James Dean Waite (born April 15, 1969) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

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 hock ...

coach and former

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 currently serves as the goaltending coach for the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division i ...

Playing career

Waite was born in

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional count ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. As a youth, he played in the 1981 and 1982

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 cla ...

team from Sherbrooke. Waite was one of the highest-rated goalies in the late 1980s and many scouts believed he had the potential to become a star. He was named the best goaltender at the

1988 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 1988 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships was the 12th edition of the Ice Hockey World Junior Championship and was held in Moscow, Soviet Union. Canada and the Soviet Union won the gold and silver medals respectively as the two nations rede ...

and was also named to the tournament all-star team as Canada won the gold medal. He was selected by the

in 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 pr ...

; the Blackhawks were already deep in goal with both

Ed Belfour Edward John Belfour (born April 21, 1965) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. Belfour was born in Carman, Manitoba and grew up playing hockey. He played junior hockey for the Winkler Flyers before going to the University of ...

and

Dominik Hašek Dominik Hašek (, ; born January 29, 1965) is a Czech former ice hockey goaltender who mostly played for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League (NHL). Widely regarded as one of the best goaltenders of all time, Hašek also played for t ...

(although Hasek could not come to North America without defecting at the time). While Waite received the bulk of the starts in the backup role to Belfour for Chicago, with Hasek playing just 25 games in 2 seasons, Waite did not exhibit strong skills and was later sent to the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...

, and eventually the

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

. After 2001, Waite played the rest of his career in Germany, playing six years for ERC Ingolstadt in the

Deutsche Eishockey Liga The Deutsche Eishockey Liga (for sponsorship reasons called "PENNY Deutsche Eishockey Liga") (; English: ''German Ice Hockey League'') or DEL, is a German professional ice hockey league and the highest division in German ice hockey. Founded in ...

and signed in January 2010 for

Nürnberg Ice Tigers The Nürnberg Ice Tigers are a professional ice hockey club located in Nuremberg, Germany. They play in the country's premier league, the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. History The roots of the team can be traced back to SG Nürnberg, an ice hockey cl ...

Personal life

Waite's brother, Stéphane, was the goaltending coach 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 ...

. He previously served as the Blackhawks' goaltending coach from 2005 to 2009.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Waite, Jimmy 1969 births Living people Anglophone Quebec people Canadian ice hockey goaltenders Chicago Blackhawks coaches Chicago Blackhawks draft picks Chicago Blackhawks players Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL) players ERC Ingolstadt players Essen Mosquitoes players Hershey Bears players Ice hockey people from Quebec Indianapolis Ice players Iserlohn Roosters players National Hockey League first-round draft picks Phoenix Coyotes players Saginaw Hawks players San Jose Sharks players Sportspeople from Sherbrooke Springfield Falcons players St. John's Maple Leafs players Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers players Utah Grizzlies (IHL) players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Germany Canadian ice hockey coaches