About Ed Jovanovski
Edward Jovanovski (born June 26, 1976), nicknamed "JovoCop", is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. A defenceman, he was born in Windsor, Ontario, and played major junior ice hockey for two seasons with the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), earning First All-Star, Second All-Star and All-Rookie Team honours. He was then selected first overall in the 1994 NHL entry draft by the Florida Panthers. During his rookie NHL season, he earned All-Rookie Team honours and helped the Panthers advance to the Stanley Cup Final, where they lost to the Colorado Avalanche. After three-and-a-half seasons in Florida, Jovanovski was traded to the Vancouver Canucks in a seven-player deal involving Pavel Bure. During his tenure with Vancouver, he was awarded the Babe Pratt Trophy as the team's best defenceman three consecutive years. He also led the club's defencemen in scoring four consecutive years. In July 2006, Jovanovski became an unrestricted free agent and signed with the Phoenix Coyotes. He led the team's defencemen in scoring during his first three years with the club. Jovanovski returned to the Florida Panthers for three seasons, before retiring in 2015. Long known as a two-way defenceman, Jovanovski recorded one 50-point season, as well as three of 40 or better, during his NHL career. Internationally, Jovanovski played for the Canadian national team. A one-time Winter Olympian, he won a gold medal at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. At the under-20 level, he won gold at the 1995 World Junior Championship. He went on to play in four World Championships, winning silver in 2005 and 2008. He represented Canada at the 2004 World Cup, playing in one game due to injury in the championship-winning tournament.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.