John Paul Boychuk (born January 19, 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 ...

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 t ...

. Drafted 61st overall in 2002 by the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (N ...

, he played for the Avalanche, 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 ...

and

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conferenc ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

(NHL). In 2011, he was a part of the Bruins' Stanley Cup championship team. He was traded to the Islanders prior to the 2014–15 season, where he would announce retirement after six seasons with the team.

Playing career

As a youth, Boychuk played in the 1997

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 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 ...

team from

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

. Boychuk was drafted 61st overall in the

's (NHL) 2002 Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche. Prior to being drafted, he played with the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major 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 ...

's (WHL)

Calgary Hitmen The Calgary Hitmen are a major junior ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The Hitmen play in the Central Division of the Western Hockey League (WHL). They play their home games at the Scotiabank Saddledome. Bret "The Hitman" ...

. Boychuk made his professional debut with the

Hershey Bears The Hershey Bears are a professional ice hockey team based in Hershey, Pennsylvania, a town located 14 miles east of the state capital of Harrisburg. The current Bears club has played in the American Hockey League since the 1938–39 season maki ...

in the 2004–05 season. Boychuk spent the next four years in the Avalanche organization playing primarily for their

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 lea ...

(AHL) affiliates. He made his NHL debut in the 2007–08 season on January 5, 2008, against the

. Boychuk made his debut as a forward playing on the wing rather than his usual defenceman position. jboychuk

On June 24, 2008, Boychuk was traded to the

in exchange for Matt Hendricks. He was assigned to their AHL affiliate, the

Providence Bruins The Providence Bruins are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL), and are the primary development team for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). They play at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R ...

, to start the 2008–09 season and in his first week was named "AHL Player of the Week." On December 1, 2008, Boychuk was recalled to Boston and made his Bruins debut in a 3–1 victory over the

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 ...

on December 4, 2008. Boychuk was then returned to Providence for the rest of the season, where he played a break-out season, capturing the Eddie Shore Award by leading the league with 20 goals and 45 assists among defenceman and being named to the AHL's First All-Star Team. On July 1, 2009, Boychuk secured his first one-way contract when he re-signed with the Bruins for the 2009–10 season. After initially making the Bruins opening night roster, Boychuk was primarily a healthy scratch in the first months of the season. After returning from a conditioning assignment in Providence, he established himself within the Bruins as a two-way defenceman to finish with 15 points in 51 games to earn a two-year contract extension on June 24, 2010. He was a member of the Bruins when they defeated the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce ...

to win the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals. The following

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and ...

, Boychuk was rewarded with a three-year contract extension to remain a fixture on 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 ...

-winning Bruins blueline. Despite an inability to successfully defend the Stanley Cup, Boychuk produced 15 points in 77 games. During the

2012–13 NHL lock-out 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 ...

, Boychuk ventured to Europe and signed a temporary contract in Austria with

EC Red Bull Salzburg EC Red Bull Salzburg is a professional ice hockey team based in Salzburg, Austria, that currently plays in the ICE Hockey League. The club play their home games at the Eisarena Salzburg. History The history of ice hockey in Salzburg at the high ...

of the EBEL on November 16, 2012. He scored two goals and posted eight points in 15 games before he returned to the Bruins for the shortened 2012–13 season. On October 4, 2014, due to salary cap constraints, Boychuk was traded to the

in exchange for two second-round draft picks in the

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

(previously acquired from the

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

, later used to select

Brandon Carlo Brandon Carlo (born November 26, 1996) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Bruins selected him in the second round, 37th overall, of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. Born ...

) and

2016 NHL Entry Draft The 2016 NHL Entry Draft was the 54th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on June 24–25, 2016 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York. The first three selections were Auston Matthews going to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Patrik Laine go ...

s (used on

Ryan Lindgren Ryan Lindgren (born February 11, 1998) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was picked in the second round (49th overall) of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft by the Boston ...

), as well as a conditional third-rounder in the 2015 Draft (condition was never met). In his Islanders debut, Boychuk scored a goal and two assists against the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conferenc ...

. On March 12, 2015, he signed a seven-year, $42 million contract extension with the Islanders, lasting through the 2021–22 season. On November 25, 2020, the Islanders announced that Boychuk would be retiring due to an eye injury that he suffered in a game against 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 ...

on March 3, 2020. In a salary cap move, the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, alon ...

acquired Boychuk's remaining contract from the Islanders on November 4, 2021.

Personal life

In the summer of 2011, Boychuk married Sheena Burletoff. The couple have twin daughters and a son.

John Quenneville John Quenneville (born April 16, 1996) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is currently playing with the Belleville Senators of the American Hockey League (AHL). Quenneville was selected by the New Jersey Devils in the first round ...

, who was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, is his nephew by marriage.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honours

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boychuk, Johnny 1984 births Albany River Rats players Boston Bruins players Calgary Hitmen players Canadian ice hockey defencemen Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Colorado Avalanche draft picks Colorado Avalanche players EC Red Bull Salzburg players Hershey Bears players Ice hockey people from Alberta Lake Erie Monsters players Living people Lowell Lock Monsters players Moose Jaw Warriors players New York Islanders players Providence Bruins players Sportspeople from Edmonton Stanley Cup champions Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Austria