Luke Walker (ice hockey)

{{Infobox ice hockey player

| alt =

| name = Luke Walker

| image = Luke Walker.jpg

| caption = Walker with the Portland Winterhawks in 2009

| image_size = 230px

| position = Right Wing

| shoots = Right

| height_ft = 6

| height_in = 2

| weight_lb = 195

| played_for = Lake Erie Monsters
KHL Medveščak Zagreb
Graz 99ers
EC KAC

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1990|2|19}}

| birth_place = New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.{{cite web|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/hawks/index.ssf/2009/12/winterhawks_luke_walker_on_us.html|title=Winterhawks' Luke Walker on U.S. team for World Junior Championship|author=Mike Wilson|date=23 Dec 2009}}

| draft = 139th overall

| draft_year = 2010

| draft_team = Colorado Avalanche

| career_start = 2010

| career_end = 2018

}}

Luke Walker (born February 19, 1990) is an American former professional ice hockey forward, who played in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Lake Erie Monsters.

Playing career

=Junior=

Walker is the son of former New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings forward Gordie Walker, and was born in New Haven, Connecticut, when his father was a member of the New Haven Nighthawks of the American Hockey League.{{cite web|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/hawks/index.ssf/2010/03/winterhawks_veterans_like_luke.html|title=Winterhawks veterans, like Luke Walker, can't wait for playoffs to start|date=18 March 2010}}

A native of Castlegar, British Columbia, Canada, Walker attended provincial B.C team, Okanagan Hockey Academy, scoring 50 goals in 52 games before joining the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League as a training camp invitee for the 2007–08 season.

In his three years with the Winterhawks, Luke scored 130 points in 202 games, improving his points totals in each year. In his final season with Portland in 2009–10, Walker scored a career high 57 points in 61 games, despite missing time due after surgically implanting a plate in his chin after he was hit in the face by a puck on December 8, 2009.{{cite web|url=http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=510922 |title=Schroeder, Kristo, Johnson lead U.S. World Junior team - 2010 World Junior Championship |publisher=Nhl.com |date=2009-12-23 |accessdate=2010-07-03}} He returned to help Portland progress to the second round of the postseason by scoring 10 points in 13 games.

After passing through the draft the two previous years, on June 26, 2010, Luke was chosen by the Colorado Avalanche in the fifth round, 109th overall, of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.{{cite web|url=http://www.nhl.com/ice/draftsearch.htm?year=2010&round=5|title=2010 NHL Entry Draft - Fifth Round Selections.|date=26 June 2010}}{{cite web| url = http://www.bclocalnews.com/error/?c=y&errorURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bclocalnews.com%2Fkootenay_rockies%2Fcastlegarnews%2Fsports%2F97410439.html | publisher = bclocalnews.com | title = Castlegar man makes NHL draft | date = 2010-06-26 | accessdate = 2010-07-02}}

=Professional=

Walker attended his first Avalanche NHL training camp for the 2010–11 season and after impressing through camp, with eligibility to play in the AHL with affiliate the Lake Erie Monsters, he was signed by Colorado to a three-year entry-level contract on September 28, 2010.{{cite web| url = http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_16197722 | title = Avalanche sign fifth-round draft pick Luke Walker | publisher = Denver Post | date = 2010-09-28 | accessdate = 2010-10-10}} Walker remained a constant with the Monsters throughout his entry-level contract with the Avalanche. In his final season with the Monsters, Walker's season was affected by concussion reducing him to 47 games, however still increasing his scoring rate.

On June 24, 2013, with his rights still owned by the Avalanche, Walker signed his first European contract, agreeing to a one-year deal with newly promoted Kontinental Hockey League club, KHL Medveščak Zagreb.{{cite web|url=http://khlmedvescakzg.tumblr.com/post/53744188561/mladi-napadaci-patrick-bjorkstrand-i-luke-walker-dolaze |title=Young forwards Patrick Bjorkstrand and Luke Walker join the Bears |publisher=KHL Medveščak Zagreb |date=2013-06-24 |accessdate=2013-06-24 |language=Croatian |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130917155750/http://khlmedvescakzg.tumblr.com/post/53744188561/mladi-napadaci-patrick-bjorkstrand-i-luke-walker-dolaze |archivedate=September 17, 2013 }} On the lower lines of Zagreb and in a checking role, Walker endured a trying season in contributing with just 1 goal in 36 games for the 2013–14 season.

Walker expectedly left Zagreb at season's end and on July 31, 2014, agreed to a one-year contract with Austrian club, Graz 99ers of the EBEL.{{cite web| url = http://sportreport.biz/2014/08/01/graz-99ers-verpflichten-luke-walker/ | title = Graz commit to Luke Walker | publisher = sportreport.biz | date = 2014-07-31 | accessdate = 2014-07-31 | language = German}} In the 2014–15 season, Walker quickly adapted to the Austrian league and reached a professional high 19 goals and 31 points in 55 games. After originally re-signing for another season with Graz and after competing in pre-season, Walker and Graz mutually opted to terminate his contract on September 9, 2015.{{cite web | url = http://erstebankliga.at/news/transfernews/1808-transfernews-aus-graz-und-klagenfurt | title = Transfer news with Graz and KAC | publisher = Erste Bank Eishockey Liga | date = 2015-09-09 | accessdate = 2015-09-09 | language = German | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150913024032/http://erstebankliga.at/news/transfernews/1808-transfernews-aus-graz-und-klagenfurt | archive-date = September 13, 2015 | url-status = dead }} Three days later on September 12, Walker remained in Austria to sign a one-year contract with fellow EBEL club, EC KAC.{{cite web| url = http://www.kac.at/de/news/spieler/luke-walker-nach-klagenfurt | title = Luke Walker to Klagenfurter | publisher = EC KAC | date = 2015-09-12 | accessdate = 2015-09-12}}

International play

{{MedalCountry | {{flagicon|United States}} United States }}

On January 5, 2010, Walker won a Gold Medal as a member of the United States men's national junior ice hockey team that won the 2010 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. In the gold medal game, Team USA defeated the pre-tournament favorites and host country Canada 6–5 in overtime to win their second gold medal, thus ending Canada's bid for a record-breaking sixth consecutive gold medal.{{cite web|url=http://www.iihf.com/channels0910/wm20/news/news-singleview-world-juniors/article/canada-us-tied-after-one.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=2956&cHash=e1aa245402|accessdate=January 6, 2010|title=New champs: USA stuns Canada|date=January 5, 2010|last=Aykroyd|first=Lukas|publisher=International Ice Hockey Federation|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100111214455/http://www.iihf.com/channels0910/wm20/news/news-singleview-world-juniors/article/canada-us-tied-after-one.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=2956&cHash=e1aa245402|archivedate=January 11, 2010|df=mdy-all}}