François Groleau (born January 23, 1973) is a Canadian 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 ...

defenceman 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 ...

who played eight 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 ...

for the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

over three seasons between 1996 and 1997. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1993 to 2013, was mainly spent in the minor leagues and then in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga.

Playing career

As a youth, Groleau played in the 1985 and 1986

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, ...

s 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 Rive-Sud. Groleau was drafted 41st overall by the

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

in the

1991 NHL Entry Draft The 1991 NHL Entry Draft was the 29th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 22 at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York. A total of 264 players were drafted. The worst team in the previous 1990–91 season, the Quebec Nordiques, was give ...

. He spent two seasons in the

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 ...

with the

Saint John Flames The Saint John Flames were a Canadian ice hockey team in the American Hockey League from 1993 to 2003 in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. The Calgary Flames bought and relocated the Utica Devils, to be their AHL affiliate. History The Saint J ...

before he was traded to the

Quebec Nordiques The Quebec Nordiques (french: Nordiques de Québec, pronounced in Quebec French, in Canadian English; translated "Quebec City Northmen" or "Northerners") were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City. The Nordiques played in the W ...

in March 1995 for Ed Ward. He finished the 1994–95 season in the AHL with the

Cornwall Aces The Cornwall Aces were the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's Quebec Nordiques from 1993 to 1995 and the relocated Colorado Avalanche in 1995–96. They were based in the eastern Ontario city of Cornwall and pla ...

. He signed with the

in July 1995 and played eight NHL games for the team over three seasons, scoring one assist. He spent most of his tenure in the AHL with the

Fredericton Canadiens The Fredericton Canadiens, or the 'Baby Habs' were a professional ice hockey team in Fredericton, New Brunswick. The Canadiens played their home games at the Aitken Centre. They were a member of the American Hockey League from 1990 to 1999, and we ...

and also spent a season in the International Hockey League with the

San Francisco Spiders The San Francisco Spiders were a professional ice hockey team based in Daly City, California. They were members of the South Division of the former International Hockey League (IHL). Playing at the Cow Palace, the Spiders competed for one season, ...

. With his NHL career now at an end, Groleau moved to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in 1998, playing one season in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga for the

Augsburger Panther The Augsburger Panther are a professional ice hockey team in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. The team is based in Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany. They play their home games at the Curt Frenzel Stadion. Founded in 1878, the team's name was Augsburger EV ...

. He then returned to the AHL with the

Quebec Citadelles The Quebec Citadelles (French: ''Citadelles de Québec'') were a Minor ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada at the Colisée Pepsi. The name refers to the Citadelle of Quebec, a landmark fortif ...

again for one season. In 2000, Groleau returned to the DEL, signing for Adler Mannheim. He spent five seasons with the team, winning the league title in 2001 and the German Cup in 2003. He signed for the Füchse Duisburg in 2005, but the team finished bottom of the league. He signed for

EHC Black Wings Linz The Steinbach Black Wings Linz are a member of the Austrian Hockey League. They play their home games in Linz, Austria at the Keine Sorgen EisArena. History The EHC Black Wings Linz was founded in 1992. After several years in the Austrian minor ...

in 2006. After his second season with the Black Wings, Groleau spent two years in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

with Diables Rouges de Briançon before returning to Canada to play with Thetford Mines Isothermic in 2010–11.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* 1973 births Living people Adler Mannheim players Augsburger Panther players Calgary Flames draft picks Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Austria Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in France Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Germany Canadian ice hockey defencemen Cornwall Aces players Diables Rouges de Briançon players EHC Black Wings Linz players Füchse Duisburg players Fredericton Canadiens players Montreal Canadiens players Quebec Citadelles players Saint-Jean Lynx players Saint John Flames players San Francisco Spiders players Shawinigan Cataractes players Ice hockey people from Longueuil {{canada-icehockey-defenceman-1970s-stub