Joe Finley

For the Texas rancher, see Joe B. Finley.
Joe Finley

Finley playing for HIFK in September 2016.
Born (1987-06-29) June 29, 1987
Edina, MN, USA
Height 6 ft 8 in (203 cm)
Weight 252 lb (114 kg; 18 st 0 lb)
Position Defense
Shoots Left
Liiga team
Former teams
HIFK
Buffalo Sabres
New York Islanders
NHL Draft 27th overall, 2005
Washington Capitals
Playing career 2009present

Joseph Scott Finley (born June 29, 1987) is an American ice hockey defenseman. He is currently playing for HIFK in the Finnish Liiga. Finley was selected by the Washington Capitals in the 1st round (27th overall) of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. Before Finley had arrived to Helsinki in 2016 he already got a nickname, "The Red #3" after Lalli Partinen, a former defensman who played for HIFK (ice hockey) in 1969-1977.

Playing career

Finley played for the Edina Peewee A state championship team in 1999-2000. Finley missed the majority of the 2009-10 season on injured reserve when on November 21, 2009, in a game with the Stingrays against the Gwinnett Gladiators, he ruptured an artery in his hand which required surgery.[1]

On September 18, 2011, Finley accepted an invitation to training camp by the Buffalo Sabres. He impressed enough that he was signed to an AHL contract, and assigned to the Rochester Americans.[2] Through the first quarter of the season, Finley was impressive as one half of the Americans shut-down defensive pairing. He led the Amerks in +/- with a +10. The Sabres and Finley reached a three-year contract on November 28, 2011, that will allow Finley to be called up by Sabres organization.[3]

Two days after the deal was completed, Finley was called up by the Sabres where he made his NHL debut against the Red Wings on December 2, 2011. Finley was the 475th player to play in the NHL after starting his career in the ECHL.[4]

Prior to the lockout shortened 2012–13 NHL season, Finley was claimed off waivers from the Sabres by the New York Islanders on January 14, 2013.[5]

On July 29, 2014, Finley signed as a free agent to a one-year AHL contract with the Hamilton Bulldogs.[6] In the 2014–15 season, Finley appeared in 54 games with the Bulldogs, contributing with 3 assists and 132 penalty minutes.

On October 8, 2015, Finley continued in the AHL, signing a one-year AHL deal with the Iowa Wild, an affiliate to the Minnesota Wild.[7] In the 2015–16 season, Finley appeared in 56 games with Iowa, recording a professional high of 5 goals from the blueline.

On June 21, 2016, Finley opted to pursue a career abroad, agreeing to a one-year deal with Finnish club, HIFK, of the Liiga.[8]

Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2004–05 Sioux Falls Stampede USHL 55 3 10 13 181
2005–06 University of North Dakota WCHA 43 0 3 3 96
2006–07 University of North Dakota WCHA 41 1 6 7 72
2007–08 University of North Dakota WCHA 43 4 11 15 79
2008–09 University of North Dakota WCHA 27 2 8 10 56
2008–09 Hershey Bears AHL 1 0 0 0 7
2009–10 South Carolina Stingrays ECHL 17 1 3 4 43
2010–11 South Carolina Stingrays ECHL 26 1 7 8 73 4 0 0 0 10
2010–11 Hershey Bears AHL 7 0 1 1 15
2011–12 Rochester Americans AHL 57 1 5 6 143 3 0 0 0 0
2011–12 Buffalo Sabres NHL 5 0 0 0 12
2012–13 Rochester Americans AHL 36 1 4 5 81
2012–13 New York Islanders NHL 16 0 1 1 20
2013–14 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 29 0 2 2 50
2014–15 Hamilton Bulldogs AHL 54 0 3 3 132
2015–16 Iowa Wild AHL 56 5 1 6 92
NHL totals 21 0 1 1 32

References

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Sasha Pokulok
Washington Capitals first round draft pick
2005
Succeeded by
Nicklas Bäckström
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/29/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.