Introduction
Joël Bouchard (born January 23, 1974) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League. He is currently the president and general manager of the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
Playing career
Bouchard last played for the American Hockey League's Hamilton Bulldogs. He was drafted by the Calgary Flames in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft, sixth round, 129th Overall. He has also played for the Flames, Nashville Predators, Dallas Stars, Phoenix Coyotes, New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Islanders. He worked for a number of years as a TV hockey analyst for Québec's Le Réseau des sports (RDS), also producing and hosting his own show called "L'Académie de hockey McDonald".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1990–91 | Longueuil College-Francais | QMJHL | 53 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 34 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | ||
| 1991–92 | Verdun College-Francais | QMJHL | 70 | 9 | 37 | 46 | 55 | 19 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 20 | ||
| 1992–93 | Verdun College-Francais | QMJHL | 60 | 10 | 49 | 59 | 126 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 1993–94 | Verdun College-Francais | QMJHL | 60 | 15 | 55 | 70 | 62 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 1993–94 | Saint John Flames | AHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1994–95 | Saint John Flames | AHL | 77 | 6 | 25 | 31 | 63 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1994–95 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Saint John Flames | AHL | 74 | 8 | 25 | 33 | 104 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 10 | ||
| 1995–96 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 76 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Saint John Flames | AHL | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 44 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 57 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 64 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 52 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 23 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Grand Rapids Griffins | IHL | 19 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 32 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Albany River Rats | AHL | 70 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Hartford Wolf Pack | AHL | 22 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | New York Rangers | NHL | 27 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | New York Rangers | NHL | 28 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Hartford Wolf Pack | AHL | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 20 | ||
| 2005–06 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | AHL | 15 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | New York Islanders | NHL | 25 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 23 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | AHL | 4 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 20 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 364 | 22 | 53 | 75 | 264 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Canada | WJC |  | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1994 | Canada | WJC | | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | |
| 1997 | Canada | WC | | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Junior totals | 14 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||||
| Senior totals | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||
Transactions
- June 26, 1998 - Claimed off waivers by the Nashville Predators from the Calgary Flames.
- March 14, 2000 - Claimed off waivers by the Dallas Stars from the Nashville Predators.
- August 31, 2000 - Signed as a free agent with the Phoenix Coyotes.
- October 25, 2001 - Signed as a free agent with the New Jersey Devils
- August 5, 2002 - Signed as a free agent with the New York Rangers.
- February 10, 2003 - Traded by the New York Rangers, along with Richard Lintner, Rico Fata, Mikael Samuelsson and future considerations to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Alexei Kovalev, Mike Wilson, Janne Laukkanen and Dan LaCouture.
- July 14, 2003 - Signed as a free agent with the Buffalo Sabres.
- October 3, 2003 - Claimed off waivers by the New York Rangers from the Buffalo Sabres.
- August 18, 2005 - Signed as a free agent with the New York Islanders.
- October 23, 2007 - Signed a minor league contract with Hamilton Bulldogs, AHL affiliate of Montreal Canadiens.