Craig Richard Billington

BIOGRAPHY

BORN: London, Ontario, September 11, 1966
HOME:
HEIGHT: 5'10"
WEIGHT: 166-170 lbs.
UNIFORM #: 1 (New Jersey, Ottawa, Colorado, Washington)
CATCHES: Left
SALARY (1997-98): $360,000 ($300,000 1996-97)

STYLE: Standup
STRENGTHS: Very good at reading plays, and is extremely quick and agile. An excellent team player who doesn't get rattled in net.
WEAKNESSES: Billington isn't the largest goalie in the league, and is vulnerable to shots near to the posts and crossbar, especially stick-side high. Not the best stickhandler.

OTHER CRAIG BILLINGTON SITES:

Billington Goalie School
A Tribute to Craig Billington (Stephen Salhany)

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING:

"Craig Billington was obtained from New Jersey in an off-season trade to replace Peter Sidorkiewicz as the starter, but it took him two-thirds of the season before he started playing like a No. 1. He set career highs in games and minutes played, but he also lost a career-high 41 games. Billington's goals-against average (4.59) and save percentage (0.859) also were unimpressive. Since he's entering his option year, this is a big season for him." (The Sporting News 1994-95 Hockey Yearbook, p. 56)

"The 11-year veteran netminder found himself without a job a couple of weeks before camp. Then the Avs picked him up on waivers. Understood his role and played it well. A survivor, he'll try to hang onto his backup job even though Marc Denis is just about ready to step in." (The Sports Forecaster Hockey '97-'98, p. 206)

"Billington does a great job as Roy's caddie. Billington's good enough to keep the team from dropping off defensively and he's experienced enough to know who the star attraction is. Billington's agility is key to his success, since he's smallish at 5-10, 170 pounds. The Avalanche do a good job of not overworking their valuable backstop. He's among the more reliable backups in the NHL." (The Sports Forecaster 1999-2000, p. 179)

"Billington has played second fiddle for quite some time now. An exemplary team player, he knows his role and plays it to perfection. Patrick Roy's former backup in Colorado now fills the same role behind Olaf Kolzig. He relies on his cat-like agility to stop pucks." (The Sports Forecaster 2000-01, p. 135)

"Billington has accepted, and subsequently thrived, in his role as one of the league's premier substitute goaltenders. Should hang onto his role as Kolzig's backup for another couple of seasons." (The Sports Forecaster Online 2000-01)

"Billington is a model backup. He knows his role, accepts it and is always ready to step in when called upon. Billington seems to play better with a limited workload and his game slips if he's used too often. As a smaller goalie, he relies mainly on quickness. Billington never seems to get rattled. He's always been a positive influence wherever he's gone. Was Patrick Roy's understudy in Colorado." (The Sports Forecaster 2001-02, p. 137)

"Billington's goals-against average rose sharply while his save percentage plummeted last season. The 36-year-old veteran will go to training camp with a lot to prove and will be challenged by Sebastien Charpentier for the backup role." (The Sports Forecaster 2002-03, p. 135)

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PENALTY SHOTS:

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SEASON-BY-SEASON:

REGULAR SEASON
Year  Team                        GP    Min   W   L   T    GA    GAA   Shots    Sv%   ShO   G   A   PiM     S/60    PERS
82-83 London Diamonds OJHLB       23   1338                76   3.41                    0
83-84 Belleville Bulls OHL        44   2335  20  19   0   162   4.16                    1   0   2     7
84-85 Belleville Bulls OHL        47   2544  26  19   0   180   4.25                    1   0   0     2
      Canada WORLD JUNIOR          5    300   3   0   2    13   2.60                    1
85-86 Belleville Bulls OHL         3    180   2   1   0    11   3.67                    0   0   0     0
      Canada WORLD JUNIOR          5    300   4   1   0    14   2.80                    0
      New Jersey Devils NHL       18    902   4   9   1    77   5.12     482   .840     0   0   1     0    32.06  893.69
86-87 Maine Mariners AHL          20   1151   9   8   2    70   3.65     550   .873     0   0   1     4    28.67  920.51
      New Jersey Devils NHL       22   1114   4  13   2    89   4.79     569   .844     0   0   0    12    30.65  894.66
87-88 Utica Devils AHL            59   3404  22  27   8   208   3.67    1739   .880     1   0   2    19    30.65  931.48
88-89 New Jersey Devils NHL        3    140   1   1   0    11   4.71      65   .831     0   0   0     0    27.86  877.20
      Utica Devils AHL            41   2432  17  18   6   150   3.70    1170   .872     2   0   0    10    28.87  919.90
89-90 Utica Devils AHL            38   2087  20  13   1   138   3.97    1061   .870     0   0   5     6    30.50  920.77
90-91 Canada NATIONAL TEAM        34   1879  17  14   2   110   3.51                    2   0   0     0
      Canada WORLD                 3     46   0   0   1     3   3.91                    0
91-92 New Jersey Devils NHL       26   1363  13   7   1    69   3.04     637   .892     2   0   1     2    28.04  938.41
92-93 New Jersey Devils NHL       42   2389  21  16   4   146   3.67    1178   .876     2   0   1     8    29.59  925.37
93-94 Ottawa Senators NHL         63   3319  11  41   4   254   4.59    1801   .859     0   0   0     8    32.56  913.23
94-95 Ottawa Senators NHL          9    472   0   6   2    32   4.07     240   .867     0   0   0     2    30.51  917.51
      Boston Bruins NHL            8    373   5   1   0    19   3.06     140   .864     0   0   0     2    22.52  901.82
95-96 Boston Bruins NHL           27   1380  10  13   3    79   3.43     594   .867     1   0   0     2    25.83  910.05
96-97 Colorado Avalanche NHL      23   1200  11   8   2    53   2.65     584   .909     1   0   2     2    29.20  957.91
97-98 Colorado Avalanche NHL      23   1161   8   7   4    45   2.33     588   .923     1   0   0     2    30.39  974.12
98-99 Colorado Avalanche NHL      21   1086  11   8   1    52   2.87     492   .894     0   0   0     2    27.18  939.61
99-00 Washington Capitals NHL     13    611   3   6   1    28   2.75     310   .910     2   0   0     0    30.44  960.41
00-01 Washington Capitals NHL     12    660   3   5   2    27   2.45     317   .915     0   0   1     0    28.82  962.86
01-02 Washington Capitals NHL     17    710   4   5   3    36   3.04     295   .878     0   0   0     0    24.93  919.52
02-03 Washington Capitals NHL      5    217   1   3   1    17   4.70      96   .823     0   0   0     0
FIFTEEN (15) NHL SEASONS         332  17097 110 149  31  1034   3.63    8388  0.877     9   0   6    42

POST-SEASON
Year  Team                        GP    Min   W   L   GA    GAA   Shots    Sv%   ShO   G   A   PiM     S/60    PERS
83-84 Belleville Bulls OHL         1     30   0   0    3    6.00                   0
84-85 Belleville Bulls OHL        14    761   7   5   47    3.71                   1
85-86 Belleville Bulls OHL        20   1133   9   6   68    3.60                   0
88-89 Utica Devils AHL             4    219   1   3   18    4.93                   0
92-93 New Jersey Devils NHL        2     78   0   1    5    3.85     39   .872     0   0   0     0    30.00  921.79
94-95 Boston Bruins NHL            1     25   0   0    1    2.40     10   .900     0   0   0     0    24.00  940.00
95-96 Boston Bruins NHL            1     60   0   1    6    6.00     28   .786     0   0   0     2    28.00  832.38
96-97 Colorado Avalanche NHL       1     20   0   0    1    3.00     13   .923     0   0   0     0    39.00  988.08
97-98 Colorado Avalanche NHL       1      1   0   0    0    ----      0   ----     0   0   0     0    -----  ------
98-99 Colorado Avalanche NHL       1      9   0   0    1    6.67      6   .833     0   0   0     0    40.00  900.00
99-00 Washington Capitals NHL      1     20   0   0    1    3.00      6   .833     0   0   0     0    18.00  863.33
SEVEN (7) NHL POSTSEASONS          8    213   0   2   15    4.23    102  0.853     0   0   0     2    28.73  900.83

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