Stephen Valiquette was born on August 20th 1977, in Etobicoke, Ontario. At age 9, Steve's family moved to Bolton, Ontario where he was raised. Steve started skating at the age of 3, trying to emulate his famous relative, and former Mapleleaf, Jack Valiquette.
In goaltending terms, Stephen Valiquette was a late bloomer. At the age 11 he didn't make the 'A' team as a skater, so against his parents will, he began playing goal. After the season ended, Steve attended his first 2 week goaltending school. It was then, after extensive practice, Steve made the 'A' Team! Following his first season of playing 'A' Hockey Steve tried out for 'AAA'. Unfortunately, he was cut two seasons in a row. After begging his parents for eight weeks of goaltending school in the summer, all the hard work finally paid off. Steve had just turned 14 and made 'AAA' hockey. To this day Steve says, 'It was the happiest day of his fathers life.' Those eight weeks were the building blocks that laid the foundation for Valiquette's future in goaltending. The skills he developed during those early years were preparation for what would come next.
Steve faced a lot of adversity along the way. He was cut from every junior team in Toronto, losing count after ten! A week before his sophomore year in high school, he finally made the cut and got on a team. He moved away from his home and was penciled in as the back up. Into the second week of the season, the starting goalie went down with a knee injury, never to return. As a result, Steve played every remaining game that season and earned himself a spot in the Junior 'A' All Star game. He was rated to go in the first three rounds of the OHL (Ontario Hockey League) Draft and his career was looking up.
From there Valiquette says, 'The happiest day of his life occurred.' He was drafted to the OHL by the Sudbury Wolves in the 3rd round. However, the team had different plans for him and he was subsequently sent down to the farm team in the middle of November. Again, he had some catching up to do. Steve never quit simply because he was playing at a lower level. Instead he worked even harder for the remainder of the season. During that summer he hired a private goalie coach to work with him three days a week to prepare him for a big season. He made the team his second go 'round and played strongly enough get rated to go to the NHL draft.
Valiquette played three and a half seasons in the OHL and averaged over 40 shots a game. The Sudbury Wolves, at the time, were a non-playoff team, but Steve unquestionably improved as a result of facing so many shots. In the 1996 NHL draft, the Los Angeles Kings chose Stephen Valiquette as their first choice in the 8th round and 190th overall. Although Steve wasn't offered a contract from the L.A. Kings, there was interest from other teams. He signed his first professional contract on August 15th, 1998 with the NHL's New York Islanders. At the age of 22 he played his first NHL game as a New York Islander on March 16, 2000 vs. Atlanta Thrashers. Steve recorded a 3-2 win, with 36 saves and was named the games First Star. Following many highs and lows, nine years, 13 teams, and a year overseas in Russia with the Locomotive, Steve spent his first full season in the NHL in 2007-2008 with the New York Rangers.
Dream Big!
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