Brian Boucher facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Brian Boucher |
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Boucher with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2011
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| Born | January 2, 1977 Woonsocket, Rhode Island, U.S. |
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| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Caught | Left | ||
| Played for | Philadelphia Flyers Phoenix Coyotes HV71 Calgary Flames Chicago Blackhawks Columbus Blue Jackets San Jose Sharks Carolina Hurricanes EV Zug |
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| National team |  United States |
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| NHL Draft | 22nd overall, 1995 Philadelphia Flyers |
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| Playing career | 1997–2013 | ||
Brian Boucher (born January 2, 1977) is a former American professional ice hockey goaltender. After retiring as a player, he became a game analyst. You can see him on national TNT games and for the Philadelphia Flyers on NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Boucher played for 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for many teams, including the Flyers, Phoenix Coyotes, and San Jose Sharks. During the 1999–2000 NHL season, he had the best goals against average (GAA) in the league. This means he allowed the fewest goals per game on average.
He is most famous for setting an NHL modern-day record for the longest time without letting the other team score. This is called a shutout streak. His record is 332 minutes and 1 second, which he set with the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2003–04 NHL season.
Contents
Hockey Career
Starting with the Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers chose Boucher in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. He started playing for them in the 1999–2000 season. He quickly became the starting goalie, taking over from the more experienced John Vanbiesbrouck. Boucher played so well that he led the league with a 1.91 goals against average.
That year in the 2000 Stanley Cup playoffs, he helped the Flyers reach the Eastern Conference Finals. He made many amazing saves, including one in a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins that went into five overtime periods. The Flyers were close to making the Stanley Cup Finals but lost to the New Jersey Devils in a tough seven-game series.
Setting a Record in Phoenix
In 2002, the Flyers traded Boucher to the Phoenix Coyotes. It was with the Coyotes that he made NHL history. During the 2003–04 season, he set a modern record for the longest shutout streak. He did not allow a single goal for 332 minutes and 1 second. That's like playing five and a half full games without letting the puck get past him!
After his time in Phoenix, Boucher was traded to the Calgary Flames in 2006. He then played for the Chicago Blackhawks and the Columbus Blue Jackets during the 2006–07 season.
Playing for the Sharks
In 2007, Boucher signed with the Philadelphia Phantoms, the minor league team for the Flyers. The next year, he joined the San Jose Sharks. He had a great start with the Sharks in the 2008–09 season, earning shutouts in his first two games.
Return to Philadelphia
Boucher returned to the Philadelphia Flyers in 2009. He was meant to be the backup goalie, but due to injuries to other players, he ended up in the starting role. He helped the Flyers make a dramatic run to the 2010 playoffs after winning the final game of the season in a shootout.
In the playoffs, Boucher played a key role in defeating the New Jersey Devils. The Flyers then made an incredible comeback against the Boston Bruins after being down three games to zero. Unfortunately, Boucher was injured during that series. He returned as a backup in the Stanley Cup Finals, but the Flyers lost to the Chicago Blackhawks.
Final Seasons
On July 1, 2011, Boucher signed with the Carolina Hurricanes. He served as the backup goalie to Cam Ward.
In 2013, he was traded back to the Flyers for a third time. He played a few more games for them and their minor league team before retiring from professional hockey.
Life After Hockey
Broadcasting Career
After he stopped playing, Brian Boucher began a new career in broadcasting. He started as a studio analyst for the Philadelphia Flyers on NBC Sports Philadelphia. He also worked for NBC Sports as an "Inside the Glass" reporter, giving commentary right from the rinkside.
Later, Boucher joined ESPN/ABC as a lead color commentator. Before the 2023–24 season, he moved to TNT, where he works as the lead ice-level analyst with announcers Kenny Albert and Eddie Olczyk.
Personal Life
Boucher is married to his wife, Melissa, and they have a son and a daughter. His son, Tyler, is also a hockey player. Tyler was drafted in the first round by the Ottawa Senators in 2021 and plays for the Ottawa 67's.
Records
- Modern day NHL record with five consecutive shutouts in the 2003–04 season.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | T | OTL | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | ||
| 1993–94 | Mount Saint Charles Academy | HS-RI | 15 | 14 | 0 | 1 | — | 504 | 8 | 9 | 0.57 | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | 180 | 6 | 1 | 1.20 | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Wexford Raiders | MetJHL | 8 | — | — | — | — | 425 | 23 | 0 | 3.25 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Tri-City Americans | WHL | 35 | 17 | 11 | 2 | — | 1969 | 108 | 1 | 3.29 | — | 13 | 6 | 5 | 795 | 50 | 0 | 3.77 | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Tri-City Americans | WHL | 55 | 33 | 19 | 2 | — | 3183 | 181 | 1 | 3.41 | .913 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 653 | 37 | 2 | 3.40 | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Tri-City Americans | WHL | 41 | 10 | 24 | 6 | — | 2458 | 149 | 1 | 3.64 | .901 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 34 | 16 | 12 | 3 | — | 1901 | 101 | 0 | 3.19 | .888 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 1 | 0 | 1.94 | .944 | ||
| 1998–99 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 36 | 20 | 8 | 5 | — | 2061 | 89 | 2 | 2.59 | .911 | 16 | 9 | 7 | 947 | 45 | 0 | 2.85 | .906 | ||
| 1999–00 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 35 | 20 | 10 | 3 | — | 2038 | 65 | 4 | 1.91 | .918 | 18 | 11 | 7 | 1183 | 40 | 1 | 2.03 | .917 | ||
| 1999–00 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | — | 65 | 3 | 0 | 2.77 | .903 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 27 | 8 | 12 | 5 | — | 1470 | 80 | 1 | 3.27 | .876 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 3 | 0 | 4.86 | .824 | ||
| 2001–02 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 41 | 18 | 16 | 4 | — | 2295 | 92 | 2 | 2.41 | .905 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 88 | 2 | 0 | 1.37 | .939 | ||
| 2002–03 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 45 | 15 | 20 | 8 | — | 2544 | 128 | 0 | 3.02 | .894 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 40 | 10 | 19 | 10 | — | 2364 | 108 | 5 | 2.74 | .906 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | HV71 | SEL | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 235 | 13 | 0 | 3.32 | .884 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 11 | 3 | 6 | — | 0 | 512 | 33 | 0 | 3.87 | .877 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | San Antonio Rampage | AHL | 6 | 2 | 3 | — | 0 | 345 | 8 | 0 | 1.39 | .950 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 3 | 1 | 2 | — | 0 | 182 | 15 | 0 | 4.95 | .854 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 15 | 1 | 10 | — | 3 | 827 | 45 | 1 | 3.26 | .884 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 3 | 1 | 1 | — | 0 | 142 | 9 | 0 | 3.80 | .866 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 42 | 23 | 16 | — | 1 | 2288 | 94 | 4 | 2.47 | .917 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 5 | 3 | 1 | — | 1 | 238 | 7 | 1 | 1.76 | .932 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | ||
| 2008–09 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 22 | 12 | 6 | — | 3 | 1291 | 47 | 2 | 2.18 | .917 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 33 | 9 | 18 | — | 3 | 1742 | 80 | 1 | 2.76 | .899 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 656 | 27 | 1 | 2.47 | .909 | ||
| 2009–10 | Adirondack Phantoms | AHL | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 60 | 2 | 0 | 2.00 | .935 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 34 | 18 | 10 | — | 4 | 1885 | 76 | 0 | 2.42 | .916 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 422 | 22 | 0 | 3.13 | .904 | ||
| 2011–12 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 10 | 1 | 6 | — | 1 | 546 | 31 | 0 | 3.41 | .881 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Adirondack Phantoms | AHL | 16 | 6 | 8 | — | 1 | 910 | 39 | 0 | 2.57 | .905 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 4 | 0 | 2 | — | 0 | 144 | 6 | 0 | 2.50 | .891 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | EV Zug | NLA | 5 | — | — | — | — | 309 | 14 | 0 | 2.72 | .925 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 328 | 120 | 139 | 30 | 15 | 18,219 | 822 | 17 | 2.71 | .901 | 43 | 21 | 18 | 2388 | 94 | 2 | 2.36 | .911 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | GP | W | L | T | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | United States | WJC | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 220 | 13 | 0 | 3.55 | .889 | |
| 1997 | United States | WJC | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 357 | 9 | 2 | 1.51 | .942 | |
| Junior totals | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 577 | 22 | 2 | 2.29 | — | |||
Awards and achievements
WHL
- 1995–96 – (West) second All-Star team
- 1996–97 – (West) first All-Star team
- 1996–97 – Del Wilson Trophy (WHL Goaltender of the Year)
International
- 1997 – All-Star Selection, IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships
AHL
- 1998 – Calder Cup champion with Philadelphia Phantoms
NHL
