Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers (born May 15, 1984) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks. Deslauriers was selected by the Oilers in the second round of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft with the 31st overall pick.

Jeff Deslauriers
With the 2010–11 Oklahoma City Barons.
Born (1984-05-15) May 15, 1984 (age 40)
Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec,
Canada
Height 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight 201 lb (91 kg; 14 st 5 lb)
Position Goaltender
Caught Right
Played for Edmonton Oilers
Anaheim Ducks
Dinamo Riga
Augsburger Panther
NHL draft 31st overall, 2002
Edmonton Oilers
Playing career 2004–2016

Playing career

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Junior and minor league career

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Deslauriers was selected from Chicoutimi of the QMJHL, where he was the starting goaltender for three seasons. The 2004–05 season was Deslauriers' first professional experience. He split time between the Edmonton Road Runners of the AHL and the Greenville Grrrowl of the ECHL. It was not a good season for Deslauriers, as he fought injury problems, and played for an AHL team that failed to make the playoffs. In the 2005–06 season, due to the Oilers not having a farm team, Deslauriers only played 13 games and struggled, before being sent down once again to Greenville. The 2006–07 season was a turnaround, however. Deslauriers was back in the AHL with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and eventually became the team's starting goaltender. He played well, and ranked among the top goaltenders in the league.

 
Deslauriers in an Edmonton Oilers uniform in 2009

Edmonton Oilers (2008–10)

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On October 17, 2008, Deslauriers earned his first NHL win in a 4–3 victory over the Calgary Flames. Over the course of his first four appearances, he put up sparkling numbers, including a 3–0 record with a 1.50 goals allowed average and a .951 save percentage. However, after two games where he allowed four goals or more, and as a result of the three-headed goaltending carousel of Dwayne Roloson and Mathieu Garon, he was relegated to the bench and occasional rehab stints in the AHL. With the trade of Garon to the Pittsburgh Penguins, however, he regained his full-time backup position as Edmonton's number two goalie.

Following the 2008–09 season, Roloson left the Oilers via free agency, and the Oilers replaced him with veteran goalie Nikolai Khabibulin. Deslauriers was to be his back-up, and he started off the season with limited playing time. He played just three times in Edmonton's first 21 games, but posted respectable stats, going 1–1–1 with a 1.96 goals allowed average and a .937 save percentage. Shortly after his third start, Khabibulin was injured and Deslauriers went on to start 14 straight games in his absence, but with less impressive statistics. In January 2010, the Oilers announced that Khabibulin would undergo season ending surgery, thrusting Deslauriers into the starting role. After an unspectacular year as the Oilers number one goalie, Deslauriers had to battle in training camp for the back-up role against Devan Dubnyk and former NHLer Martin Gerber. At first the Oilers decided to keep both Dubnyk and Deslauriers, though Deslauriers did not receive any playing time. On November 1, 2010, Deslauriers was placed on waivers leaving Devan Dubnyk as the primary backup for the Oilers. Deslauriers was assigned to the Oklahoma City Barons where he was the number two goalie behind Gerber.

Deslauriers played for Team Canada at the 2010 Spengler Cup where he was named top goaltender.

Anaheim Ducks (2011–12), AHL return, European career

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On July 12, 2011, Deslauriers signed a two-year contract with the Anaheim Ducks. On January 10, 2012, he earned his first win as a Duck, a 5–2 win over the Dallas Stars.[1]

After playing the entirety of the 2013–14 season in the AHL with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Deslauriers as a free agent agreed to attend the Los Angeles Kings 2014 training camp on a try-out contract on September 2, 2014.[2] He was released from his tryout by the Kings on September 26, 2014.[3]

After one season in the Kontinental Hockey League with Latvian club Dinamo Riga, Deslauriers continued his career abroad by signing a one-year contract with German club Augsburger Panther of the DEL on June 19, 2015.[4]

Upon his retirement, Deslauriers resided in Edmonton and worked in commercial real estate.[5]

Career statistics

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L T/OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2001–02 Chicoutimi Saguenéens QMJHL 51 28 20 1 2909 170 1 3.51 .900 4 0 3 197 20 0 6.09 .844
2002–03 Chicoutimi Saguenéens QMJHL 54 18 24 1 2582 164 0 3.81 .888 4 0 4 240 15 0 3.76 .904
2003–04 Chicoutimi Saguenéens QMJHL 50 21 20 6 2701 129 1 2.87 .916 18 10 8 956 50 1 3.14 .907
2004–05 Edmonton Roadrunners AHL 22 6 13 2 1258 62 0 2.96 .888
2004–05 Greenville Grrrowl ECHL 11 7 3 1 673 1 26 2.32 .940
2005–06 Hamilton Bulldogs AHL 13 4 7 0 666 35 0 3.15 .897
2005–06 Greenville Grrrowl ECHL 6 2 4 0 335 17 0 3.05 .899
2006–07 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 40 22 12 3 2231 92 4 2.47 .908
2007–08 Springfield Falcons AHL 57 26 23 5 3045 147 0 2.90 .912
2008–09 Edmonton Oilers NHL 10 4 3 0 540 30 0 3.34 .901
2008–09 Springfield Falcons AHL 5 1 4 0 286 13 0 2.73 .906
2009–10 Edmonton Oilers NHL 48 16 28 4 2798 152 3 3.26 .901
2010–11 Oklahoma City Barons AHL 35 17 13 4 1945 91 3 2.81 .906 1 0 1 20 3 0 9.00 .500
2011–12 Syracuse Crunch AHL 16 6 9 0 864 54 0 3.75 .881
2011–12 Anaheim Ducks NHL 4 3 1 0 241 11 0 2.74 .902
2012–13 Norfolk Admirals AHL 2 1 1 0 120 7 0 3.51 .889
2012–13 Fort Wayne Komets ECHL 15 6 8 1 867 47 0 3.25 .902
2012–13 Houston Aeros AHL 3 1 1 0 103 2 1 1.17 .967
2013–14 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 40 20 15 3 2140 92 1 2.58 .895
2014–15 Dinamo Riga KHL 13 4 8 1 743 33 1 2.66 .903
2015–16 Augsburger Panther DEL 35 14 18 0 1836 105 0 3.43 .888
2016–17 Lacombe Generals ChHL 3 2.98 .917
NHL totals 62 23 32 4 3578 193 3 3.24 .901

References

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  1. ^ "Ducks sign Deslauriers". Fox Sports. July 12, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2011.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ "Training camp at Staples, Deslauriers try-out". lakingsinsider.com. September 2, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  3. ^ "Kings announced player transactions". LA Kings Official Website. September 26, 2014.
  4. ^ "Jeff Deslauriers new number 1 goalie" (in German). Augsburger Panther. June 19, 2015. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
  5. ^ "Jeff Deslauriers Joins Cushman & Wakefield Edmonton". March 21, 2017. Archived from the original on March 27, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
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