Rick DiPietro

Rick DiPietro
DiPietro during his time with the New York Islanders on January 3, 2011
Born (1981-09-19) September 19, 1981
Lewiston, Maine
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position Goaltender
Caught Right
Played for New York Islanders
National team  United States
NHL draft 1st overall, 2000
New York Islanders
Playing career 2000–2013

Richard W. DiPietro Jr. (born September 19, 1981) is an American sports talk radio host, analyst, and former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played parts of 11 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), spending his entire career with the New York Islanders.

DiPietro is a one-time All-Star, being named one in 2008. Internationally, DiPietro played for United States, playing for them at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Due to him signing a massive 15-year, $67.5 million contract but suffering through injuries and not living up to his contract caused many to label him as a draft bust.[1]

He is the co-host of "DiPietro and Rothenberg" with Dave Rothenberg on ESPN 98.7 FM in New York. On June 29, 2021, he became an analyst for ESPN.[2]

Career

Before playing in the NHL, DiPietro played parts of one year with the Boston University Terriers of Hockey East. He had a successful time with the Terriers. He finished his rookie season, scoring 30 goals and recording 32 assists for 62 points in 40 games. For his performance, he was named the All-Hockey East Rookie Team, All-Hockey East Second Team, Hockey East Rookie of the Year, and the New England MVP.[3]

He was drafted 1st overall by the New York Islanders in the 2000 NHL entry draft. With the selection, DiPietro became the first goaltender to be selected 1st overall.[4] On July 25, 2000, DiPietro signed a three-year, entry-level contract to join the Islanders.[5] Before he was able to play, he suffered an injury and was sent down to briefly play for their AHL-affiliate Bridgeport Sound Tigers. On January 27, 2001, the Islanders called him up and he made his NHL debut, stopping 29 of 31 shots in a 2–1 loss against the Buffalo Sabres. During the game, DiPietro recorded an assist on a Dave Scatchard goal.[6] On February 16, he stopped 24 of 26 shots and earned his first NHL career win in a 4–2 victory against the Edmonton Oilers to earn his first NHL win.[7] On October 11, 2003, he stopped 13 of 13 shots in a 6–0 win against the Buffalo Sabres to earn his first NHL win.[8]

On September 12, 2006, DiPietro signed a notorious fifteen-year, $67.5 million contract to stay with the Islanders. This broke the record held by former teammate Alexei Yashin's ten-year, $87.5 million contract signed on September 5, 2001.[9] On March 5, 2007, DiPietro broke Félix Potvin and Billy Smith's tied record for most saves in a game after saving 56 shots in a 2–1 shootout loss to the New York Rangers.[10] His record was held until it was later broken by Dwayne Roloson in 2009.[11] On March 13, 2007, DiPietro was run into by Montreal Canadiens player Steve Bégin and suffered a concussion.[12] He missed four games and then got concussed again upon his return.[13] In 2007, DiPietro decided to get surgery to fix a torn labrum in his hip.[14] The next season, Dipietro was selected to play in the All-Star game. DiPietro ended up re-injuring his hip during the skills competition at the All-Star game. He played out the rest of the season and had another surgery on his hip.[15]

On June 3, 2008, DiPietro announced on a radio show that he had surgery to fix meniscus on his left knee and was out for four games. After starting two games, DiPietro left the game was another injury.[16] On November 1, it was announced that DiPietro had to have another knee surgery done to fix his meniscus.[17] On December 26, 2008, he made his return in a 4–1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs. DiPietro recorded an assist off of a Kyle Okposo goal and also broke Billy Smith's Islanders record for most points by a goaltender.[18] On January 20, 2009, it was announced by Islanders general manager Garth Snow that DiPietro had post-surgery swelling in his right knee and was going to miss the rest of the 2008–09 season.[19] On February 13, 2010, the Islanders placed him on injured reserve after he suffered swelling in his left knee. He was forced to miss the rest of the season because of it. On February 2, 2011, DiPietro played his first game as the main starter for the Islanders. In the game, he got into a goaltender fight against Pittsburgh Pittsburgh's Brent Johnson. DiPietro had his jaw broken and was concussed from one punch as he was out for weeks after to recover.[20] On December 15, 2011, DiPietro injured his groin and needed surgery which made him miss the rest of the season.[21] On February 22, 2013, the Islanders placed DiPietro on waivers and he was sent down to play for their AHL-affiliate Bridgeport Sound Tigers.[22] On July 1, 2013, the Islanders decided to buyout the rest of DiPietro’s large contract.[23]

DiPietro decided to retire from playing professional ice hockey in 2013.

References

  1. ↑ "Top 10 biggest busts in NHL draft history". Sportsnet. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  2. ↑ "McDonough, Levy to lead ESPN's team for NHL coverage". The Detroit News. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  3. ↑ "1999-2000 Season Snapshot" (PDF). Hockey East. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  4. ↑ "DiPietro first goalie to go first overall". ESPN. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  5. ↑ "Islanders Sign Rick DiPietro". New York Islanders. Archived from the original on June 27, 2001. Retrieved January 26, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ↑ "DiPietro solid in NHL debut; nets assist". CBC Sports. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  7. ↑ "DiPietro Gets 1st NHL Win; Wade Dealt". New York Post. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  8. ↑ "DiPietro Gets 1st NHL Win; Wade Dealt". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  9. ↑ "DiPietro's record 15-year deal will pay him $67.5M". ESPN. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Led by remarkable Roloson, Isles beat Maple Leafs in OT". ESPN. Archived from the original on March 25, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  11. ↑ "Holy Roli! Stat Trick: New York Isles 4, Toronto Maple Leafs 3 (OT)". Bleacher Report. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Headaches Leave DiPietro's Status Uncertain". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Headaches Leave DiPietro's Status Uncertain". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Islanders' DiPietro has hip surgery". CBC Sports. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  15. ↑ "Hip surgery ends Rick DiPietro's season". CBC Sports. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  16. ↑ "DiPietro injured yet again, this time a strained groin". CBC Sports. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Brodeur Is Hurt; DiPietro Has Surgery". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  18. ↑ "Leafs Thumped By Islanders". CityNews Toronto. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  19. ↑ "Islanders goalie Rick DiPietro to miss rest of season with knee problems". New York Daily News. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Islanders' DiPietro out 4-6 Weeks with Face, Knee Injuries". The Sports Network. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  21. ↑ "DiPietro on Injured Reserve -- Again". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  22. ↑ "Islanders Reach Inevitable End with DiPietro and Waive Him". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  23. ↑ "Islanders buy out remaining 8 years of DiPietro's long contract". The Hockey News. Retrieved January 26, 2026.

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