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Biography
Bret Michael Hedican (born August 10, 1970) is an American former professional ice hockey player, a Stanley Cup champion, and a two-time US Olympian.
Playing career
Hedican was drafted 198th overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. A product of St. Cloud State University, Hedican played with the 1992 US Olympic Team before he made his NHL debut in the 1991–92 season with the Blues. In his third season with the Blues, Hedican was traded to the Vancouver Canucks with Jeff Brown and Nathan LaFayette for Craig Janney, on March 21, 1994, joining the Canucks in time for their Stanley Cup run that season.
Hedican led the league in short-handed assists during the 1997–98 season, with seven. Hedican established himself in the Canucks blueline and after five seasons was later traded to the Florida Panthers by Vancouver with Pavel Bure, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third round choice (Robert Fried) in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first round choice (Nathan Smith) in the 2000 Entry Draft, on January 17, 1999.
Hedican was then traded by the Panthers with Kevyn Adams and Tomas Malec to the Carolina Hurricanes for Sandis Ozolinsh and Byron Ritchie on January 16, 2002. He would spend five and one-half seasons with the Hurricanes and won his only Stanley Cup in 2006.
For the 2008–09 season, Hedican signed a one-year contract with the Anaheim Ducks. He played his 1000th career NHL game on November 21, 2008 against the St. Louis Blues.
On September 6, 2009, Hedican was interviewed live on the television sports talk show Chronicle Live, on CSN Bay Area, and announced his retirement.
Post-retirement
Hedican joined NBC Sports California shortly after retiring, serving as a pre-game and post-game analyst for the channel's San Jose Sharks coverage. Hedican was honored by having his #24 jersey retired by St. Cloud State University on November 6, 2010. In the fall of 2014, he joined the Sharks Radio Network team, and either Baker or Hedican will provide color commentary alongside Dan Rusanowsky. He also calls games with Randy Hahn and Jamie Baker on NBCSN and NBC Sports California.
In 2014, Hedican partnered with another former Vancouver Canuck, Paul Reinhart, investing over $1 million in a sports team management start-up, RosterBot, based in Vancouver.
Personal life
Hedican has been married to figure-skater Kristi Yamaguchi since 2000. The couple have two daughters, Keara Kiyomi (2003) and Emma Yoshiko (2005). They split their time between northern California and Minnesota. Hedican and Yamaguchi met at the 1992 Olympic Winter Games when both were members of the US Olympic team.
Hedican is a graduate of North High School in North St. Paul, Minnesota. August 12, 2006, was declared "Bret Hedican Day" in North Saint Paul, Minnesota, including the presentation of the Stanley Cup and a parade.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1987–88 | North St. Paul High School | HS-MN | 23 | 15 | 19 | 34 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | St. Cloud State University | WCHA | 28 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | St. Cloud State University | WCHA | 36 | 4 | 17 | 21 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990–91 | St. Cloud State University | WCHA | 41 | 18 | 30 | 48 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | United States | Intl | 54 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1992–93 | Peoria Rivermen | IHL | 19 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 42 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 30 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | ||
| 1993–94 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 61 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 16 | ||
| 1994–95 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 45 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 34 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 1995–96 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 77 | 6 | 23 | 29 | 83 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||
| 1996–97 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 67 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 51 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 71 | 3 | 24 | 27 | 79 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 42 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 25 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–2000 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 76 | 6 | 19 | 25 | 68 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2000–01 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 70 | 5 | 15 | 20 | 72 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 31 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 26 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 23 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 20 | ||
| 2002–03 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 72 | 3 | 14 | 17 | 75 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 81 | 7 | 17 | 24 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 74 | 5 | 22 | 27 | 58 | 25 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 42 | ||
| 2006–07 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 50 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 66 | 2 | 15 | 17 | 70 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 51 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 1039 | 55 | 239 | 294 | 893 | 108 | 4 | 22 | 26 | 108 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | United States | OG | 4th | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| 1997 | United States | WC | 6th | 8 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 10 | |
| 1999 | United States | WC | 6th | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
| 2001 | United States | WC | 4th | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2006 | United States | OG | 8th | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| Senior totals | 37 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 28 | ||||
Awards and honours
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| All-WCHA First Team | 1991 | |
| NHL | ||
| Stanley Cup (Carolina Hurricanes) | 2006 | |
