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Paul Kariya Profile

Season Team/League GP G A TP PIM +/- PP SH GW GT Shots Pct
1992-93 MAIN/NCAA 36 24 69 93 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
1993-94 CDNN/ 23 7 34 41 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
1993-94 CDNO/ 8 3 4 7 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
1993-94 MAIN/NCAA 12 8 16 24 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
1994-95 ANAH/NHL 47 18 21 39 4 -17 7 1 3 1 134 13.43
1995-96 ANAH/NHL 82 50 58 108 20 9 20 3 9 0 349 14.33
1996-97 ANAH/NHL 69 44 55 99 6 36 15 3 10 0 340 12.94
1997-98 ANAH/NHL 22 17 14 31 23 12 3 0 2 1 103 16.50

Weight: 180 lbs.

Born: October 16, 1974 in Vancouver, British Columbia

Drafted: Selected by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the first round (fourth pick overall) of the 1993 NHL Entry Draft.

Personal: A Dean's list student while at Maine.

Scouting Report

         Kariya may be the best skater in the NHL. He is so smooth and fluid his movements appear effortless. He's also explosive, with a good change of direction, and he can turn a defender inside out on a one-on-one rush. His speed is a weapon, since he forces defenders to play off him for fear of being burnt, and that opens the ice for his playmaking options. He combines his skating with no-look passes that are uncanny. Teemu Selanne is the perfect linemate for him, because the Finnish Flash breaks as soon as he sees Kariya with control of the puck. Kariya puts on a burst of speed and can lift his pass over the sticks of defenders just ahead of Selanne for him to skate into. He uses his speed defensively, too, and is quick on the backcheck to break up passes. Kariya kills penalties by hounding the point men and pressuring them into bad passes, which he turns into scoring chances.  Kariya is smart; some would say cerebral. He is a magician with the puck and can make a play when it looks as if there are no possible options. He likes to use the net for protection, like his idol Wayne Gretzky, and make passes from behind the goal line. His release on his shot is excellent. Playing with the defensively alert Steve Rucchin gives Kariya and Selanne the freedom to make their breakout dashes, but Kariya never goes for high-risk plays when it might cost his team. Kariya is a low maintenance superstar. He has worked on his weaknesses, becoming stronger on the puck, less fancy in his passing, and more willing to shoot. He is willing and able to carry a team on his back.
 

The Physical Game
      Kariya added about 10 pounds of muscle coming into last season, and the weight helped him absorb some of the punishment he takes as a member of Anaheim's top (some might say only) line. He has powerful thighs and legs and has improved his upper body. He's gritty in his own way and plays through minor nicks, and major ones, without a whimper.
 
The Intangibles
      It was tough to argue with Buffalo's Dominik Hasek as the league MVP, but when Kariya missed the first 11 games of the season with his groin injury, the Ducks went 1-8-2. Kariya proved to be as excellent a player in the playoffs as he is during the regular season. As the youngest captain in the NHL, Kariya has accepted the role as team spokesman and understands how he can contribute to promote the game he plays with such passion
 
Personals
    His father was born in a World War II internment camp in Canada. Both parents are educators. His paternal grandparents, Isamu and Fumiko Kariya, were in the camp over 5 years and worked a dry-cleaning  business upon their release from camp.   His father played several tours with the Canadian National Rugby Team Paul is of Japanese descent (father is 100%)
      Hobbies include golf, tennis, and reading. Took up juggling at the beginning of the 1994-1995 season
 
Favorite Food: Seafood
 
Favorite Movie: Goodfellas
 
Favorite TV Show: Friends
 
Favorite Actor: Robert DeNiro
 
Favorite NHL city: Toronto
 
Favorite Pre-game Meal: Pasta & vegetables.
 
    Did construction work for his first ever job.  He list First NHL game (1/20/95 vs. Edmonton) as one of his most memorable moments in the NHL.
 
    Played lacross while growing up.  Second oldest of five children (2 brother and 2 sisters, Younger brother Steve is also playing college in Maine and wears the #18, because "I'll be twice as good as my brother"