Jeffrey Craig Halpern (born May 3, 1976) 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 ...

player. He played for 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 ...

twice,

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and were founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minne ...

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 ...

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its ho ...

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 ...

, and

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 ...

. In 14 NHL seasons, he had 152 goals and 221 assists (373 points) in 976 regular-season games. He also had seven goals and 14 points in 39 Stanley Cup playoff games. He was also captain of the United States national team for the 2008 World Championships. He is currently an assistant coach for the

of the NHL.

Early life

Halpern was born in

Potomac, Maryland Potomac () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, named after the nearby Potomac River. Potomac is the seventh most educated small town in America, based on percentage of residents with postsecondary deg ...

, to Gloria (née Klein) and Melvin Halpern. As a youth, he played in the 1989 and 1990

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 the Washington Capitals

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 ...

team. Halpern attended Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, which at the time did not have a hockey team. In order to pursue his dreams as a hockey player, Halpern transferred to and later graduated from St. Paul's School in

Concord, New Hampshire Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the county seat, seat of Merrimack County, New Hampshire, Merrimack County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the population was 43,976, making it the third larg ...

where he was roommates with future '' The Bachelorette'' winner Ian McKee. He then attended and graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

. There, he played four seasons of varsity hockey for the Princeton Tigers men's ice hockey team, was named an ECAC second team All-Star in 1998 and 1999, and in 1999 he scored 22 goals to tie for the most goals in the ECAC and was co-winner of Princeton's Roper Trophy for athletic and academic achievement.

Playing career

Undrafted, Halpern began his NHL career in the

1999–2000 NHL season The 1999–2000 NHL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Hockey League. With the addition of the expansion Atlanta Thrashers, 28 teams each played 82 games. This was the first season played in which teams were awarded a point for an ...

for the

. He played in 79 games, scoring 18 goals with 11 assists, and was +21. He was the first member of the Capitals to be born and raised in the Washington, D.C. area. The

2003–04 NHL season The 2003–04 NHL season was the 87th regular season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup champions were the Tampa Bay Lightning, who won the best of seven series four games to three against the Calgary Flames. For the fourth time in ...

was his highest-scoring season to date as he finished with 19 goals and 27 assists in 79 games. During the

2004–05 NHL lockout The 2004–05 NHL lockout was a labor lockout that resulted in the cancellation of the National Hockey League (NHL) season, which would have been its 88th season of play. The main dispute was the league's desire to implement a salary cap to ...

, Halpern played for the

Kloten Flyers EHC Kloten is an ice hockey team based in the city of Kloten in Switzerland. The team plays in the National League (NL). It has one of the best youth systems in Swiss ice hockey as its youth teams have won 19 championships during the last 50 year ...

and for HC Ajoie in Switzerland, and returned to the Capitals when the lockout ended. On September 23, 2005, the Washington Capitals named Halpern the twelfth team captain in franchise history. 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 ...

, he scored 11 goals, and added a career-high 33 assists. On July 5, 2006, Halpern left the Capitals 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 i ...

and signed a four-year deal with the

. On February 26, 2008, Halpern was dealt to the Tampa Bay Lightning along with Mike Smith, Jussi Jokinen, and a 2009 4th-round draft pick in exchange for

Brad Richards Bradley Glen Richards (born May 2, 1980) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Richards was drafted in the third round, 64th overall, by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft and played for the Lightning, New York ...

and

Johan Holmqvist Johan Erik Daniel Holmqvist (born May 24, 1978) is a Swedish former professional ice hockey goaltender, he most notably played in the National Hockey League and the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). Playing career He started his career in the Elit ...

. Halpern scored a goal in his Lightning debut, and added an assist. After being acquired by the Lightning, Halpern went on a huge hot streak, scoring 10 goals and 18 points in 19 games. He also led the league during the

2007–08 NHL season The 2007–08 NHL season was the 91st season of operation (90th season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). It began on September 29, 2007, and the regular season ended April 6, 2008. The Stanley Cup playoffs ended on June 4, with th ...

in games played as one of only two players to appear in 83 games, or one more than a team's full schedule, as a result of his trade to Tampa Bay. The other was

Brian Campbell Brian Wesley Campbell (born May 23, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. He played for the Buffalo Sabres, San Jose Sharks, Chicago Blackhawks and Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He won the Stanley ...

. Playing in 52 games during the 2008-09 NHL Season, Halpern scored seven goals to go with nine assists. Jeff Halpern NYR

Halpern was named the captain of the United States national team for the 2008 World Championships in Canada. Playing in a 5–4 loss in the opening round against the Canadian team on May 6, 2008, he suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament and was expected to be out of action for 6–8 months. This occurred in the same game where USA goaltender Tim Thomas was injured and had to leave the team. Halpern was traded from the Lightning to the

March 3, 2010, in exchange for

Teddy Purcell Edward Purcell (born September 8, 1985) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Los Angeles Kings, Tampa Bay Lightning, Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers. He was not dra ...

and a 3rd round draft pick in 2010. On September 7, 2010, Halpern signed a one-year contract with the

. He signed a one-year contract worth $825,000 to return to his original team the Washington Capitals on July 1, 2011. On July 9, 2012, once again as a veteran free agent, Halpern was signed to a one-year deal with the

. With the

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

season delayed due to the lockout, Halpern made his debut with the Rangers in the shortened season opener on the fourth line in a defeat against the

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 ...

on January 19, 2013. In 30 games with the Rangers as a checking line forward, Halpern produced one assist before he was claimed off waivers to return to the Montreal Canadiens on March 23, 2013. For the season, he had a goal and two assists in 46 games for the Rangers and Canadiens. In 13 NHL seasons at that point he had 147 goals and 214 assists (361 points) in 907 regular-season games. He also had seven goals and 14 points in 39 Stanley Cup playoff games. On September 16, 2013, Halpern signed a one-year contract with Finnish Elite League team TPS, and was expected to make his

SM-liiga The SM-liiga (marketed as just Liiga from 2013 on), (Finnish for ''League'') colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English or FM-ligan in Swedish, is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. It is one of the six founding leagu ...

debut in October. His contract included an NHL-clause. With the team, he scored four goals in eight games. On October 12, 2013. Halpern left the Finnish team and signed a one-year, two-way contract with the

. It would pay him $600,000 in the NHL, and $75,000 in the AHL.

Coaching career

On June 27, 2016, the Tampa Bay Lightning announced that Halpern would serve as a full-time assistant coach for the Lightning's AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. On June 22, 2018, the Tampa Bay Lightning named Halpern as assistant coach after parting ways with

Rick Bowness Richard Gary Bowness (born January 25, 1955) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who is the head coach of the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Bowness played right wing for the Atlanta Flames, Detroit R ...

. As an assistant coach, he won the

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

with the Lightning in the 2020 and 2021 seasons. On July 7, 2021, Halpern won his second Stanley Cup as an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Personal life

Halpern, who is

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, is a member of the Greater Washington (D.C.) Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. Halpern sat out a game in 2005 to observe

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur (; he, יוֹם כִּפּוּר, , , ) is the holiest day in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Primarily centered on atonement and repentance, the day' ...

. He has been married to former cheerleader Kelley Cornwell, a

convert Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

to Judaism, since June 2011. The couple have four children.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Halpern, Jeff 1976 births Living people American men's ice hockey centers Dallas Stars players Ice hockey people from Maryland Jewish American sportspeople Jewish ice hockey players EHC Kloten players Los Angeles Kings players Montreal Canadiens players New York Rangers players People from Potomac, Maryland Phoenix Coyotes players Portland Pirates players Princeton Tigers men's ice hockey players Stanley Cup champions Tampa Bay Lightning players HC TPS players Undrafted National Hockey League players Washington Capitals captains Washington Capitals players Tampa Bay Lightning coaches 21st-century American Jews