible for entry into p ...

by the Sabres. Internationally Littman played for the American national team at the 1994 World Championships.

Playing career

Collegiate

Littman spent four years at Boston College studying communications. In his senior year, Littman served as one of three captains on the team as the Eagles qualified for the NCAA final eight. He ended his season with .912 saves and a .895 percentage. In 2000, his BC record of 2,548 career saves was broken by

Scott Clemmensen Scott Lee Clemmensen (born July 23, 1977) is an American former professional ice hockey goaltender, who played with the New Jersey Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Florida Panthers in the National Hockey League (NHL). Playing career A native o ...

. As a result, he was selected for the AHCA East Second-Team All-American. He was drafted in the eleventh round, 211th overall, of the

by the

Professional

Littman attended the Sabres training camp but was reassigned to their International Hockey League (IHL) affiliate, the

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League; the team is an owned and operated affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, ...

, to begin the 1989–90 season. However, the 1990–91 would prove to be a breakout season for him. On January 29, 1991, Littman made his NHL debut by replacing Darcy Wakaluk in the second period. Littman saved 15 of 18 shots in an 8–3 loss to the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

. Upon their return to the IHL, both Littman and Wakaluk also set a new Rochester record for most points and assists by a goaltender with seven each. He was also selected for the 1991 All-Star Game. Littman shared the Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award as the AHL's outstanding goaltender, with teammate Darcy Wakaluk. The following year, he was again the recipient of the Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award. On August 28, 1992, Littman signed with the new NHL expansion team, the

. Although he began the season in the minor leagues with the

Atlanta Knights The Atlanta Knights were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League from 1992 to 1996. The Knights were based in Atlanta, and played at the Omni Coliseum. In 1994 the Knights won the Turner Cup which was the I ...

, Littman was recalled to the NHL in November 1992. His stay in the National Hockey League was short-lived and he was reassigned to the IHL. He became a free agent at the end of the season. As a result of his successful stints with the Atlanta Knights, Littman was selected to compete with Team USA at the 1994 IIHF World Championship, where they finished fourth in the tournament. Before his retirement, Littman played with the IHL's

Orlando Solar Bears The Orlando Solar Bears are a professional ice hockey team that plays their home games at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. They play in the South Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference and are affiliated with the Tampa Bay Lightning of t ...

, recording 53 wins over two years before a career-ending knee injury.

Later life

After working for the Solar Bears as a color commentator, Littman joined

EA Sports EA Sports is a division of Electronic Arts that develops and publishes sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to imitate real-life sports networks by calling themselves the "EA Sports Network ...

. He began as a quality assurance associate but later was promoted to producer on the

NHL series ''NHL'' (colloquially referred to as Chel) is a series of professional ice hockey simulation video games developed by EA Vancouver and published yearly by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports brand. The game is developed under license from the ...

of games.

Personal life

Littman was born in Queens, New York but grew up on Long Island. His family moved to Rhode Island prior to his acceptance to Boston College. Littman was raised Jewish.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Littman, David 1967 births Living people 21st-century American Jews AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans American men's ice hockey goaltenders Atlanta Knights players Boston College Eagles men's ice hockey players Buffalo Sabres draft picks Buffalo Sabres players Fredericton Canadiens players Ice hockey players from Rhode Island Jewish American sportspeople Jewish ice hockey players Long Beach Ice Dogs (IHL) players Los Angeles Blades players Orlando Solar Bears (IHL) players Phoenix Roadrunners (IHL) players Providence Bruins players Richmond Renegades players Rochester Americans players San Antonio Dragons players Sportspeople from Cranston, Rhode Island Tampa Bay Lightning players