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Michael Zigomanis

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Michael Zigomanis
Zigomanis with the Toronto Marlies in 2012
Born (1981-01-17) January 17, 1981 (age 43)
North York, Ontario, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Right
Played for Carolina Hurricanes
St. Louis Blues
Phoenix Coyotes
Pittsburgh Penguins
Djurgårdens IF
Toronto Maple Leafs
NHL draft 64th overall, 1999
Buffalo Sabres
46th overall, 2001
Carolina Hurricanes
Playing career 2001–2014

Michael Zigomanis (born January 17, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Zigomanis was drafted twice. In the 1999 NHL Entry Draft he was selected 64th overall by the Buffalo Sabres, but was not signed. He re-entered for the 2001 NHL Entry Draft and was selected by the Carolina Hurricanes 46th overall.

Zigomanis was born in North York, Ontario, but grew up in Markham, Ontario.

Early life

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He was born to Macedonian parents who emigrated to Canada from Kastoria, Greece.[1] As a youth, he played in the 1995 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from North York.[2] Zigomanis attended Father Michael McGivney Catholic Academy in Markham, graduating in 2000.[3]

Playing career

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Zigomanis played four seasons of junior hockey with the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He was chosen in the 2nd round, 25th overall by the Frontenacs in the 1997 OHL Priority Selection Draft. In his first season with the Frontenacs, he scored 23 goals and 74 points in 62 games. His numbers increased the following year, collecting 29 goals and 85 points. His third year saw another increase, marking 40 goals and 94 points, good for fifth best in the league. The 2000–01 season was his last in the OHL, where he scored 40 goals and 77 points in 52 games. He finished his career with the Frontenacs with 330 points, fourth on the team's all-time scoring list. He represented Canada at the 2001 World Junior Hockey Championships, where he scored 2 goals and 6 points on the way to third place (bronze medal).[4]

Zigomanis was originally drafted in the 2nd round, 64th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. Zigomanis agreed to terms with the Sabres just before the 5 pm deadline on June 1, 2001, but there was a typographical error in his contract that was faxed to the league offices. By the time the error was discovered, the deadline had passed, and the NHL ruled that he would have to re-enter the NHL draft, as he had not been signed before the deadline.[5] He re-entered the draft and was selected in the 2nd round again, this time 46th overall by Carolina Hurricanes in 2001.[6] Carolina signed Zigomanis to a three-year contract on October 4, 2001, and he was assigned to the Hurricanes' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lowell Lock Monsters.[7]

On January 30, 2006, Zigomanis, Jesse Boulerice, Magnus Kahnberg, first round and fourth round picks in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft and a fourth round pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft were traded to the St. Louis Blues for Doug Weight and Erkki Rajamaki along with some retention of Weight's salary.[8][9] He finished the season splitting time with the Blues and their AHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen.[6]

In the 2006 offseason, Zigomanis left the Blues and signed a two-year contract with the Phoenix Coyotes.[6] He became known as a faceoff specialist with the Coyotes, finished seventh best in the league. The Coyotes signed him to a contract extension through the 2008–09 season on February 16, 2007.[10] On October 9, 2008, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for future considerations.[11][12] While in Pittsburgh, Zigomanis provided faceoff and penalty killing expertise.[13] He played 22 games with the Penguins before he seriously injured his shoulder in December. Zigomanis was only cleared to play in the Stanley Cup finals.[13] He won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins that year.[14]

An unrestricted free agent after his time in Pittsburgh, Zigomanis signed a professional tryout with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL on October 19, 2009.[15] Zigomanis played only seven games but managed to score 13 points (all assists) before leaving for Europe on November 10, 2009, signing a contract for the rest of the 2009–10 season with Djurgårdens IF of the Swedish Elitserien.[16]

On July 15, 2010, Zigomanis signed as a free agent to return to Toronto, signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.[17] On July 12, 2011, Zigomanis signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Maple Leafs worth $665,000 at the NHL level and $300,000 at the AHL level.[18] After recording professional career highs of 61 points during the 2011–12 season, Zigomanis opted to remain with the Marlies and was re-signed to a one-year AHL contract as a free agent on July 30, 2012.[19]

On July 10, 2013, Zigomanis signed an AHL-only contract with the Rochester Americans, the minor-league affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres, the team that drafted him in 1999.[20]

Brand ambassador

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After joining the Toronto Maple Leafs, Cheetah energy drinks CEO Frank D'Angelo signed Zigomanis to a promotional contract. However, after Zigomanis was demoted to the club's minor league affiliate, and nude photos of the player which he had sent to an ex-girlfriend surfaced online, D'Angelo cited breach of contract for allegedly not living up to a morals clause in the contract. D'Angelo released Zigomanis from his contract as a "brand ambassador" for Cheetah. Zigomanis sued for breach of contract and won a settlement.[21][22][23]

Broadcasting career

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Zigomanis worked for the Toronto sports radio station Sportsnet 590 The Fan co-hosting the morning show from September 2019[24] until September 2021.[25][26]

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
1996–97 Wexford Raiders MetJHL 40 37 48 85 23 — — — — —
1997–98 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 62 23 51 74 30 12 1 6 7 2
1998–99 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 67 29 56 85 36 5 1 7 8 2
1999–2000 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 59 40 54 94 49 5 0 4 4 0
2000–01 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 52 40 37 77 44 — — — — —
2001–02 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 79 18 30 48 24 5 1 1 2 2
2002–03 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 38 13 18 31 19 — — — — —
2002–03 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 19 2 1 3 0 — — — — —
2003–04 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 61 17 35 52 56 — — — — —
2003–04 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 17 0 3 3 2 — — — — —
2004–05 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 76 29 31 60 71 11 4 7 11 8
2005–06 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 21 1 0 1 4 — — — — —
2005–06 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 11 6 7 13 19 — — — — —
2005–06 St. Louis Blues NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2005–06 Peoria Rivermen AHL 28 10 18 28 16 4 2 4 6 6
2006–07 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 75 14 9 23 46 — — — — —
2007–08 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 33 2 1 3 6 — — — — —
2007–08 San Antonio Rampage AHL 27 10 15 25 14 7 0 5 5 10
2008–09 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 22 2 4 6 27 — — — — —
2009–10 Toronto Marlies AHL 7 0 13 13 0 — — — — —
2009–10 Djurgårdens IF SEL 27 4 7 11 12 5 0 0 0 8
2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 8 0 1 1 4 — — — — —
2010–11 Toronto Marlies AHL 64 14 33 47 66 — — — — —
2011–12 Toronto Marlies AHL 68 19 42 61 52 13 4 2 6 10
2012–13 Toronto Marlies AHL 65 7 28 35 42 9 2 7 9 8
2013–14 Rochester Americans AHL 50 12 17 29 32 — — — — —
AHL totals 574 155 287 442 411 49 13 26 39 44
NHL totals 197 21 19 40 89 — — — — —
Medal record
Representing  Canada
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2001 Moscow

International

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Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
1999 Canada U18 1st place, gold medalist(s) 3 2 0 2 0
2001 Canada WJC 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 7 2 2 4 0
Junior totals 10 4 2 6 0

Awards and honours

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Award Year
OHL
CHL Top Prospects Game 1999
William Hanley Trophy (Most Gentlemanly Player) 2000
AHL
All-Star Game 2004
Yanick Dupre Memorial Award 2013
NHL
Stanley Cup (Pittsburgh Penguins) 2009

References

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  1. ^ "Macedonian heritage alive through Stamkos and NHL brass". The King Sentinel. June 5, 2008. Archived from the original on December 23, 2009. Retrieved January 2, 2009.
  2. ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  3. ^ "Queen's University, Canada". alumnius.net. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  4. ^ Jackson, Jordan (August 14, 2018). "Alumni Profile: Mike Zigomanis". Kingston Frontenacs. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
  5. ^ "Three prospects must re-enter NHL draft". USA Today. June 7, 2001. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  6. ^ a b c "Coyotes Sign Center Mike Zigomanis". Phoenix Coyotes. July 21, 2006. Retrieved January 6, 2023 – via NHL.com.
  7. ^ "Hurricanes Sign Zigomanis, Zepp, Murphy". Carolina Hurricanes. October 6, 2001. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
  8. ^ "Hurricanes acquire Weight from Blues". ESPN. Associated Press. January 30, 2006. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
  9. ^ "Mike Zigomanis". NHL Trade Tracker. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
  10. ^ "Tellqvist, Zigomanis re-sign with Coyotes". TwinCities Pioneer Press. Associated Press. February 16, 2007. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  11. ^ "Phoenix trades Zigomanis to Pittsburgh". NHL.com. Associated Press. October 9, 2008. Retrieved October 10, 2008.
  12. ^ "Pittsburgh Penguins Acquire Forward Mike Zigomanis From Phoenix In Exchange For Future Considerations". Pittsburgh Penguins. October 9, 2008. Archived from the original on October 10, 2008. Retrieved October 10, 2008.
  13. ^ a b "Penguins' best faceoff man fit for duty". CBC Sports. June 3, 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  14. ^ "Stanley Cup making stop in Markham". Markham Economist & Sun. July 20, 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2023 – via yorkregion.com.
  15. ^ "Marlies Sign Zigomanis to PTO". Toronto Marlies. October 19, 2009. Archived from the original on October 23, 2009. Retrieved October 19, 2009.
  16. ^ "Mike Zigomanis klar för Djurgården". difhockey.se (in Swedish). Djurgårdens IF Hockey. November 10, 2009. Archived from the original on November 13, 2009. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  17. ^ "Maple Leafs sign Zigomanis, Crabb and Richmond". The Sports Network. July 15, 2010. Retrieved July 16, 2010.
  18. ^ "Leafs give Zigomanis another shot". Toronto Sun. July 12, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  19. ^ "Marlies re-sign Zigomanis, Acton, add Yeo". Toronto Marlies. July 30, 2012. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  20. ^ "Amerks sign Zigomanis, Roy and Lepkowski to AHL contracts". Rochester Americans. July 10, 2013. Archived from the original on December 28, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
  21. ^ Hopper, Tristin (November 17, 2016). "The Maple Leaf vs. The energy drink tycoon: Hijacked penis photos no reason to fire Zigomanis, judge rules". National Post. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  22. ^ Pazzano, Sam (November 17, 2016). "Former Leaf Mike Zigomanis wins suit against Frank D'Angelo". The Toronto Sun. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  23. ^ Westhead, Rick (November 17, 2016). "Former Leaf player, fired for morals clause, wins lawsuit". TSN.ca. The Sports Network. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  24. ^ Contes, Brandon (September 26, 2019). "Sportsnet 590 The Fan Shuffles Lineup Again". barrettsportsmedia.com. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  25. ^ Fitz-Gerald, Sean (September 29, 2021). "What the dramatic personnel and format changes mean for Sportsnet 590 The Fan". The Athletic. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  26. ^ Fitz-Gerald, Sean (April 13, 2022). "Here is what happened to Scott MacArthur after Sportsnet cleaned house at The Fan 590". The Athletic. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
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