Playing career Cody Hodgson

1 playing career

1.1 brampton battalion
1.2 vancouver canucks
1.3 buffalo sabres
1.4 nashville predators

playing career
brampton battalion

hodgson drafted 17th overall brampton battalion in 2006 ohl priority selection. following season, joined battalion wearing number 19 in honour of favourite hockey player growing up, steve yzerman of detroit red wings. led team in rookie scoring 23 goals , 46 points. added 4 points in 4 playoff games battalion eliminated barrie colts in first round.

in second season brampton, hodgson improved 85 points in 68 games, second in team-scoring, behind centre john hughes. chosen eastern conference squad in 2008 ohl all-star classic , scored 1 goal. hodgson added 5 goals in 5 playoff games, brampton eliminated in opening round second-straight season barrie.

heading 2008 nhl entry draft, hodgson ranked ninth among north american skaters nhl central scouting bureau. went on chosen tenth overall vancouver canucks. scouting reports , former coaches emphasized hodgson s hockey sense , character, while canucks general manager mike gillis cited leadership strong factor in drafting him. after 2007–08 season, ohl coaches had voted him smartest player in eastern conference. skating considered weakness, spent subsequent off-season training improve it.

hodgson expected compete roster spot on canucks after being drafted. signed three-year, entry-level contract worth rookie maximum of $2.625 million on october 5, 2008. however, next day, sent brampton 2008–09 season.

upon return, hodgson named ninth captain in battalion team history. succeeded forward thomas stajan, served captain start of season while hodgson competed in nhl pre-season. stajan himself had replaced defenceman john de gray, had turned professional.

hodgson battalion in november 2008

chosen represent ohl in 2008 adt canada-russia challenge in november, hodgson recorded hat-trick , added assist in first of 2 games against russia; chosen game mvp. went on complete month of november 27 points in 13 games named ohl player of month. hodgson had been chosen ohl player of week week ending on november 9 after scoring 9 points in 3 games. after second player of week recognition, scoring 7 points in 3 games week ending february 1, 2009, hodgson participated in 2009 ohl all-star classic. joined teammates matt duchene, evgeny grachev , thomas mccollum eastern conference, hodgson received player of game honours after five-point effort in 11–6 win. recorded hat-trick, along western conference representative justin dibenedetto, tie scott barney, first scored 3 goals in 1999, ohl all-star game record. hodgson s 5 points tied all-star game record points (shared 5 others). recorded record later in month 23-game point-scoring streak, registering 17 goals, 23 assists , 40 points in span. streak both battalion club record , ohl season-high.

hodgson finished season 43 goals , 92 points in 53 games, fourth in league scoring. annual ohl coaches poll distinguished hodgson smartest player (for second consecutive season), hardest worker, best on faceoffs , best penalty killer. in addition ohl first all-star team honours, awarded both william hanley trophy league s sportsmanlike player , red tilson trophy ohl player of year. media voted hodgson ahead of forward john tavares , goaltender mike murphy tilson award. hodgson distinguished on fellow major junior league mvp s brett sonne of western hockey league (whl) , nicola riopel of quebec major junior hockey league (qmjhl) chl player of year.

early in subsequent playoff season, hodgson received second ohl player of month recognition march (26 points in 11 games). helped battalion advance ohl finals, lost j. ross robertson cup windsor spitfires. led team 31 points in post-season.

following battalion s playoff elimination, hodgson assigned canucks american hockey league (ahl) affiliate, manitoba moose, 2009 playoff run. making professional debut moose in game 1 of semi-finals against houston aeros, notched assist on game s first goal first professional point. followed first professional goal next night, wrist shot against aeros goaltender nolan schaefer, in 5–2 victory. while hodgson started on fourth line moose, moved way second line fellow canucks first-round pick michael grabner. advancing past aeros, moose head coach scott arniel chose not play hodgson in game 4 of calder cup finals against hershey bears. arniel explained decision attributed fatigue on hodgson s part lengthy season in juniors (including 2009 world juniors , lengthy ohl playoff run). returned next game moose stave off elimination goal in 3–2 game 5 victory. manitoba went on lose calder cup in game 6 4–1 score. hodgson s assisted on moose s lone tally mário bližňák.

preparing canucks training camp 2009–10 season, hodgson injured while working out in summer. injury, misdiagnosed bulging disc in lower back, caused him miss 2 months of summer training. after being cleared play canucks team doctors on september 11, 2009, , specialist in toronto, hodgson again expected secure roster spot during training camp. after struggling in 6 pre-season games, returned brampton battalion on september 29 in final round of team cuts.

hodgson subsequently sought third opinion regarding @ cleveland clinic in ohio. in response, then-canucks head coach alain vigneault publicly speculated whether hodgson having hard time being cut , trying roll [blame] in direction. despite having been cleared earlier play in pre-season 2 sets of doctors, cleveland clinic judged him unfit play month. undetected nerve damage in 1 leg revealed. due hodgson s misdiagnosis, not corrected until year later, subsequent treatment , rehabilitation designed bulging disc, further aggravated real injury – muscle strain.

hodgson (right) faces off during game against barrie colts.

after missing first 50 games of 2009–10 ohl season, hodgson returned battalion line-up on february 4, 2010, recording 2 assists in 4–2 win against erie otters. following return, declared no longer training in off-season canucks director of player development dave gagner, under supervision suffered injury. combined canucks doctors initial misdiagnosis , vigneault s disparaging comments regarding hodgson following nhl pre-season, there speculation in media of possible conflict between hodgson , canucks organization. general manager mike gillis, however, dismissed such speculation.

eight days after ohl return, hodgson suffered injury, breaking toe on right foot while blocking shot against sudbury wolves. initial x-rays came negative , continued playing 9 more games before second x-ray revealed hairline fracture in 1 of right metatarsal bones. missing battalion s final 5 regular season games, finished campaign 8 goals , 20 points on 13 contests. despite missing majority of season, voted smartest player in eastern conference third consecutive year in ohl coaches poll.

hodgson returned brampton line-up opening game of 2010 playoffs, scoring game-winning goal against kingston frontenacs. in game 5 of series, scored 20th career playoff goal in ohl, surpassing wojtek wolski all-time lead among battalion players. battalion eliminated frontenacs in 7 games before being ousted in 4 games barrie in second round. hodgson completed post-season ten points in 11 games, second in team-scoring sean jones. admitted publicly after playoffs health never 100 percent during 2009–10 season.

the battalion s playoff elimination marked end of hodgson s four-year ohl career. left brampton ranked second on club s all-time scoring list behind wojtek wolski in regular season goals (114), assists (129), points (243), powerplay goals (46) , shorthanded goals (7), while ranking first in game-winning goals (23). in playoff games, left all-time leader in goals (20), assists (30) , points (50).

following 2009–10 ohl season, expected hodgson join manitoba moose second consecutive ahl playoff season. however, after being assessed canucks team doctors, broken toe judged have not yet healed , not cleared ahl assignment. hodgson additionally believed had re-injured while colliding head-first boards during game 7 of opening playoff round. underwent mri in off-season, uncovered misdiagnosed bulging disc muscle strain instead. canucks consent, trained in off-season former nhl player gary roberts, had himself overcome injury during career.

vancouver canucks

after challenging canucks roster spot once again during team s 2010 training camp, hodgson assigned manitoba moose. scored first regular season ahl goal against goaltender peter delmas of hamilton bulldogs on october 22, 2010. score tied 3–3 after overtime, hodgson added shootout goal moose win game. later, in december 2010, hodgson suffered broken orbital bone after high-sticked teammate lee sweatt during moose practice. 8 days after returning manitoba s line-up, hodgson earned first nhl call-up vancouver.

hodgson canucks in january 2012

hodgson made nhl debut on february 1, 2011, in 4–1 win against dallas stars. centring fourth line , playing on second powerplay unit, registered 2 shots in on 9 minutes of ice time. following day, scored first career nhl goal against ilya bryzgalov in 6–0 win against phoenix coyotes. in third game, recorded first career nhl assist on goal christian ehrhoff against chicago blackhawks; vancouver won 4–3. after appearing in first 5 nhl games, hodgson returned moose on february 11. team management explained media call-up means introduce him nhl play , more comfortable having him continue developing in ahl first-line minutes , bigger role moose. however, team s fourth-line centre role unfilled (alain vigneault had been using natural winger tanner glass in position), called vancouver within ten days. hodgson played 3 more games canucks before team acquired fourth-line centre maxim lapierre anaheim ducks @ trade deadline on february 28. hodgson subsequently sent down manitoba. completed professional rookie season 30 points in 52 ahl games – ranking fifth in moose scoring – , 2 points in 8 nhl games.

at end of regular season, hodgson called canucks 2011 playoffs. registered first nhl playoff point in game 2 of opening round against chicago blackhawks, assisting on goal defenceman alexander edler in 4–3 win. hodgson drew in , out of line-up throughout post-season, appearing in 12 of canucks 25-game playoff run, ended in game 7 loss boston bruins in stanley cup finals.

hodgson vancouver canucks in december 2011

during off-season, canucks centre ryan kesler underwent hip surgery, sidelining him start of 2011–12 campaign. centre position on second line vacant, hodgson competed newly acquired andrew ebbett temporarily replace kesler. after being cut in previous 3 training camps team, hodgson emerged second-line position start season. after wearing 39 on jersey previous season rookie, hodgson switched 9, number historically associated in nhl high-profile players. had spoken team trainers regarding number, decided having number have earn [by] mak[ing] team first. when kesler returned team s line-up 6 games season, hodgson moved right wing remain on second line, before settling in team s third-line centre. on december 10, 2011, hodgson left game against ottawa senators after hit opposing forward nick foligno left him unsteadily skating bench. hodgson reportedly uninjured, vigneault told media kept out of contest precautionary measures.

ranking fifth among nhl rookies in scoring january 2012, selected 1 of 12 first-year players participate in nhl all-star game superskills competition in ottawa, ontario. designated team chara during all-star draft , went on participate in 1 superskills event, shooting accuracy segment. hitting 4 targets in 20.929 seconds, lost rookie heat matt read of philadelphia flyers, had time of 14.011 seconds. hodgson s time ranked fifth among 8 players participated in event. canucks teammates henrik sedin, daniel sedin , alexander edler joined hodgson in ottawa nhl all-stars, though competed against him in superskills competition part of team alfredsson. following nhl all-star weekend, hodgson named league s rookie of month january after having recorded ten points (six goals , 4 assists) on 11 games, first among canucks , nhl first-year players.

playing behind henrik sedin , ryan kesler on canucks depth chart @ centre, hodgson earned limited ice-time canucks. mid-season, success rookie led many in media question 10–12 minutes of ice time alain vigneault routinely allotted him per game.

buffalo sabres

minutes before nhl trade deadline on february 27, 2012, hodgson dealt, along defenceman alexander sulzer, buffalo sabres in exchange fellow rookie forward zack kassian , defenceman marc-andré gragnani. canucks general manager mike gillis acknowledged trade effort balance team out trading hodgson s skill , finesse in return kassian s size , toughness. analysts tsn , vancouver sun echoed sentiment, commenting while canucks gained elements in kassian required succeed in playoffs, hodgson s skill set reflected style of play vancouver s success based upon.

hodgson taking faceoff against jordan schroeder

in telephone interview tsn shortly after trade, hodgson told reporters in shock, adding s tough leave vancouver. there were, however, reports in media hodgson had asked trade canucks, allegation mike gillis neither confirmed nor denied. reaction in vancouver media largely of surprise gillis trade away well-performing rookie. vancouver sun columnist iain macintyre declared stunner , 1 of unpopular trades in vancouver in years. sun article likened deal lopsided 1996 trade between canucks , pittsburgh penguins in 2 first-round prospects of opposite playing styles – skilled markus näslund , larger, more aggressive alek stojanov – exchanged. näslund went on become canucks all-time leading goal- , point-scorer, while latter had short career in minor leagues.

hodgson made sabres debut 2 days after trade, registering 4 shots on goal , 16 minutes of ice time in 2–0 win against anaheim ducks. after going pointless in first ten games buffalo, hodgson recorded 2 assists in 7–3 win against tampa bay lightning on march 19. 2 nights later, scored first 2 goals sabre in game against montreal canadiens. leaving vancouver gave hodgson larger on-ice role, earning 5 minutes more ice time per game sabre. completing first nhl season sabres, finished 41 points (19 goals , 22 assists) on 83 games. ranked fifth in league rookie scoring , first in power play goals (7), despite earning less ice time first-year peers (his 13 minutes , 49 seconds per game averaged least among top 14 rookie scorers). team, sabres failed qualify 2012 playoffs, finishing ninth in eastern conference. hodgson assigned ahl s rochester americans before 2012–13 nhl lock-out took effect.

hodgson signed six-year, $25.5 million extension sabres on september 11, 2013.

in second year of contract extension sabres in 2014–15 season, hodgson suffered worst season in professional career, contributing 6 goals , 13 points in 78 outings cellar-dwelling sabres. option buy-out contract @ lower rate due age, on june 29, 2015, sabres, in midst of rebuild, placed hodgson on unconditional waivers in order release free agency.

nashville predators

on opening day of free agency, hodgson signed one-year contract nashville predators. hodgson made opening night roster of predators begin 2015–16 season. used in depth role, centering fourth-line. after posting 8 points in 39 games, hodgson placed on waivers predators on january 13, 2016. hodgson passed through waivers unclaimed , subsequently assigned ahl affiliate, milwaukee admirals following day. hodgson not offered new contract club, , became unrestricted free agent on july 1. on october 3, announced hodgson had retired , working within predators organization, coaching little preds learn play program.

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