| Mark Eaton | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Eaton with thePittsburgh Penguins in 2013 | |||
| Born | (1977-05-06)May 6, 1977 (age 48) Wilmington, Delaware, U.S. | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 212 lb (96 kg; 15 st 2 lb) | ||
| Position | Defense | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | Philadelphia Flyers Nashville Predators Pittsburgh Penguins New York Islanders | ||
| National team |  United States | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 1998–2013 | ||
Mark Andrew Eaton (born May 6, 1977) is anAmerican professionalice hockey coach and formerdefenseman who is the current interimhead coach for theRockford IceHogs of theAmerican Hockey League (AHL). He played 13 seasons in theNational Hockey League (NHL) for thePhiladelphia Flyers,Nashville Predators,Pittsburgh Penguins, andNew York Islanders. He is the only NHL player to ever come fromDelaware. He attendedJohn Dickinson High School in theWilmington suburbs but played his minor hockey across the state line inPennsylvania.
Eaton started his post-secondary competition with theWaterloo Black Hawks of theUnited States Hockey League (USHL). He was named second team all-USHL, was the league's third-leading scoring defenseman and was honored with the Curt Hammer Award as the USHL's most gentlemanly player.[1] Eaton then moved on to theUniversity of Notre Dame of theCentral Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA). In his only season at UND, Eaton was named the CCHARookie of the Year after scoring 12 goals with 17 assists for 29 points.[2]
On August 4, 1998, Eaton signed a contract with thePhiladelphia Flyers as an undrafted free agent.[3] He made his NHL debut on October 2, 1999, against theOttawa Senators, becoming the first player from the greater Delaware Valley region to play for the Flyers.[4] Eaton scored his first NHL goal, which was the game-winning goal, on April 8, 2000, againstRob Tallas of theBoston Bruins. He played his first NHL playoff game on April 13 against theBuffalo Sabres.[3]
Eaton was traded from the Flyers to theNashville Predators on September 29, 2000, for a third round pick. While playing for the Predators in2003–04, he set the franchise record for plus/minus at +16.[3] He scored a career-high three assists in a 5–3 loss to theColorado Avalanche on October 25, 2003. On March 3, 2006, Eaton was placed on injured reserve by the Predators with a strained knee injury.[5]
ThePittsburgh Penguins signed Eaton on July 3, 2006, as a free agent.[6] He saw limited time in his first two seasons, suffering with injuries, playing only 71 games between in2006–07 and2007–08.[3]
He won theStanley Cup with thePittsburgh Penguins in2009, scoring 4 goals in the playoffs. On March 30, 2009, Eaton was named a nominee for theBill Masterton Trophy.[7]
He signed with theNew York Islanders as a free agent to a two-year contract on July 2, 2010.[8]
On January 22, 2013, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL announced Eaton had signed with the team on a Professional Try Out.[9] He was released in February, and started skating with his former NHL team, the Pittsburgh Penguins. On February 25, the Penguins signed Eaton to a 1-year deal worth $725,000.[10]
Eaton played for theUnited States at the2001 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships and recorded one goal (the game-winner vs.Finland) and one assist in nine games. He also played for the United States at the2002 World Championships inSweden and registered three assists in a 5–2 win vs.Italy.
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1995–96 | Waterloo Black Hawks | USHL | 50 | 4 | 21 | 25 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Waterloo Black Hawks | USHL | 50 | 6 | 32 | 38 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | CCHA | 41 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 74 | 9 | 27 | 36 | 38 | 16 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 0 | ||
| 1999–2000 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | 47 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–2000 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 27 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2000–01 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 34 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 34 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 58 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 50 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 75 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 26 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2004–05 | Grand Rapids Griffins | AHL | 29 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 69 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 44 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 2006–07 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 35 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 15 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2007–08 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 36 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 68 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 36 | 24 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 10 | ||
| 2009–10 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 79 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 26 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 2010–11 | New York Islanders | NHL | 34 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | New York Islanders | NHL | 62 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
| NHL totals | 650 | 24 | 61 | 85 | 242 | 68 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 24 | ||||
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | United States | WC | 4th | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2002 | United States | WC | 7th | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
| Senior totals | 16 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | ||||
| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| All-CCHARookie Team | 1997–98 |
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | CCHA Rookie of the Year 1997–98 | Succeeded by |