Nelson Donald Emerson (born August 17, 1967)[1] is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger. He played for eight teams in the National Hockey League during his 12-year career, which lasted from 1990 to 2002.

Nelson Emerson
Born (1967-08-17) August 17, 1967 (age 56)
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 175 lb (79 kg; 12 st 7 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Right
Played for St. Louis Blues
Winnipeg Jets
Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes
Chicago Blackhawks
Ottawa Senators
Atlanta Thrashers
Los Angeles Kings
National team  Canada
NHL Draft 44th overall, 1985
St. Louis Blues
Playing career 1990–2002
Medal record
Representing  Canada
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1994 Italy

Playing career edit

Emerson grew up playing minor hockey in his hometown of Waterford, Ontario with the Waterford Wildcats of the OMHA. Emerson was selected in the 7th round (92nd overall) of the 1985 OHL Priority Selection by the Guelph Platers after spending the 1984-85 season with the Stratford Cullitons Jr.B. (OHA) club. Emerson, however, elected to pursue an NCAA scholarship and spent a second year playing with the Cullitons before attending Bowling Green State University (CCHA) in Ohio in 1986-87.

Emerson was drafted in the third round, 44th overall, by the St. Louis Blues in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft.

After playing four seasons at the Bowling Green State University, where Emerson was a 3-time finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, Emerson made his professional debut with the Blues' IHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen, at the end of the 1989–90 season. In his first and only full season with the Rivermen, 1990–91, he scored 36 goals and added 79 assists.

Emerson joined the Blues in the 1991–92 season, and scored 132 points in his two full seasons with them. He joined the Winnipeg Jets before the 1993–94 season, and had the most productive campaign of his NHL career that year (33 goals, 41 assists). He played one more season with the Jets before leaving for the Hartford Whalers before the 1995–96 season.

Emerson played two seasons in Hartford, then moved along with the franchise as it became the Carolina Hurricanes in the 1997–98 season. During the 1998–99 season, Emerson became a member of the Chicago Blackhawks. Later in the same season, the Blackhawks traded him to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Chris Murray.

Emerson joined the expansion Atlanta Thrashers in the 1999–2000 season, and played 58 games with them. He was traded late in the season, along with Kelly Buchberger, to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Donald Audette and Frantisek Kaberle. Emerson would remain with the Kings until retiring following the 2001–02 season.

Emerson appeared in 771 NHL games in his career, scoring 195 goals and adding 293 assists. He also appeared in 40 Stanley Cup playoff games, scoring seven goals and recording 15 assists.

Emerson was hired by the Los Angeles Kings as a video and player development consultant and, after 2 seasons, was promoted to assistant coach/development coordinator on August 4, 2008.[2][3] He is currently Director of Player Personnel for the Kings.

Career statistics edit

Regular season and playoffs edit

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1984–85 Stratford Cullitons MWJHL 40 23 38 61 70
1985–86 Stratford Cullitons MWJHL 39 54 58 112 91
1986–87 Bowling Green Falcons CCHA 45 26 35 61 28
1987–88 Bowling Green Falcons CCHA 45 34 49 83 54
1988–89 Bowling Green Falcons CCHA 44 22 46 68 46
1989–90 Bowling Green Falcons CCHA 44 30 52 82 42
1989–90 Peoria Rivermen IHL 3 1 1 2 0
1990–91 Peoria Rivermen IHL 73 36 79 115 91 17 9 12 21 16
1990–91 St. Louis Blues NHL 4 0 3 3 2
1991–92 St. Louis Blues NHL 79 23 36 59 66 6 3 3 6 21
1992–93 St. Louis Blues NHL 82 22 51 73 62 11 1 6 7 6
1993–94 Winnipeg Jets NHL 83 33 41 74 80
1994–95 Winnipeg Jets NHL 48 14 23 37 26
1995–96 Hartford Whalers NHL 81 29 29 58 78
1996–97 Hartford Whalers NHL 66 9 29 38 34
1997–98 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 81 21 24 45 50
1998–99 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 35 8 13 21 36
1998–99 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 27 4 10 14 13
1998–99 Ottawa Senators NHL 3 1 1 2 2 4 1 3 4 0
1999–2000 Atlanta Thrashers NHL 58 14 19 33 47
1999–2000 Los Angeles Kings NHL 5 1 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
2000–01 Los Angeles Kings NHL 78 11 11 22 54 13 2 2 4 4
2001–02 Los Angeles Kings NHL 41 5 2 7 25 5 0 1 1 2
NHL totals 771 195 293 488 575 40 7 15 22 33

International edit

Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
1992 Canada WC 3 0 1 1 2
1994 Canada WC 8 2 2 4 4
1998 Canada WC 6 2 1 3 2
Senior totals 17 4 4 8 8

Awards and honours edit

Award Year
All-CCHA First Team 1987–88 [4]
AHCA West Second-Team All-American 1987–88 [5]
All-CCHA Second Team 1988–89 [4]
All-CCHA First Team 1989–90 [4]
AHCA West First-Team All-American 1989–90 [5]
IHL Gary F. Longman Memorial Trophy (Most Outstanding Rookie) 1990–91

References edit

  1. ^ Cole, Stephen (2006). The Canadian Hockey Atlas. Doubleday Canada. ISBN 978-0-385-66093-8.
  2. ^ "Kings Announce Coaching Staff". LAKings.com. Los Angeles Kings. 10 July 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  3. ^ "Kings Announce Coaching Changes". LAKings.com. Los Angeles Kings. 4 August 2008. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  4. ^ a b c "CCHA All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  5. ^ a b "Men's Ice Hockey Award Winners" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved June 11, 2013.

External links edit

Awards and achievements
Preceded by CCHA Rookie of the Year
1986–87
Succeeded by