Matthew Pettinger (born October 22, 1980) 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 ...

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

. He played 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 ...

with the

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. The Lightning compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in 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 the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The Capitals compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NH ...

. Pettinger was born in

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

and raised in Victoria, British Columbia.

Playing career

As a youth, Pettinger played in the 1994

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament () is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, and give an opportunity for international competition to p ...

with a

minor ice hockey Minor ice hockey or 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 c ...

team from

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

. Pettinger was drafted in the 2nd round, 43rd overall, by the

in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. Before his professional career, Pettinger played a season and a half for the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...

Pioneers before joining the Calgary Hitmen of 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 ...

(WHL) midway through the 1999–00 season. Pettinger spent his first few seasons in the

(NHL) splitting time between the

and their

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 ...

(AHL) affiliate, the Portland Pirates, before earning a full-time roster spot with the Capitals in 2003–04. Pettinger played eight games for HDD Olimpija Ljubljana in Slovenia 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 ...

, then recorded a career-high 20 goals, 18 assists and 38 points as NHL play resumed the following season. On February 26, 2008, at the trade deadline, Pettinger was dealt from the Washington Capitals to the

for forward Matt Cooke. Beginning the 2008–09 season back in the AHL with the Canucks' minor league affiliate, 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 ...

, Pettinger was claimed on re-entry waivers by the

on October 21, 2008. He completed the season with 15 points in 59 games with the Lightning. Unable to sign with an NHL team in the 2009 off-season, Pettinger returned to the Manitoba Moose, signing a professional try-out contract on October 14, 2009. Before long, however, injuries to the Vancouver Canucks resulted in him re-signing with his former NHL club on November 2 to a one-year, two-way deal worth the league-minimum $500,000 at the NHL level. Seven games later, he was sent back to the Moose in expectation of forward

Daniel Sedin Daniel Hans Sedin (born 26 September 1980) is a Swedish ice hockey executive and former winger who played his entire 17-season National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks from 2000 to 2018. Born and raised in Örnsköldsvik ...

's return from injury after clearing waivers on November 21. On April 6, 2010 Pettinger was recalled by the Vancouver Canucks. After 422 NHL regular-season games, Pettinger finally made his post-season debut, playing a single game with the Canucks in a 3-2 victory over the

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

in the Western Conference Quarterfinals on April 15, 2010. On August 6, 2010, Pettinger left North America and signed a one-year contract with German team Kölner Haie of the DEL. After completing a second season with the Sharks, Pettinger opted to remain in the DEL for a third season; however, he signed a one-year deal with the

Hamburg Freezers The Hamburg Freezers were a professional men's ice hockey club from Hamburg, Germany that played in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. The club announced its withdrawal from the DEL and ceased operations on 24 May 2016 when Anschutz Entertainment Group, ...

on April 9, 2012.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pettinger, Matt 1980 births Living people Calgary Hitmen players Canadian ice hockey left wingers Hamburg Freezers players HDD Olimpija Ljubljana players Kölner Haie players Manitoba Moose players Ice hockey people from Edmonton Vancouver Canucks players Victoria Salsa players Washington Capitals draft picks Washington Capitals players 21st-century Canadian sportsmen