Thomas Chabot (/ʃəˈbɒt/ shə-BOT; born January 30, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and alternate captain for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). Chabot was drafted in the first round (18th overall) by the Senators in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.[1]

Thomas Chabot
Chabot with the Ottawa Senators in 2022
Born (1997-01-30) January 30, 1997 (age 27)
Sainte-Marie, Quebec, Canada
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NHL team Ottawa Senators
National team  Canada
NHL draft 18th overall, 2015
Ottawa Senators
Playing career 2016–present

In January 2017, Chabot became the first defenceman to be named the most valuable player of the World Junior Championships.[2]

Playing career

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Chabot played in the 2009 and 2010 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with his minor ice hockey team from the Beauce-Nord area.[3] He was drafted by the Saint John Sea Dogs in the second round (22nd overall) of the 2013 QMJHL Entry Draft, and he played 55 games with the Sea Dogs during the 2013–14 QMJHL season. The following season his outstanding play[4] was rewarded when he was selected to play in the 2015 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.[5]

Chabot attended the Senators' 2015–16 rookie and main training camps after taking part in Hockey Canada's National Team Summer Showcase held in Calgary during late-summer, playing in three preseason games with Ottawa.[6] He was returned to Saint John on September 30, 2015, the same day he signed a three-year entry-level contract with Ottawa.[6] A year later, Chabot attended the Senators' 2016–17 training camp and made the team, making his NHL debut on October 18, 2016 versus the Arizona Coyotes.[7] He was later returned to the Sea Dogs for his final major junior season after playing in one game with the Senators.[8] At the conclusion of the 2016–17 season, Chabot earned the Sea Dogs' Top Defenceman Award and the Fans Choice Award.[9]

To start the 2017–18 season, Chabot was sent to Ottawa's AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators, where he recorded two goals and five assists in 12 games before being recalled by Ottawa in November.[10] He scored his first NHL goal, along with two assists, in a 6–5 win over the New York Islanders on December 1, 2017.[11] In his first NHL season, he finished with 9 goals and 16 assists for 25 points in 63 games, while averaging less than 18 minutes of ice-time per game.[12]

Chabot had a breakout season in 2018–19, finishing with 55 points in 70 games, the 10th-highest among NHL defensemen. As the season progressed, his ice-time jumped to an average of 25 minutes per game and he assumed first-pairing duties.[12] He was one of only three defensemen under the age of 25 to score 50 points or more, along with Jacob Trouba and Morgan Rielly.[13] That season, Chabot was named to the NHL All-Star Game.[14] With Ottawa's top two scorers, Mark Stone and Matt Duchene, both traded at the deadline, Chabot finished the season as the team's leading scorer.[12] Following the season, hockey writers began listing Chabot as one of the NHL's top defensemen,[12] and in September 2019, he signed an eight-year, $64 million contract extension with the Senators.[15]

In the seasons that followed, Chabot was the keystone player in Ottawa's defence corps, which was otherwise considered thin by many commentators. As a result he logged very high minutes per game. In the 2021–22 season he averaged 26:23 minutes of ice time per game, the highest for any player on any team in the league, until a March 16, 2022 hand injury caused by Columbus Blue Jackets forward Sean Kuraly ruled him out for the remainder of the year.[16] During the 2022–23 season, Chabot struggled, with growing criticism of his game, though some argued that injury and overuse have affected his play.[17] Chabot missed time with injury again that season, suffering a concussion in November,[18] and an upper body injury in March that ended his season prematurely.[19]

International play

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Medal record
Representing   Canada
Ice hockey
World Championships
  2019 Slovakia
  2022 Finland
World Junior Championships
  2017 Canada
IIHF World U18 Championship
  2015 Switzerland

Chabot played at the 2015 IIHF World U18 Championships where he won a bronze medal with Team Canada.[20][21]

On December 1, 2015, Chabot was invited to the Team Canada selection camp for the 2016 World Junior Hockey Championships.[22] He made the team and finished with three points in five games, but Canada finished sixth.[23] Chabot was selected as an alternate captain for Team Canada at the 2017 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.[24] He helped guide Canada to a silver medal and was one of the top five scorers in the tournament.[25] Chabot was named the tournament MVP and the best defenceman at the tournament.[23]

On April 12, 2018, he was one of the 18 players to be named to the 2018 IIHF World Championship to represent Canada.[26] He finished the tournament with 1 point in 6 games while Team Canada finished fourth.[27] On April 29, 2019, he was again named to represent Canada at the 2019 IIHF World Championship.[28] He helped Canada progress through to the playoff rounds before losing the final to Finland to finish with the silver medal on May 26, 2019.[29] He was named captain of Team Canada for the 2022 IIHF World Championship.[30] Team Canada finished with the silver medal, after losing the final game 4–3 in overtime to Finland.[31]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2012–13 Lévis Commandeurs QMAAA 41 6 20 26 22 4 1 1 2 8
2013–14 Saint John Sea Dogs QMJHL 55 1 21 22 36
2014–15 Saint John Sea Dogs QMJHL 66 12 29 41 62 5 0 1 1 6
2015–16 Saint John Sea Dogs QMJHL 47 11 34 45 79 17 3 18 21 13
2016–17 Saint John Sea Dogs QMJHL 34 10 35 45 43 18 5 18 23 12
2016–17 Ottawa Senators NHL 1 0 0 0 0
2017–18 Belleville Senators AHL 13 2 5 7 8
2017–18 Ottawa Senators NHL 63 9 16 25 14
2018–19 Ottawa Senators NHL 70 14 41 55 32
2019–20 Ottawa Senators NHL 71 6 33 39 42
2020–21 Ottawa Senators NHL 49 6 25 31 36
2021–22 Ottawa Senators NHL 59 7 31 38 26
2022–23 Ottawa Senators NHL 68 11 30 41 52
2023–24 Ottawa Senators NHL 51 9 21 30 22
NHL totals 432 62 197 259 224

International

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Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2015 Canada U18   7 1 4 5 0
2016 Canada WJC 6th 5 0 3 3 4
2017 Canada WJC   7 4 6 10 8
2018 Canada WC 4th 6 0 1 1 0
2019 Canada WC   10 2 5 7 8
2022 Canada WC   10 0 4 4 6
Junior totals 19 5 13 18 12
Senior totals 26 2 10 12 14

Awards and honours

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Award Year
QMJHL
CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game 2015 [32]
Second All-Star Team 2016
First All-Star Team 2017
Emile Bouchard Trophy 2017
Paul Dumont Trophy 2017
Guy Lafleur Trophy 2017 [33]
NHL
NHL All-Star Game 2019
International
WJC MVP 2017 [2]
WJC Best Defenseman 2017
WJC All-Star Team 2017
WJC All-Decade Team 2019 [34]

References

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  1. ^ "Thomas Chabot the next ones, NHL 2015 Draft prospect profile". hockeywriters.com. May 15, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Pronman, Corey [@coreypronman] (January 5, 2017). "Chabot is the first defenseman to ever be named MVP of the World Juniors. Award started in 2002" (Tweet). Retrieved January 7, 2017 – via Twitter.
  3. ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
  4. ^ "CHL/NHL top prospects game rosters set". nhl.com. National Hockey League. January 4, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  5. ^ "Thomas Chabot prospect profile". hockeysfuture.com. June 20, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  6. ^ a b "News Release: Senators sign defenceman Thomas Chabot to entry-level contract". NHL.com. Ottawa. September 30, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
  7. ^ Garrioch, Bruce (October 18, 2016). "Senators defenceman Thomas Chabot makes NHL debut". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  8. ^ Warren, Ken (November 2, 2016). "Thomas Chabot assigned to QMJHL's Saint John Sea Dogs by Ottawa Senators". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  9. ^ Roszell, Tim (March 20, 2017). "Highmore Named Sea Dogs MVP". Saint John Sea Dogs. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  10. ^ "Senators recall defenceman Thomas Chabot from AHL". Sportsnet. November 20, 2017. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  11. ^ "Chabot, Sens outduel Islanders in offensive shootout". CBC Sports. December 1, 2017. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  12. ^ a b c d McCardle, Tommy (August 29, 2019). "Ranking the top 25 NHL defensemen in 2019-20". The Sporting News. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  13. ^ Obernauer, Michael (October 5, 2019). "Game Day: Georgie Jumps In as Rangers Hit the Road". National Hockey League. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
  14. ^ Medaglia, Craig (January 24, 2019). "Chabot on his way to All-Star Weekend". Ottawa Senators. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  15. ^ Ottawa Senators (September 19, 2019). "Ottawa Senators sign Thomas Chabot to an eight-year contract extension" (Press release). Ottawa Senators – via nhl.com.
  16. ^ "Senators' Thomas Chabot suffers fractured hand vs. Blue Jackets, likely to miss rest of season". The Athletic. March 17, 2022. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  17. ^ Warne, Steve (April 25, 2023). "Will Thomas Chabot Reclaim His Role as Ottawa's Number One Defenceman This Fall?". The Hockey News. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  18. ^ "Senators defenceman Thomas Chabot out at least a week with concussion". Sportsnet. November 13, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  19. ^ "Senators D Thomas Chabot likely to miss rest of season". ESPN. Reuters. March 29, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  20. ^ "Thomas Chabot draft prospect detail". National Hockey League. June 20, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  21. ^ "Canada's national U18 team wins bronze at World Championships". Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. May 2, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  22. ^ Neysmith, Graham. "Five QMJHL Players Invited to World Junior Selection Camp". The Q News. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
  23. ^ a b Patterson, Kelsey (January 6, 2017). "Canadian Thomas Chabot named MVP at world juniors". The Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  24. ^ "Dylan Strome, Mathew Barzal, Thomas Chabot Selected to Lead Team Canada at 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship". Hockey Canada. December 19, 2016. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  25. ^ "WJC 2017: Finals, Team Canada earns silver medal in shootout loss". Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. January 6, 2017. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  26. ^ "Team Canada names 18 to WHC roster". TSN. April 12, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  27. ^ "Canada Finishes Fourth at 2018 IIHF World Championship". Hockey Canada. May 20, 2018. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  28. ^ "18 CHL Grads to Represent Canada at 2019 IIHF World Hockey Championship". Canadian Hockey League. April 29, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  29. ^ "Finland defeats Canada for Gold Medal at World Championship". TSN. May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  30. ^ "Canada names Senators' Thomas Chabot captain for World Championship". Sportsnet. May 12, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  31. ^ "Finland defeats Canada in OT to win 2022 IIHF World Championship". The Athletic. May 29, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  32. ^ "Zboril and Chabot to play in top prospects game". Saint John Sea Dogs. January 5, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  33. ^ "Sea Dogs crowned Presidents Cup Champs again!". QMJHL. May 10, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  34. ^ "IIHF - The World Junior All-Decade Team". IIHF International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
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Awards and achievements
Preceded by Ottawa Senators first round draft pick
2015
Succeeded by