Mat Robinson

For other people with similar names, see Matthew Robinson (disambiguation).

Mat Robinson
Born (1986-06-20) June 20, 1986 (age 38)
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Right
Played for Binghamton Senators
Sparta Warriors
Timrå IK
Dinamo Riga
Dynamo Moscow
CSKA Moscow
SKA Saint Petersburg
National team  Canada
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2009–2022

Mat Robinson (born June 20, 1986) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. Robinson played professionally from 2009 to 2022, most notably in the KHL, with CSKA Moscow with whom he won the Gagarin Cup Championship in 2019. He also played in the KHL with Dinamo Riga, and SKA Saint Petersburg.

Robinson was named to the Canada men's national ice hockey team for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games, where he won a bronze medal.

Playing career

Before turning professional, Robinson attended the University of Alaska Anchorage where he played four seasons of NCAA Division I college hockey with the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves[1] In his final season, Robinson led all UAA defencemen in scoring and was the Seawolves' captain.[2]

At the end of the 2008–09 season, Robinson signed with the Las Vegas Wranglers of the ECHL. In 2009, Robinson was invited to the Ottawa Senators' rookie camp and made the Senators' main training camp roster on a professional tryout.[2] Robinson was assigned to the Binghamton Senators, Ottawa's American Hockey League affiliate.[3] Robinson split the season between Binghamton and the Elmira Jackals of the ECHL.

After the 2009–10 season spent in the minors, Robinson decided to move to Europe to further his career. Robinson signed with the Norwegian club Sparta Warriors. After a good season with Sparta, Robinson moved to the Swedish league. Robinson played two seasons with Timra IK.

In May 2013, Robinson signed with Latvian club, Dinamo Riga of the KHL.[4] In the 2013–14 season, Robinson impressed on Riga's blueline, contributing with 10 goals and 27 points in 54 games.

On May 3, 2014, he was signed to a lucrative two-year contract with fellow KHL competitor Dynamo Moscow.[5]

After three seasons with Dynamo, Robinson, while still contracted, was granted free agent status from the KHL following the 2016–17 season due to the club's debt on July 4, 2017.[6] With Dynamo unwilling to offer an improved contract, Robinson left to sign a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow the following day on July 5, 2017.[7]

Following four seasons with CSKA, Robinson left the club as a free agent and signed a one-year deal into the 2021–22 season with rival club, SKA Saint Petersburg on September 15, 2021.[8] In his lone season with SKA, Robinson collected 10 points through 35 regular season games. Following a conference finals defeat to former club CSKA Moscow, Robinson concluded his 13-year professional career by announcing his retirement on April 15, 2022.[9]

International play

Medal record
Representing  Canada
Ice hockey
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Pyeongchang

During the 2017–18 season, Robinson was selected to represent Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Used in a defensive depth role, Robinson contributed with 1 goal and 2 points in 6 games to help Canada claim the bronze medal.

In January 2022, Robinson was selected to make his second Olympic appearance and play for Canada at the 2022 Winter Olympics.[10][11][12]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2001–02 Calgary Northstars AAA AMHL 11 1 1 2 4 — — — — —
2002–03 Calgary Northstars AAA AMHL 32 10 13 23 55 — — — — —
2003–04 Calgary Royals AJHL 53 4 18 22 23 — — — — —
2004–05 Calgary Royals AJHL 38 11 15 26 26 — — — — —
2005–06 University of Alaska Anchorage WCHA 35 1 6 7 26 — — — — —
2006–07 University of Alaska Anchorage WCHA 37 2 7 9 30 — — — — —
2007–08 University of Alaska Anchorage WCHA 36 3 10 13 12 — — — — —
2008–09 University of Alaska Anchorage WCHA 35 3 12 15 37 — — — — —
2008–09 Las Vegas Wranglers ECHL 4 1 1 2 2 — — — — —
2009–10 Elmira Jackals ECHL 61 6 26 32 30 5 1 0 1 2
2009–10 Binghamton Senators AHL 5 0 1 1 2 — — — — —
2010–11 Sparta Warriors NOR 45 14 29 43 30 14 3 7 10 32
2011–12 Timrå IK SEL 55 4 16 20 45 — — — — —
2012–13 Timrå IK SEL 55 7 16 23 32 — — — — —
2013–14 Dinamo Riga KHL 54 10 17 27 12 7 0 2 2 2
2014–15 Dynamo Moscow KHL 34 10 12 22 37 11 2 4 6 6
2015–16 Dynamo Moscow KHL 58 14 24 38 18 10 0 2 2 12
2016–17 Dynamo Moscow KHL 53 7 14 21 30 4 0 0 0 0
2017–18 CSKA Moscow KHL 42 6 16 22 47 18 2 0 2 4
2018–19 CSKA Moscow KHL 52 5 11 16 22 20 5 5 10 6
2019–20 CSKA Moscow KHL 58 1 20 21 12 4 1 0 1 0
2020–21 CSKA Moscow KHL 52 5 12 17 24 23 3 7 10 8
2021–22 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 35 3 7 10 18 16 1 0 1 4
SHL totals 110 11 32 43 77 — — — — —
KHL totals 438 61 133 194 220 113 14 20 34 42

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2018 Canada OG 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 6 1 1 2 0
2022 Canada OG 6th 5 1 0 1 0
Senior totals 11 2 1 3 0

Awards and honours

Award Year
College
WCHA All-Academic Team 2009
KHL
Gentleman Award 2014
All-Star Game 2016, 2017
Gagarin Cup (CSKA Moscow) 2019 [13]

References

  1. ^ "Newcomer makes impact as Wranglers win fourth straight". ReviewJournal.com. January 2, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
  2. ^ a b Ottawa Senators. "2009-10 Ottawa Senators Training Camp" (PDF). senators.nhl.com.
  3. ^ Ottawa Senators. "Senators Reduce Training Camp Roster by Nine Players". Marketwired (Press release). Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  4. ^ "DINAMO sign Canadian Mat Robinson". dinamoriga.lv. May 14, 2013. Retrieved September 7, 2013.
  5. ^ "Mat Robinson agree to Dynamo move" (in Russian). HC Dynamo Moscow. May 3, 2014. Archived from the original on May 3, 2014. Retrieved May 3, 2014.
  6. ^ "42 Dynamo players become free agents". Kontinental Hockey League. July 4, 2017. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
  7. ^ "Row of soldiers will joins Matt Robinson". CSKA Moscow. July 5, 2017. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  8. ^ "Mat Robinson is a SKA player" (in Russian). SKA Saint Petersburg. September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
  9. ^ SKA Saint Petersburg (April 15, 2022). "Mat Robinson announces retirement". Twitter. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  10. ^ "Canada unveils non-NHL Olympic hockey roster with pro experience, young talent". www.cbc.ca/. CBC Sports. January 25, 2022. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  11. ^ Nichols, Paula (January 25, 2022). "Team Canada's 25-player men's hockey roster nominated for Beijing 2022". www.olympic.ca/. Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  12. ^ Stephens, Mike (January 25, 2022). "Canada Names Men's 2022 Olympic Hockey Roster". The Hockey News. Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  13. ^ "CSKA lifts the Gagarin Cup". Kontinental Hockey League. April 19, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.