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| Dion PHANEUF (fah-NOOF, DEE-awn) |
Calgary Flames |
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Defense. Shoots left. 6'3'', 210 lbs. Born, Edmonton, Alta., April 10, 1985.
Calgary's 1st choice, 9th overall, in 2003 Entry Draft.
2007-08 Statistics as of Jan. 24/08: 50 GP – 6 G – 26 A – 32 Pts. – 93 PIM
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As of Jan. 11, Phaneuf led all Western Conference defensemen with 129 hits on the season and was ranked sixth in the League.
On a recent ESPN.com poll Phaneuf garnered 43 percent of the popular vote as the top hitter in hockey. Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins, who has an extra seven inches in height and 39 pounds in weight on Phaneuf, finished well up the road in second at 11 percent.
Phaneuf ended the Eastern Conference All-Stars comeback bid in his All-Star debut in 2007 with a rink-long shot into the empty net to seal the Western Conference win.
Phaneuf compiled a diary from his All-Star debut for the Calgary Sun. Following is his entry on the day following the game: "It's pretty exciting to score a goal in my first opportunity at the All-Star Game. It was pretty funny for it to go in (a clearing attempt from his end into an open net) that way but it was nice to see it go in. I'll remember that forever, that's for sure. I didn't draw it up that way but they all count. I managed to get the puck after. Smitty (Ryan Smyth) got it for me. It was a very nice gesture. He's a really good guy and a really classy guy. I didn't know I'd get to play that much but it was a lot of fun. We have a great bunch of guys and a great experience. An assist, too, but I didn't do anything special for it. I'll take it. I guess there was a time when Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin were coming on a two-on-one. They didn't score and that's a good thing. I was paired in the game with Lubomir Visnovsky. It was a lot of fun to play with him. He's a very skilled guy. I'm glad Kipper played great, he was awesome. I didn't want him to get blitzed on but he did a great job, as well. I can't say enough about how good of a time I had."
Phaneuf competed in the hardest shot competition at the 2007 All-Star Skills competition. He registered shots of 89.6 and 90.4 miles-per-hour.
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