Dan Focht (born December 31, 1977) is a

Canadian Canadians () 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 their being ''C ...

former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the l ...

. He was drafted by the

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...

in the first round, 11th overall, in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft.

Playing career

After playing three seasons in the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...

, Focht joined the Coyotes'

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

affiliate, the

Springfield Falcons The Springfield Falcons were a ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) and played in Springfield, Massachusetts, at the MassMutual Center. In 2016, the Falcons' franchise was purchased by the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Arizona Co ...

, for the 1997–98 season. He did not make his

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

debut with the Coyotes, however, until the 2001–02 season, during which he appeared in eight games. After playing in ten more games for the Coyotes in the 2002–03 season, he was traded to the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

in a multi-player deal which saw

Jan Hrdina Jan Hrdina (born February 5, 1976) is a Czech Republic, Czech former professional ice hockey player. Playing career Hrdina was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft in the 5th round, 128th overall. In March 2003, the ...

go to Phoenix. Focht appeared in 64 games in two seasons with the Penguins. Most recently, Focht spent the 2005–06 season with the

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Rochester, New York. They are the American Hockey League affiliate of the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home g ...

of the AHL.

Career statistics

References

External links

* 1977 births Living people Arizona Coyotes draft picks Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey defencemen Hamilton Bulldogs (AHL) players Ice hockey people from Regina, Saskatchewan Jokerit players Mississippi Sea Wolves players NHL first-round draft picks Phoenix Coyotes players Pittsburgh Penguins players Regina Pats players Rochester Americans players Springfield Falcons players Tri-City Americans players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Finland {{canada-icehockey-defenceman-1970s-stub