THE 2004-05 BULLDOGS THE NESBITT FILE ADVICE I WOULD GIVE YOUNGSTERS: Play your game MY GOAL FOR THE 2004-05 SEASON: Home ice for playoffs & CCHA Super 6 FAVORITE TV SHOW: 17 Seinfeld MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT HOCKEY: Speed and competition IF I COULD MEET ANYONE IN HISTORY: DEREK NESBITT Wayne Gretzky IF I COULD CHANGE COLLEGE HOCKEY: 5-11 N 182 N Senior N Left Wing Get rid of the face masks Egmondville, Ontario DESIRED OCCUPATION (OTHER THAN HOCKEY PLAYER): PGA Tour Pro 2004-05: Returns as one of the CCHA’s better two-way players . Will be relied upon heavily to gen- MY FAVORITE NHL PLAYER: erate offense and anchors one of the top lines . Returns as a regular on both the power play and Joe Sakic penalty kill units . An accurate shooter and has the team’s hardest shot . Pinpoint passer . A steady player who seems to make the right play . Fluid skater with fine puckhandling skills. MY GREATEST ATHLETIC MOMENT: 2003-04: Placed third in team points and ranked in a 31st-place tie among the CCHA’s overall scoring Playing Michigan at a sold-out Joe Louis Arena leaders . Played in all 38 games . His seven multi-point outings tied for third best on the squad . IF I HAD ONE WISH, I WOULD: . Had a five-game point string (11/28-12/27) for seven points (5-2–7) . Scored two goals, including Play on a line with Wayne Gretzky and Jari Kurri the game-winner, against Massachusetts-Lowell (12/27) in the Badger Hockey Showdown’s opening MY BEST NON-ATHLETIC TALENT: round . Enjoyed a four-point series against Michigan (11/7-8) with three points (1-2–3) in the opener Tiger Woods 2004 House Champion . Accounted for game-winning goal at Nebraska-Omaha ONE MOMENT IN HISTORY I WISH ICOULD NESBITT’S CAREER STATISTICS (1/7). HAVE WITNESSED: 2002-03: Honorable Mention All-CCHA . Tallied three CAREER 1972 Summit Series – Canada vs. Russia points (2-1–3) vs. Western Michigan (2/15-16) to earn YEAR GP G A PTS +/- PP SH GW PN/PIM FAVORITE MOVIE: CCHA Offensive Player of the Week (2/17) accolades . 2001-02 36 9 12 21 +6 2 0 0 8/16 For The Love Of The Game and Tin Cup A finalist for CCHA’s Best “Defensive” Forward . Led 2002-03 42 20 33 53+38 6 3 9 9/26 the nation with a school-record nine game-winning goals 2003-04 38 11 17 28 -4 2 0 2 14/36 FAVORITE SPORT (OTHER THAN HOCKEY): TOTALS 11640 62 102+40 10 3 11 31/78 . Ranked third on team in points and 23rd nationally Golf (1.26 avg.) . Produced 15 multi-point games and four CCHA multi-goal outings (both third best on team) . Placed YEAR GP G A PTS +/- PP SH GW PN/PIM 25th in the nation for assists (0.83 avg.) and his three 2001-02 28 7 7 14 0 2 0 0 7/14 short-handed markers tied for sixth best on the national 2002-03 28 14 18 32+24 3 2 8 7/22 level . Ranked tied for third among CCHA’s overall 2003-04 28 7 10 17 -6 1 0 1 9/18 scorers . Started year with a six-game point string (2- TOTALS 8428 35 63+18 6 2 9 23/54 7–9) and registered 12 points (6-6–12) in a seven-game CAREER BESTS stretch (2/1-3/1) . Totaled six points (3-3–6) vs. Lake Goals (Game): 2 (7 times, last 12/27/03 vs. Superior State in CCHA Tourney series (3/14-15) . Massachusetts-Lowell) Posted 13 points (7-6–13) in final seven contests. Assists (Game): 2 (9 times, last 1/23/04 vs. 2001-02: Tied for sixth in team scoring . Had five Findlay) multi-point games (tied for fourth highest on team) . Points (Game): 3 (5 times, last 11/7/03 vs. Scored two goals vs. Michigan (11/30) . Turned in a pair Michigan) of 1-1–2 efforts vs. Bowling Green State (2/9) and at Ohio State (2/15). HIGH SCHOOL/JUNIOR: Played three seasons (1998-01) for the Sarnia (Ontario) Steeplejack Bees of the Mid-Western Ontario Junior B Hockey League . Coached by Kevin Hamlin . Tallied 22 goals with 38 assists for a team-best 60 points in 2000-01 . Two-time MWHJL All-Star Team selection (1999-00 and 2000-01) . Among the MWHJL’s 1999-00 scoring leaders with a team-best 70 points (32-38–70) . Sarnia’s 1998-99 Rookie of the Year . Amassed 150 points (73-77–150) in 1997-98 for Seaforth (Ontario) . A 2001 graduate of St. Christophers Secondary School in Sarnia, Ontario. PERSONAL: Son of Graham and Pam Nesbitt . Born 4/16/82 in Strathroy, Ontario . His father is an insurance salesman and mother is an accountant . Has a younger brother . Enjoys golf and base- ball . Won Ontario Optimist Golf Tourney at age 12 and carded a hole-in-one at age nine . Shoots: left . FSU Letters: Three . Marketing major. BY THE NUMBERS AGAINST 2004-05 OPPONENTS Alaska Fairbanks. 10 GP, 1-4–5 Nebraska-Omaha . 8 GP, 3-2–5 Bemidji State . 2 GP, 1-2–3 Northern Michigan . 7 GP, 1-3–4 Bowling Green State. 8 GP, 5-5–10 Notre Dame . 8 GP, 3-4–7 Clarkson. 0 GP Ohio State . 8 GP, 4-3–7 Colgate . 2 GP, 0-2–2 Western Michigan . 11 GP, 6-3–9 Connecticut. 1 GP, 0-1–1 Wisconsin . 1 GP, 0-0–0 Lake Superior State . 8 GP, 5-7–12 Yale . 0 GP Miami (Ohio). 8 GP, 1-2–3 POSTSEASON Michigan . 7 GP, 3-5–8 CCHA Tournament . 8 GP, 3-7–10 Michigan State . 10 GP, 0-4–4 NCAA Tournament . 2 GP, 2-2–4 13 THE 2004-05 BULLDOGS THE PEARSON FILE FAVORITE MOVIE: Almost Famous IF I COULD MEET ANYONE IN HISTORY: Marilyn Monroe THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT OF HOCKEY IS: 15 Training THE BIGGEST INFLUENCE ON MY HOCKEY CAREER: The coaches I had growing up who taught me the fundamentals ZAC PEARSON MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT HOCKEY IS: N N N The boys and friends you make 5-10 181 Sophomore Right Wing ONE WORD THAT DESCRIBES ME: White Lake, Michigan Funny FAVORITE NHL PLAYER: 2004-05: A fundamentally all-round skater . Should receive a regular amount of ice time . Steve Yzerman Gained valuable experience from last season and should benefit as a result . Not afraid to deliv- IF I COULD BE THE COVER OF AMAGAZINE: er a big hit in the open ice or along the boards . Aggressive forechecker . Conditioning has improved . A strong penalty kill performer as well . Will be asked to boost his offensive out- Sports Illustrated put from a season ago. THE MOTTO ILIVE BY: 2003-04: Played in 31 of squad’s 38 outings . Tied for 10th among team’s leading points getters Keep on Keep’in on while tying for second place among the Bulldogs’ newcomers . Best game was a two-point (1- MY PREGAME RITUAL: 1–2) performance versus Massachusetts-Lowell (12/27) in the opening round of the Badger Hockey Get dressed eight minutes before the game Showdown . Netted the game-winning goal in 3-1 victory at Colgate (10/18) which also represent- THE BEST PART OF BEING A FSU HOCKEY PLAYER: ed his first collegiate marker . Led team with a +9 efficiency rating to garner FSU’s Plus/Minus The stories that we can tell Award . Notched an assist each in series at Notre EARSON S AREER TATISTICS Dame (2/13-14) . Also credited with an assist in P ’ C S THE MOST UNDERRATED PLAYER ON OUR TEAM: home contests vs. Michigan State (11/1), Nebraska- CAREER Skip Renauld Omaha (11/22), Niagara (11/29) and Ohio State (2/6) . YEAR GP G A PTS +/- PP SH GW PN/PIM THE BEST PART OF OUR HOCKEY ARENA: 2003-04 31 2 7 9 +9 0 0 1 12/24 Registered three points (0-3–3) apiece in November The fans TOTALS 31 2 7 9 +9 0 0 1 12/24 and February for season bests. WHAT MAKES ME LAUGH?: HIGH SCHOOL/JUNIOR: Skated the 2002-03 season for the CCHA Matt Rutkowski’s Comments United States Hockey League’s Cedar Rapids (Iowa) YEAR GP G A PTS +/- PP SH GW PN/PIM RoughRiders under coach Mark Carlson . Placed 2003-04 22 0 5 5 0 0 0 0 8/16 fourth among the team’s top points leaders with 35 TOTALS 22 0 5 5 0 0 0 0 8/16 total on 15 goals and 20 assists in 59 contests . Helped guide Cedar Rapids to a second-place finish in CAREER BESTS the USHL’s East Division . Competed in the 2002 USA Goals (Game): 1 (twice, last 12/27/03 vs. Hockey Top Prospects Tournament at Plymouth, Mich. Massachusetts-Lowell) Assists (Game): 1 (7 times, last 2/14/04 at . Scored 42 goals and totaled 95 points in 72 outings Notre Dame) for the Detroit (Mich.) Jr. Wings midget team in 2001-02. Points (Game): 2 (12/27/03 vs. Massachusetts- PERSONAL: Born 2/27/84 in Pontiac, Mich. Son of Rick Lowell) and Linda Pearson of White Lake, Mich. Father is an operations director and mother is an accountant . Has two older sisters . Enjoys golf, cards and the guitar . Nickname is “Pearse” . Shoots: Right . FSU Letters: One . Business admin- istration major.