Ryan Wilson (ice hockey)
Encyclopedia
Ryan Wilson is a Canadian
professional ice hockey
defenceman
currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche
of the NHL
.
of the Ontario Hockey League
. Ryan led the defense in scoring in the last two of his three seasons with the Majors, before joining the Sarnia Sting
for the 2006–07
season. Undrafted but establishing as a hard-hitting offensive defenseman, Wilson was invited as a free agent to the 2006 St. Louis Blues training camp before returning to the OHL. As captain of Sarnia, Ryan led the Sting's defense to be named to be named OHL defensman of the Month for October. After participating in the 2007 OHL All-Star game for the Western Conference, Wilson finished the season with career high 17 goals and 75 points to lead the OHL in scoring among defenseman and place third in the Western Conference coaches poll with the Hardest shot, Best bodychecker and offensive defenseman categories.
Overlooked in the NHL Entry Draft
, Wilson was invited to the 2007 Philadelphia Flyers
training camp on September 16, before returning for his final junior season as captain with the Sting in 2007–08. Alongside future first overall NHL draft pick, Steven Stamkos
, Wilson led the Sting to the second round of the Western Conference finals finishing with a career high 64 assists and 71 points in 58 games as the leading scoring defenseman in the OHL for the second consecutive season. He was named as the Western conferences Best bodychecker, and earned selection to the OHL's Third All-Star Team.
on July 1, 2008. In the 2008–09
season, Wilson made his professional debut with the Flames affiliate, the Quad City Flames
of the AHL. On March 4, 2009, he was traded by the Flames along with Lawrence Nycholat
and a second round pick to the Colorado Avalanche
for Jordan Leopold
. He was then assigned to affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL, where he finished out the season.
Wilson started the 2009–10 season with the Monsters, before receiving his first recall to the injury stricken Avalanche on October 12, 2009. Ryan made his NHL debut with the Avalanche in a 3-2 victory against the Montreal Canadiens
on October 14, 2009. He recorded his first point, an assist, against the Carolina Hurricanes
on October 23, 2009. On November 17, 2009, Wilson scored his first career NHL goal in a 3-2 victory, fittingly against Miikka Kiprusoff
of the Calgary Flames. Wilson remained with the Avalanche and quickly established himself as an aggressive open ice hitter, most notably gaining league-wide attention after delivering a big hit to New Jersey Devils
star Patrik Eliáš
. In the following game against the Edmonton Oilers
on January 18, 2010, Wilson was on the receiving end of a targeted hit and was sidelined by a concussion. Ryan's rookie season slowed after sustaining a second concussion in the months following, however he finished the season to lead Colorado's defense in Plus/minus (+13) and place third in scoring with 21 points.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
defenceman
Defenceman (ice hockey)
Defence in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring...
currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...
of the NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
.
Junior
Wilson first played Major junior hockey with the Toronto St. Michael's MajorsToronto St. Michael's Majors
The Toronto St. Michael's Majors, was a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The hockey program was founded and operated by St. Michael's College School in 1906, and adopted the name "Majors" in 1934, and was commonly referred to as St. Mike's...
of the Ontario Hockey League
Ontario Hockey League
The Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.The OHL also operates under the Ontario Hockey Federation of Hockey Canada....
. Ryan led the defense in scoring in the last two of his three seasons with the Majors, before joining the Sarnia Sting
Sarnia Sting
The Sarnia Sting are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. They play out of the RBC Centre, formerly the Sarnia Sports and Entertainment Centre in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.-History:...
for the 2006–07
2006-07 OHL season
The 2006–07 OHL season was the 27th season of the Ontario Hockey League. Twenty teams each played 68 games. The season commenced on September 21, 2006. The Plymouth Whalers won the J. Ross Robertson Cup defeating the Sudbury Wolves in the championship series....
season. Undrafted but establishing as a hard-hitting offensive defenseman, Wilson was invited as a free agent to the 2006 St. Louis Blues training camp before returning to the OHL. As captain of Sarnia, Ryan led the Sting's defense to be named to be named OHL defensman of the Month for October. After participating in the 2007 OHL All-Star game for the Western Conference, Wilson finished the season with career high 17 goals and 75 points to lead the OHL in scoring among defenseman and place third in the Western Conference coaches poll with the Hardest shot, Best bodychecker and offensive defenseman categories.
Overlooked in the NHL Entry Draft
NHL Entry Draft
The NHL Entry Draft is an annual meeting in which every franchise of the National Hockey League systematically select the rights to available amateur ice hockey players who meet draft eligibility requirements...
, Wilson was invited to the 2007 Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
training camp on September 16, before returning for his final junior season as captain with the Sting in 2007–08. Alongside future first overall NHL draft pick, Steven Stamkos
Steven Stamkos
Steven Stamkos is a Canadian professional ice hockey player, an alternate captain for the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League . Stamkos was the first overall pick in the 2006 OHL Entry Draft, from the Markham Waxers of the OMHA. Playing with the Sarnia Sting of the Ontario Hockey...
, Wilson led the Sting to the second round of the Western Conference finals finishing with a career high 64 assists and 71 points in 58 games as the leading scoring defenseman in the OHL for the second consecutive season. He was named as the Western conferences Best bodychecker, and earned selection to the OHL's Third All-Star Team.
Professional
Completing his junior career, Ryan signed as a free-agent to a three-year entry level contract with the Calgary FlamesCalgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...
on July 1, 2008. In the 2008–09
2008–09 AHL season
The 2008–09 AHL season is the 73rd season of the American Hockey League. 29 teams each played 80 games in the regular season, which ran from October 8 until April 12.-Team and NHL affiliation changes:...
season, Wilson made his professional debut with the Flames affiliate, the Quad City Flames
Quad City Flames
The Quad City Flames were an ice hockey team that played between 2007 and 2009. They were owned by QC Sports Ventures Inc., an ownership group based out of the Quad Cities. The Flames played at the I wireless Center in Moline, Illinois. They were the American Hockey League farm team of the...
of the AHL. On March 4, 2009, he was traded by the Flames along with Lawrence Nycholat
Lawrence Nycholat
Lawrence Nycholat is a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Nycholat currently is a member of the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League .-Playing career:...
and a second round pick to the Colorado Avalanche
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...
for Jordan Leopold
Jordan Leopold
Jordan Leopold is an American professional ice hockey defenseman, currently playing with the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League.-Playing career:...
. He was then assigned to affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL, where he finished out the season.
Wilson started the 2009–10 season with the Monsters, before receiving his first recall to the injury stricken Avalanche on October 12, 2009. Ryan made his NHL debut with the Avalanche in a 3-2 victory against the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
on October 14, 2009. He recorded his first point, an assist, against the Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League , and play their home games at the 18,680-seat RBC Center...
on October 23, 2009. On November 17, 2009, Wilson scored his first career NHL goal in a 3-2 victory, fittingly against Miikka Kiprusoff
Miikka Kiprusoff
Miikka Sakari Kiprusoff is a Finnish professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League . He was selected in the fifth round, 116th overall by the San Jose Sharks in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. He has also played for TPS of the Finnish SM-liiga...
of the Calgary Flames. Wilson remained with the Avalanche and quickly established himself as an aggressive open ice hitter, most notably gaining league-wide attention after delivering a big hit to New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey, United States. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
star Patrik Eliáš
Patrik Elias
Patrik Eliáš is a Czech professional hockey left winger and alternate captain for the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League . A long-time Devil and currently the team's longest-tenured skater, Eliáš is the franchise's all-time leading scorer, while also holding franchise records for most...
. In the following game against the Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....
on January 18, 2010, Wilson was on the receiving end of a targeted hit and was sidelined by a concussion. Ryan's rookie season slowed after sustaining a second concussion in the months following, however he finished the season to lead Colorado's defense in Plus/minus (+13) and place third in scoring with 21 points.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an... |
Team | League | GP | G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to... |
A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal... |
Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one... |
PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,... |
GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2003–04 | Toronto St. Michael's Majors Toronto St. Michael's Majors The Toronto St. Michael's Majors, was a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The hockey program was founded and operated by St. Michael's College School in 1906, and adopted the name "Majors" in 1934, and was commonly referred to as St. Mike's... |
OHL Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.The OHL also operates under the Ontario Hockey Federation of Hockey Canada.... |
58 | 3 | 22 | 25 | 88 | 18 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 16 | ||
| 2004–05 | Toronto St. Michael's Majors | OHL | 68 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 149 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 12 | ||
| 2005–06 | Toronto St. Michael's Majors | OHL | 64 | 12 | 49 | 61 | 145 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 12 | ||
| 2006–07 | Sarnia Sting Sarnia Sting The Sarnia Sting are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. They play out of the RBC Centre, formerly the Sarnia Sports and Entertainment Centre in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.-History:... |
OHL | 68 | 17 | 58 | 75 | 136 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 14 | ||
| 2007–08 2007–08 OHL season The 2007–08 OHL season was the 28th season of the Ontario Hockey League. Twenty teams played 68 games each during the schedule, that started on September 19, 2007, and concluded on March 16, 2008.... |
Sarnia Sting | OHL | 58 | 7 | 64 | 71 | 84 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 19 | ||
| 2008–09 2008–09 AHL season The 2008–09 AHL season is the 73rd season of the American Hockey League. 29 teams each played 80 games in the regular season, which ran from October 8 until April 12.-Team and NHL affiliation changes:... |
Quad City Flames Quad City Flames The Quad City Flames were an ice hockey team that played between 2007 and 2009. They were owned by QC Sports Ventures Inc., an ownership group based out of the Quad Cities. The Flames played at the I wireless Center in Moline, Illinois. They were the American Hockey League farm team of the... |
AHL American Hockey League The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League... |
60 | 4 | 16 | 20 | 56 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Lake Erie Monsters Lake Erie Monsters The Lake Erie Monsters are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They began play in the 2007–08 AHL season at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio... |
AHL | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 25 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Lake Erie Monsters | AHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Colorado Avalanche Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise... |
NHL | 61 | 3 | 18 | 21 | 36 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 67 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 128 | 6 | 31 | 37 | 104 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||||
Awards and honours
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario Hockey League Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.The OHL also operates under the Ontario Hockey Federation of Hockey Canada.... |
||
| Third All-Star Team | 2007–08 | |