Paul Albers (born October 15, 1985) 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 ...

who played 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 ...

(AHL) with the Houston Aeros.

Playing career

Albers played

major junior Junior ice hockey is amateur-level ice hockey for 16 to 20 year-old players. National List of members of the International Ice Hockey Federation, Junior teams compete annually for the IIHF World Junior Championship. The United States men's nationa ...

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 ...

(WHL) for five seasons with the

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

Regina Pats The Regina Pats are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. Founded in 1917, the Pats are the world's oldest continuously operating major junior hockey franchise in its original location and using its original name. The ...

, and

Vancouver Giants The Vancouver Giants are a Canadian major junior ice hockey team playing based in Langley, British Columbia, and playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Founded in 2001, the Giants won the Ed Chynoweth Cup as league champions in 2006 and th ...

. As an overaged player with the Giants in 2005–06, Albers recorded a major junior career high 17 goals, 45 assists, and 62 points. He was named to the WHL West First All-Star Team, along with teammate

Dustin Slade Dustin Slade (born February 28, 1986) is a Canadian former ice hockey goaltender. Slade last played with the Halifax Wolverines of the Maritime Junior A Hockey League (MJAHL) after quitting the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League (WHL), ...

, and earned a nomination for the

Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy The Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the defenceman of the year in the Western Hockey League (WHL). It is named after one of the league's founders, Bill Hunter, who was the driving force behind the creation of the WHL. Hunter ser ...

as the league's top defenceman (awarded to

Kris Russell Kris Russell (born May 2, 1987) is a Canadians, Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played in the , for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was original ...

of the

Medicine Hat Tigers The Medicine Hat Tigers are a Canadian major junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League (WHL) based in Medicine Hat, Alberta. Established in 1970, the team is tied with the Kamloops Blazers for the most Ed Chynoweth Cups as league cha ...

). His +39 plus/minus was a league high and earned him the

WHL Plus-Minus Award The Plus-Minus Award is given annually to the player who finishes with the top plus/minus in the Western Hockey League. It has been awarded since 1987. List of winners See also *AutoPro Plaque - Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec ...

. Albers added 19 points in 18 postseason games, helping lead the Giants to a

President's Cup The Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world except Europe as that continent competes against the United States in a similar but ...

as WHL champions. Playing in the subsequent

2006 Memorial Cup The 2006 Memorial Cup was held in Moncton, New Brunswick, from May 19–28. It was the 88th annual Memorial Cup competition and determined the major junior ice hockey champion of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). The host team Moncton Wildcat ...

Moncton Moncton (; ) is the most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. Situated in the Petitcodiac River Valley, Moncton lies at the geographic centre of the The Maritimes, Maritime Provinces. Th ...

, he was named to the Tournament All-Star Team with teammate

Gilbert Brulé Gilbert Jean Marco Brulé (born January 1, 1987) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Drafted out of the Western Hockey League (WHL), Brulé played major junior with the Vancouver Giants for three seasons. After being named the ...

. Undrafted by a

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 ...

(NHL) club, Albers signed an entry-level contract with the Minnesota Wild and turned pro in the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a minor professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams across the United States and Canada. Competitively, it is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...

with the

Texas Wildcatters The Texas Wildcatters, who took their name from Texas wildcatters, were a professional minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL based in Beaumont, Texas. They played their home games at the Ford Arena. The franchise previously played in Hunting ...

in 2006–07. He recorded 43 points as a rookie and moved up to the

(AHL) with the Houston Aeros the next season. On July 31, 2009, he left the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and signed for

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

club

Nürnberg Ice Tigers The Nürnberg Ice Tigers are a professional ice hockey club located in Nuremberg, Germany. They play in the country's premier league, the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. History The roots of the team can be traced back to SG Nürnberg, an ice hockey clu ...

. Albers spent six seasons of his professional career abroad, the last three with

SG Cortina Sportivi Ghiaccio Cortina is a professional ice hockey team from Italy. They play their home games at ''Stadio Olimpico del Ghiaccio'', located in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Veneto. They currently play in the Alps Hockey League and formerly the Serie A. ...

in the Italian

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

before retiring after the 2014–15 season.

Career statistics

Awards

*Named to the WHL West First All-Star Team in

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

*Won the

in 2006 *Won a

as WHL champions with the

in 2006 *Named to the

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), a consortium of three Junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tou ...

All-Star Team in

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Albers, Paul 1985 births Living people 21st-century Canadian sportsmen Calgary Hitmen players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Germany Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Italy Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey defencemen Houston Aeros (1994–2013) players Ice hockey people from Saskatchewan Krefeld Pinguine players Nürnberg Ice Tigers players Regina Pats players SG Cortina players Sportspeople from Melville, Saskatchewan Texas Wildcatters players Tohoku Free Blades players Vancouver Giants players