Luke Gazdic (born July 25, 1989) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger. Gazdic was selected 172nd overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft by the Dallas Stars. He played for the Edmonton Oilers and New Jersey Devils during his National Hockey League (NHL) career. Gazdic mainly played as an enforcer.[1] Since 2023, he has served as an analyst for NHL on Sportsnet.[2][3]
| Luke Gazdic | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Gazdic in February 2014 | |||
| Born | July 25, 1989 Toronto, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
| Weight | 233 lb (106 kg; 16 st 9 lb) | ||
| Position | Left wing | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | Edmonton Oilers New Jersey Devils | ||
| NHL draft | 172nd overall, 2007 Dallas Stars | ||
| Playing career | 2009–2020 | ||
Playing career
On September 29, 2013, Gazdic was claimed on waivers by the Edmonton Oilers from the Dallas Stars.[4]
Playing on opening night of the 2013–14 NHL season, Gazdic made his NHL debut on October 1, 2013,[5] and scored his first NHL goal at 2:21 of the first period past Winnipeg Jets' goalie Ondrej Pavelec, to record the first goal of the 2013–14 Edmonton Oilers season.[6] He made eight points in his time with the Oilers, playing as an enforcer.[1]
On July 5, 2016, having left the Oilers as a free agent, Gazdic agreed to a one-year, two-way deal with the New Jersey Devils.[7] He appeared in 11 games throughout the 2016–17 season with the Devils.
On July 2, 2017, Gazdic returned to Canada as a free agent in signing a one-year, two-way deal with the Calgary Flames.[8] Gazdic was reassigned to the AHL with affiliate, the Stockton Heat for the duration of the 2017–18 season. In 61 regular season games, he contributed with 1 goal and 2 points while posting 59 penalty minutes.
As a free agent from the Flames, and with no NHL contract over the summer, Gazdic joined the San Diego Gulls training camp on a try-out and later made the AHL opening night roster for the 2018–19 season.[9] He made 20 appearances with the Gulls posting 3 goals and 7 points. In the following off-season, Gazdic opted to continue his tenure with the Gulls agreeing to a one-year contract on August 14, 2019.[10] In June 2021, Gazdic announced his retirement.[11][12]
Personal life
His brothers Benjamin and Mark are also ice hockey players. His father, Mike Gazdic, was drafted in 1978 NHL Amateur Draft by the Buffalo Sabres.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2004–05 | North York Rangers U16 AAA | GTHL | 38 | 13 | 16 | 29 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | North York Rangers | OPJHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Wexford Raiders | OPJHL | 47 | 17 | 16 | 33 | 105 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 14 | ||
| 2006–07 | Erie Otters | OHL | 58 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 136 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Erie Otters | OHL | 67 | 17 | 12 | 29 | 144 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Erie Otters | OHL | 63 | 20 | 10 | 30 | 127 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | ||
| 2008–09 | Idaho Steelheads | ECHL | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | Texas Stars | AHL | 49 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 155 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Idaho Steelheads | ECHL | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Texas Stars | AHL | 72 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 110 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2011–12 | Texas Stars | AHL | 76 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 102 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Texas Stars | AHL | 59 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 80 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | ||
| 2013–14 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 67 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 127 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 40 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Oklahoma City Barons | AHL | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 29 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 11 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Albany Devils | AHL | 37 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 63 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 61 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | San Diego Gulls | AHL | 20 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 39 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2019–20 | San Diego Gulls | AHL | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 147 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 206 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
References
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database