Jordan Douglas Leopold (born August 3, 1980) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman. He was drafted in the second round, 44th overall, by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in 1999, though never making an appearance with the team. In his NHL career, Leopold played for the Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues, Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild. Playing career Junior/Collegiate Prior to joining the NHL, Leopold played for the Armstrong Falcons of Plymouth, Minnesota, and went on to play collegiate hockey with the University of Minnesota from 1998 until 2002, where he helped the Golden Gophers win an NCAA national championship despite pressure to leave the University early to play in the NHL. After his first year with Minnesota, scoring 23 points, Leopold was drafted in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft in the second round, 44th overall, by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim as a prospective offensive defenseman. After completing his sophomore season with the Golden Gophers, Leopold became the property of the Calgary Flames, traded by the Mighty Ducks in exchange for Andrei Nazarov and a second-round draft pick. In 2001–02, his final season with the University of Minnesota, he won the Hobey Baker Award for being the season's outstanding player in college hockey. He also played for the US in the World Championships that year. Professional Leopold started his professional career in the NHL in 2002. He played 58 games for the Calgary Flames and scored four goals and 14 points. In his second season, Leopold would play in all 82 regular season games, scoring 33 points as well as contributing to the Flames' playoff run to the 2004 Stanley Cup Final, play which earned him a spot in the defense of the American national team for the 2005 World Championships as well as for the 2006 Winter Olympics. After one more season with the Flames, Leopold was traded to the Colorado Avalanche at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Leopold's first season with the Avalanche, in 2006–07, was all but wiped out due to injury. Having missed the first 25 games of the season recovering from hernia surgery, he then suffered a groin injury on December 11, 2006, ruling him out for another 17 games. Just a month later, Leopold was injured again, fracturing his wrist on February 17, 2007, effectively missing the rest of the season, and