Joé Juneau
Encyclopedia
Joé Juneau (born January 5, 1968) is a retired Canadian
professional hockey
player and engineer, born in Pont-Rouge, Quebec
. He played in the National Hockey League
for the Boston Bruins
, Washington Capitals
, Buffalo Sabres
, Ottawa Senators
, Phoenix Coyotes
and the Montreal Canadiens
.
, Juneau was a star college hockey
player at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
, where he scored 71 goal
s in four regular seasons and was a two-time All-American selection. He was well-known for having a 4.0 grade point average and earning a degree
in just three years in aeronautical engineering, despite the fact that he did not speak English
when he first arrived in New York
.
After college, Juneau spent a year with the Canadian Olympic team
while disputing his contract offer from the Bruins. The sticking point was Juneau's insistence on being paid full salary even if he was sent to the minors - a demand Boston refused, having been burned in a nearly identical situation with Wes Walz
the previous year. Then-general manager Harry Sinden
was famously quoted in response to Juneau's threat to play in Switzerland instead "Then he'll have to learn to yodel." In the meantime, Juneau led Canada to a silver medal at the 1992 Albertville Games
, and was the tournament's leading scorer.
Juneau would eventually sign with Boston on the team's terms, and Sinden's fears proved groundless. Juneau joined the Bruins' NHL roster right after the Olympics, and never spent a day in the minor leagues during his career. He had an impressive nineteen points in fourteen regular season games at the end of the 1992 season before a strong playoff.
His best season was his rookie year of 1992–93 with the Bruins, when, as the left winger on a powerful line with Adam Oates
and Cam Neely
, he had 32 goals and 102 points and set the NHL record for assists in a season by a left wing with 70, a mark Juneau still holds. As a reward, he was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team
.
During the 1993–94 season, the Bruins traded Juneau to the Capitals for Al Iafrate
(who played only twelve games for Boston). In 1996, he became the first player ever to be awarded a penalty shot in overtime in a Stanley Cup playoff game (although he failed to score) during the second overtime of the Capitals' four-overtime loss to Pittsburgh. Juneau was also a member of the 1997–98 Capitals squad that reached the 1998 Stanley Cup Finals
, scoring seventeen points in twenty-one playoff games. He scored the game-winning goal in overtime against the Buffalo Sabres in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals that sent the Capitals to the Stanley Cup Finals. The next season, 1998–99, with the Capitals plagued by injuries and missing the playoffs, Juneau was traded to the Sabres, who reached the 1999 Stanley Cup Finals
.
Juneau spent the 1999–2000 season with the Ottawa Senators
, who signed him largely to fill the offensive gap created when Alexei Yashin
was suspended for failing to honor his contract.
Juneau's offensive numbers steadily declined, largely due to chronic injuries. He became a journeyman, playing for five teams in four seasons before settling with the Montreal Canadiens
as a third-liner for the final three seasons of his career. Juneau finished with 156 goals and 416 assists for 572 points over thirteen seasons.
He announced his retirement after the 2003–04 NHL season. After his playing career, Juneau became a partner and account manager at Quebec City
-based Harfan Technologies. Rensselaer awarded Juneau an honorary degree at the school's 2005 commencement ceremonies, then named him as the second inductee into the Rensselaer "Ring of Honor" in November. Between 2005-2007, Juneau moved to Fairbanks Alaska where he helped promote hockey to the youth in the area before moving to Kuujjuaq, Quebec
on a permanent basis, where he heads a hockey program for Inuit
youth in northern Quebec focused on encouraging academic progress, a contribution for which he received the 2007 La Presse/Radio-Canada Personality of the Year Award.
Juneau wore #90 for the majority of his career, but a coincidence occurred during his time with the Bruins, Juneau wore #49 with the team and was unaware of the fact that a prospector of the same name
, founded the city of Juneau, Alaska
and that Alaska
was the 49th State that entered the United States
constitution, which in turn made his jersey read "JUNEAU 49" on the back. Juneau later admitted that his reason for choosing #90 was a result of his preferred #9 was either retired or worn by different players.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
professional hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player and engineer, born in Pont-Rouge, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. He played in the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
for the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
, Washington Capitals
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...
, Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
, Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, Phoenix Coyotes
Phoenix Coyotes
The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena....
and the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
.
Playing career
Originally drafted by the Bruins in the fourth round of the 1988 NHL Entry Draft1988 NHL Entry Draft
The 1988 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Forum in Montreal, Quebec.-Selections by round:Below are listed the selections in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft...
, Juneau was a star college hockey
College hockey
College hockey refers to ice hockey played between colleges with their teams composed of enrolled students. College hockey is played in Canada and the United States, though leagues outside of North America exist....
player at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...
, where he scored 71 goal
Goal (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to...
s in four regular seasons and was a two-time All-American selection. He was well-known for having a 4.0 grade point average and earning a degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
in just three years in aeronautical engineering, despite the fact that he did not speak English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
when he first arrived in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
After college, Juneau spent a year with the Canadian Olympic team
Canadian national men's hockey team
The Canadian national ice hockey team is the ice hockey team representing Canada. The team is overseen by Hockey Canada, a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation, and participates in international competitions. From 1920 until 1963, Canada's international representation was by senior...
while disputing his contract offer from the Bruins. The sticking point was Juneau's insistence on being paid full salary even if he was sent to the minors - a demand Boston refused, having been burned in a nearly identical situation with Wes Walz
Wes Walz
Wesley Walz is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player and former assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League . Currently, Walz works as a volunteer assistant coach with the Raptors of East Ridge High School, Woodbury, Minnesota. There he coaches his son...
the previous year. Then-general manager Harry Sinden
Harry Sinden
Harry James Sinden was the long-time general manager, coach, and president for the Boston Bruins NHL hockey team, and was the coach of Team Canada during the 1972 Summit Series...
was famously quoted in response to Juneau's threat to play in Switzerland instead "Then he'll have to learn to yodel." In the meantime, Juneau led Canada to a silver medal at the 1992 Albertville Games
1992 Winter Olympics
The 1992 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 8 to 23 February 1992 in Albertville, France. They were the last Winter Olympics to be held the same year as the Summer Olympics, and the first where the Winter Paralympics...
, and was the tournament's leading scorer.
Juneau would eventually sign with Boston on the team's terms, and Sinden's fears proved groundless. Juneau joined the Bruins' NHL roster right after the Olympics, and never spent a day in the minor leagues during his career. He had an impressive nineteen points in fourteen regular season games at the end of the 1992 season before a strong playoff.
His best season was his rookie year of 1992–93 with the Bruins, when, as the left winger on a powerful line with Adam Oates
Adam Oates
Adam Oates is a retired professional ice hockey and lacrosse player and is currently an assistant coach with the New Jersey Devils.-Playing career:Oates' break came when Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute offered him a scholarship...
and Cam Neely
Cam Neely
Cameron Michael Neely is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. He played right wing for the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League from 1983 to 1996. He currently serves as the president of the Boston Bruins.-Playing career:Cam Neely was born in Comox,...
, he had 32 goals and 102 points and set the NHL record for assists in a season by a left wing with 70, a mark Juneau still holds. As a reward, he was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team
NHL All-Rookie Team
The NHL All-Rookie Team is chosen by the Professional Hockey Writers' Association from the best rookies in the National Hockey League at each position for the season just concluded based on their performance in that year...
.
During the 1993–94 season, the Bruins traded Juneau to the Capitals for Al Iafrate
Al Iafrate
Albert Anthony Iafrate is a retired American professional ice hockey defenseman who played in the National Hockey League between 1984 and 1998. He is perhaps most famous for his rocket slap shot that set the NHL Skills Competition record, which stood for 16 years, at . The record was broken in...
(who played only twelve games for Boston). In 1996, he became the first player ever to be awarded a penalty shot in overtime in a Stanley Cup playoff game (although he failed to score) during the second overtime of the Capitals' four-overtime loss to Pittsburgh. Juneau was also a member of the 1997–98 Capitals squad that reached the 1998 Stanley Cup Finals
1998 Stanley Cup Finals
- Detroit Red Wings - 1998 Stanley Cup Champions :- Stanley Cup engravings :* Wally Crossman was oldest person engraved on the Stanley Cup at age 87....
, scoring seventeen points in twenty-one playoff games. He scored the game-winning goal in overtime against the Buffalo Sabres in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals that sent the Capitals to the Stanley Cup Finals. The next season, 1998–99, with the Capitals plagued by injuries and missing the playoffs, Juneau was traded to the Sabres, who reached the 1999 Stanley Cup Finals
1999 Stanley Cup Finals
The 1999 Stanley Cup Final NHL championship series was contested by the Eastern Conference champion Buffalo Sabres and the Western Conference champion Dallas Stars. It was the 106th year of the Stanley Cup. The Sabres were led by captain Michael Peca, coach Lindy Ruff and goalie Dominik Hasek. The...
.
Juneau spent the 1999–2000 season with the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, who signed him largely to fill the offensive gap created when Alexei Yashin
Alexei Yashin
Alexei Valeryevich Yashin is a Russian professional ice hockey player. He is currently a member of CSKA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League...
was suspended for failing to honor his contract.
Juneau's offensive numbers steadily declined, largely due to chronic injuries. He became a journeyman, playing for five teams in four seasons before settling with the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
as a third-liner for the final three seasons of his career. Juneau finished with 156 goals and 416 assists for 572 points over thirteen seasons.
He announced his retirement after the 2003–04 NHL season. After his playing career, Juneau became a partner and account manager at Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
-based Harfan Technologies. Rensselaer awarded Juneau an honorary degree at the school's 2005 commencement ceremonies, then named him as the second inductee into the Rensselaer "Ring of Honor" in November. Between 2005-2007, Juneau moved to Fairbanks Alaska where he helped promote hockey to the youth in the area before moving to Kuujjuaq, Quebec
Kuujjuaq, Quebec
Kuujjuaq is the largest Inuit village in Nunavik, Quebec, Canada with a population of 2,132 as of the 2006 census. This is up roughly 10% from 1,932 as of the 2001 Census. It is the administrative capital of Nunavik and lies on the western shore of the Koksoak River.Kuujjuaq previously was known...
on a permanent basis, where he heads a hockey program for Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
youth in northern Quebec focused on encouraging academic progress, a contribution for which he received the 2007 La Presse/Radio-Canada Personality of the Year Award.
Juneau wore #90 for the majority of his career, but a coincidence occurred during his time with the Bruins, Juneau wore #49 with the team and was unaware of the fact that a prospector of the same name
Joe Juneau (prospector)
Joseph Juneau was a miner and prospector from Canada who was born in the Quebec town of Saint-Paul-l'Ermite to François Xavier Juneau dit Latulippe and Marguerite Thiffault Juneau. He is best known for co-founding, with Richard Harris, the city of Juneau, Alaska, United States...
, founded the city of Juneau, Alaska
Juneau, Alaska
The City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-District of Alaska was moved from Sitka as dictated by the U.S. Congress in 1900...
and that Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
was the 49th State that entered the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
constitution, which in turn made his jersey read "JUNEAU 49" on the back. Juneau later admitted that his reason for choosing #90 was a result of his preferred #9 was either retired or worn by different players.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an... |
Team | League | GP | G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to... |
A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal... |
Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one... |
PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,... |
GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1987–88 | R.P.I. Engineers RPI Engineers men's ice hockey The RPI Engineers men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college ice hockey program that represents Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The Engineers are a member of ECAC Hockey . They play at the Houston Field House in Troy, New York.- History :Men's ice... |
ECAC | 31 | 16 | 29 | 45 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | R.P.I. Engineers | ECAC | 30 | 12 | 23 | 35 | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | R.P.I. Engineers | ECAC | 34 | 18 | 52 | 70 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990–91 | R.P.I. Engineers | ECAC | 29 | 23 | 40 | 63 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | Boston Bruins Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the... |
NHL | 14 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 4 | 15 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 21 | ||
| 1992–93 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 84 | 32 | 70 | 102 | 33 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 1993–94 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 63 | 14 | 58 | 72 | 35 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Washington Capitals Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup... |
NHL | 11 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 6 | 11 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 6 | ||
| 1994–95 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 44 | 5 | 38 | 43 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 2 | ||
| 1995–96 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 80 | 14 | 50 | 64 | 30 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6 | ||
| 1996–97 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 58 | 15 | 27 | 42 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 56 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 26 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 8 | ||
| 1998–99 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 63 | 14 | 27 | 41 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 20 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 10 | ||
| 1999–00 | Ottawa Senators Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League... |
NHL | 65 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2000–01 | Phoenix Coyotes Phoenix Coyotes The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena.... |
NHL | 69 | 10 | 23 | 33 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Montreal Canadiens Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ... |
NHL | 70 | 8 | 28 | 36 | 10 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 6 | ||
| 2002–03 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 72 | 6 | 16 | 22 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 20 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| NHL totals | 828 | 156 | 416 | 572 | 272 | 112 | 25 | 54 | 79 | 69 | ||||