Matt Read

Matthew Read (born June 14, 1986) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre who plays for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Minor Hockey
Read started playing hockey on Vancouver Island playing for the Kerry Park Islanders. At age 10, he moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado and played for Pikes Peak Minor Hockey for four years. He then moved to Ilderton, Ontario and played for the Ilderton Jets of the OMHA's Shamrock League.

Junior Hockey
After being a finalist in the OMHA Bantam Championship, Matt Read's team won the Championship in his first year of Midget defeating Centre Hastings in 4 games. From minor hockey, Read played OHA Junior D hockey for the Lucan Irish in the 2003-04 season.

In 2004-05, Read signed with the nearby St. Marys Lincolns Junior B club of the Western Ontario Hockey League. Read spent two seasons with the Lincolns.

In the 2004-05 season, Read was runner up to future NHLer Logan Couture for the WOHL Rookie-of-the-Year Award. Couture, a graduate of the Lucan Irish of the Shamrock League, played that season with the St. Thomas Stars before being an OHL first round draft pick in 2005.

The following season, Read signed with the Milton Icehawks Junior A club of the OJHL for 2005-06. In 2006-07, Read spent a season with the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL.

Philadelphia Flyers
Read signed a three-year contract as a free agent with the Philadelphia Flyers on March 24, 2011, after playing four seasons of collegiate hockey with Bemidji State University. On October 5, 2011, the Flyers announced that Read had made the final roster.

Read scored his first NHL goal during a game against the New Jersey Devils on October 8, 2011, against goaltender Martin Brodeur. On October 18, Read recorded a career-high 4 points (goal, 3 assists) in a 7-2 Flyers win over the Ottawa Senators. As of November 21, Read scored a goal in five consecutive games.

In January 2012, Read participated in the All-Star SuperSkills Competition and finished second in the accuracy contest, behind Dallas forward Jamie Benn.

During the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Read took the opportunity to go over to Europe to play professional hockey for the Swedish Tier 2 team Södertälje.

On January 26, Matt Read posted his first career hat trick against the Florida Panthers, scoring on goaltenders Jose Theodore and Scott Clemmensen.

Following the 2013 shorten NHL season, Read was invited to play for Team Canada at the 2013 IIHF World Championships.

On September 20, 2013, Read signed a four-year, $14.5 million contract extension with the Flyers.

Awards and honours

 * CHA All-Rookie Team (2007–08)
 * CHA Rookie of the Year (2007–08)
 * NCAA Frozen Four participant (2008–09)
 * CHA Player of the Year (2009–10)
 * CHA First All-Star Team (2009-10)
 * NCAA Frozen Four participant (2008–09)
 * NCAA West First-Team All-America (2009–10)
 * NHL All-Star Game SuperSkills Competition rookie competitor - Team Alfredsson (2012)
 * Led NHL rookies in goals (2011–12) - 24