Joseph V. DiPenta (born February 25, 1979) 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 A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

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 ...

. DiPenta played 4 seasons in the

National Hockey League 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 ...

and 8 seasons in the

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 ...

. He is one of only few hockey players to have won both the

Calder Cup The Calder Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the playoff champions of the American Hockey League (AHL). It was first presented in 1937 to the Syracuse Stars. The cup is made of sterling silver mounted on a base of Brazilian mahogany. In it ...

and

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () 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, and the International Ic ...

during their career.

Early life

DiPenta was born in

Barrie Barrie is a city in Central Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay. Although it is physically in the county, Barrie is politically independent. The city is part ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

in 1979. He began playing hockey at age four and later moved to Cole Harbour,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

at age seven.

Playing career

Junior

DiPenta played for the

Smiths Falls Bears The Smiths Falls Bears are a Junior A ice hockey team based in Smiths Falls. The Bears compete in the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) as a member of the West Division. The team has been in existence since 1961, making them the oldest CCHL tea ...

of the

Central Canada Hockey League The Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL; French: ''Ligue de hockey du Canada centrale'', LHCC) is a Junior A ice hockey league in North America composed of 12 teams – all around the National Capital Region. The CCHL is one of the nine Junior ...

in the

Canadian Junior Hockey League The Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) is an association of Canadian junior ice hockey#Junior A, junior A ice hockey leagues and teams and was formed in November 1993, emerging from the Canada West Association of Junior 'A' Hockey. The champi ...

. After receiving the CJHL Scholarship award in 1997, DiPenta went on to play for

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

. During his time with Boston, he was drafted 61st overall by the

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Panthers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team initially played it ...

in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. DiPenta made his major junior debut with the

Halifax Mooseheads The Halifax Mooseheads are a Canadian junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The team was founded in 1994 and began play in the Dilio Division of the QMJHL for the 1994–95 ...

of the

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL; , LHJMQ), formerly the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). The league includes teams in Quebec ...

in 1999-00 and finished the season with 13 goals and 43 assists in 63 games. As the hosts, DiPenta and the Mooseheads played in the

2000 Memorial Cup The 2000 Memorial Cup occurred May 20–28 at the Halifax Metro Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It was the 82nd annual Memorial Cup competition and determined the major junior ice hockey champion of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). It feat ...

. Halifax was eliminated however by the OHL's

Barrie Colts The Barrie Colts are a junior ice hockey team in Ontario Hockey League (OHL), based in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. The Colts play home games at the Sadlon Arena. The Colts joined the OHL in 1995, and previously competed at lower levels of junio ...

Professional

After becoming a free agent, DiPenta signed with 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 ...

in 2000 and made his professional debut in the AHL with the Flyers affiliate team, the

Philadelphia Phantoms The Philadelphia Phantoms were a professional ice hockey team that played in the American Hockey League (AHL) from 1996 to 2009. The club was based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and played most of its home games at the Spectrum (arena), Spectrum ...

. He was then traded to the

Atlanta Thrashers The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League (NHL) on June 25, 1997, and became the League's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL sea ...

in 2002, was assigned to their AHL affiliate, the

Chicago Wolves The Chicago Wolves are a professional ice hockey team based in Rosemont, Illinois. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena ...

for the 2001-02 season and finished with 2 assists as the Wolves went on to win the 2002 Calder Cup. DiPenta made 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 Atlanta in 2002-03, scoring 2 points in just 3 games before being sent back to the Chicago Wolves for the rest of the season. On August 19, 2004, DiPenta signed with the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. The Canucks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conferenc ...

and was assigned to their AHL affiliate at the time, the

Manitoba Moose The Manitoba Moose are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL). The team plays its home games at Canada Life Centre. The fran ...

. One year later, DiPenta signed with the

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Mighty may refer to: Businesses *Mighty Audio, an American company known for its product ''Mighty'', a portable audio player *Mighty Animation, an animation studio based in Guadalajara, Mexico Films *''The Mighty'', a 1998 comedy–drama * ''The ...

for the 2005-06 season and joined the team with legends such as

Scott Niedermayer Scott Niedermayer (born August 31, 1973) is a Canadian former ice hockey defenceman and current special assignment coach of the Anaheim Ducks. He played 18 seasons and over 1,000 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New Jersey Dev ...

and

Teemu Selänne Teemu Ilmari Selänne (; born July 3, 1970) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey winger. He began his professional career in 1989–90 with Jokerit of the SM-liiga and played 21 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Winn ...

. With

Chris Pronger Christopher Robert Pronger ( or ; born October 10, 1974) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. He won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player for the 1999–2000 season and was inducted to the Hockey Hall o ...

joining the following season, the newly renamed, Anaheim Ducks captured their first

in franchise history, defeating the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. The Senators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Di ...

in five games. This gave DiPenta his first and only Stanley Cup title. DiPenta then resigned with the Ducks to a one-year contract for the following 2007-08 season. In the 2008–09 season, DiPenta signed a one-year contract with

Frölunda HC Frölunda Hockey Club, previously known as the Frölunda Indians, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club based in Gothenburg. They currently play in the highest Swedish league, the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), formerly the Elitserien, where th ...

of Elitserien. On July 11, 2009, DiPenta attempted a return to the NHL signing a one-year contract with 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 (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...

. As a free agent from the Sabres, DiPenta made a return of sorts to the Ducks organization, signing a one-year contract with the team's AHL affiliate, the

Syracuse Crunch The Syracuse Crunch are a professional ice hockey team based in Syracuse, New York. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's Tampa Bay Lightning. They play in they home games at the Upstate Medical Univer ...

, on August 26, 2010. DiPenta then retired after the season's end.

Personal life

DiPenta is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

. He has spoken about his faith publicy and currently works as a professional EOS implementer. In 2023, DiPenta was inducted into the

Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame The Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame was established on November 3, 1964, by John E. Ahern to honour outstanding athletes, teams and sport builders in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, ...

Career statistics

Awards and honors

Transactions

* June 27,

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

— Drafted by the

in the third round, 61st overall. * July 12,

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

— Signed by the

as a free agent. * March 5,

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

— Traded to the

for Jarrod Skalde. * August 19,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

— Signed by the

as a free agent. * August 11,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

— Signed by the

as a free agent. * August 14,

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

— Re-signed by the

Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Confere ...

as a free agent to a one-year contract. * July 15,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

— Signed by

as a free agent. * July 11,

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

— Signed by the

as a free agent.

References

External links

*
Joe DiPenta's Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dipenta, Joe 1979 births Living people Anaheim Ducks players Atlanta Thrashers players Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey defencemen Chicago Wolves players Florida Panthers draft picks Frölunda HC players Halifax Mooseheads players Manitoba Moose players Mighty Ducks of Anaheim players Philadelphia Phantoms players Portland Pirates players Ice hockey people from Barrie Stanley Cup champions Syracuse Crunch players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Sweden