Pierre-Marc Bouchard (born April 27, 1984) 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 ...
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 ...
player. Bouchard played his junior hockey with the
Chicoutimi Saguenéens in the
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The ...
(QMJHL), and is the older brother of
Austrian Hockey League player
François Bouchard. Bouchard was selected eighth overall in the
2002 NHL Entry Draft
__NOTOC__
The 2002 NHL Entry Draft was the 40th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 22 and 23, 2002 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario. Two hundred and ninety-one players were drafted in total: 35 from the Ontario Hockey League (OHL); ...
by the
Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Ener ...
and has also featured 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) with the
New York Islanders. He is the cousin of
P. A. Parenteau
Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau (born March 24, 1983) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger.
In the National Hockey League (NHL) he played for the Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, Colorado Avalanche, Mon ...
.
Playing career
As a youth, Bouchard played in the 1998
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 the College-Français Rive-Sud
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
South Shore, Montreal.
Bouchard appeared in professional play for the first time in the
2002–03 NHL season in which he posted 7 goals and 13 assists for a total of 20 points in 50 games for the
Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Ener ...
. During the
2004–05 NHL lockout, he played for the Wild's
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 ...
(AHL) affiliate, the
Houston Aeros. Within this time period, Bouchard vastly improved his game. This was proved in the
2005–06 NHL season
The 2005–06 NHL season was the 89th season of operation (88th season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). This season succeeded the 2004–05 season which had all of its scheduled games canceled due to a labor dispute with the Natio ...
, where he posted 17 goals and 42 assists for 59 points in 80 games.
During his career, Bouchard was regarded as a creative playmaker and strong team player who often attempted unorthodox techniques during play. An example of one of these techniques was performed during an
overtime shootout attempt in which he converted by utilizing a variation of a "spin-o-rama" against
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 ...
goaltender
Nikolai Khabibulin
Nikolai Alexandrovich Khabibulin (; rus, Николай Александрович Хабибулин, p=xəbʲɪˈbulʲɪn, born January 13, 1973) is a Russian former professional ice hockey goaltender. Known by the nickname "The Bulin Wall", h ...
. He repeated this move several years later, again against Khabibulin, though he did so during regulation play on a breakaway, rather than during an overtime shootout attempt. Bouchard later credited the move to his younger brother
François Bouchard.
On July 25, 2008, Bouchard signed a five-year, $20.4 million contract with the Wild. After suffering a hit to the head late in the
2008–09 season, Bouchard missed the rest of that season and all but the season opener of the
2009–10 season with post-concussion syndrome. Bouchard resumed play on December 1, 2010, against the
Phoenix Coyotes after a 13-month absence, having missed 112 games. Bouchard scored a goal in his second game back, a 3–2 shootout loss to 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 ...
.
On July 5, 2013, Bouchard signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the
New York Islanders. On February 6, 2014, he was traded to 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 ...
(along with
Peter Regin) in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick in the
2014 NHL Entry Draft
The 2014 NHL Entry Draft was the 52nd NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on June 27–28, 2014 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The top three selections were Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart and Leon Draisaitl, going to the F ...
, and was assigned to the Blackhawks' AHL affiliate, the
Rockford IceHogs
The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...
.
On July 8, 2014, Bouchard signed a one-year contract with Swiss club
EV Zug
EV Zug is a professional men's ice hockey team from Zug, Switzerland. It is a member of the National League and plays its home games at the Bossard Arena.
History
EV Zug won its first championship in the 1997–98 season, and the second one in ...
of the
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). The contract also included an NHL out clause if he could reach a deal with a club prior to July 15. In his debut season with Zug in
2014–15, Bouchard's transition was seamless in producing as their top-line centre with 51 points in 49 games. On December 23, 2014, he signed a two-year contract extension with Zug. Team captains and coaches of the NLA teams voted Bouchard MVP of the 2015–16 regular season.
On March 18, 2016, Bouchard announced his retirement from professional hockey. Bouchard, who missed more than a year with concussions during his career, commented on his decision, saying he did not want to risk any further health issues.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
International
Awards
*
CHL Player of the Year
The CHL Player of the Year award is given out annually to the player judged to be the most outstanding in the Canadian Hockey League. It is selected from three most valuable players of the respective leagues; the Red Tilson Trophy of Ontario Hock ...
– 2001–02
*
NHL YoungStars Game The NHL YoungStars Game was an annual match held as part of the National Hockey League All-Star Game weekend activities, which ran from the 2002 All-Star Game to the 2009 game, featuring notable young NHL players and leading prospects.
Replaci ...
–
2004
*
NLA top scorer – 2015–16
2015-16 NLA MVP of the regular season
/ref>
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bouchard, Pierre-Marc
1984 births
Living people
Bridgeport Sound Tigers players
Canadian ice hockey right wingers
Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL) players
EV Zug players
French Quebecers
Houston Aeros (1994–2013) players
Ice hockey people from Quebec
Minnesota Wild draft picks
Minnesota Wild players
National Hockey League first-round draft picks
New York Islanders players
Rockford IceHogs (AHL) players
Sportspeople from Sherbrooke
Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Switzerland