Mike Sillinger

Michael John Sillinger (born June 29, 1971) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for 17 seasons. Sillinger played for 12 teams and was traded nine times during his NHL career, both of which are league records (tied with Brent Ashton for the latter).

Originally drafted 11th overall in 1989 out of the Western Hockey League (WHL) by the Detroit Red Wings, Sillinger began his NHL career in Detroit before continuing on to play for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, Ottawa Senators, Columbus Blue Jackets, Phoenix Coyotes, St. Louis Blues, Nashville Predators and New York Islanders. Of these 12 teams, Sillinger played full seasons with only Detroit, Vancouver, Columbus and New York. During his tenure with Detroit, he captured a Calder Cup championship in 1992 with the Adirondack Red Wings, while leading the playoffs in scoring as an American Hockey League (AHL) rookie.

Internationally, Sillinger represented Team Canada on two occasions, winning a gold medal at the 1991 World Junior Championships and captaining his country at the 2000 World Championships.

Playing career Sillinger began playing major junior in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Pats in 1987–88. After a 43-point rookie campaign, he emerged as a top prospect in the juniors in his second WHL season. With 53 goals and 131 points in 1988–89, Sillinger led the Pats in scoring for the first of three consecutive seasons. The Detroit Red Wings then made Sillinger their first-round pick, selecting him 11th overall in the 1989 NHL entry draft. Upon being drafted, Sillinger returned to the Pats for two more seasons, where he posted 129- and 116-point campaigns to receive WHL Second and First All-Star Team honours in 1990 and 1991, respectively.

Following his 1990–91 season with the Pats, Sillinger was called up to the Red Wings roster, making his NHL debut in the final three games of the regular season, tallying an assist. He also appeared in three playoff games with Detroit that season, also accumulating one assist. The following season, in 1991–92, Sillinger spent his professional rookie season in the American Hockey League (AHL) with Detroit's minor league affiliate, the Adirondack Red Wings, where he scored at an above-point-per-game pace with 66 points in 64 games. Due to the lingering hip complications, Sillinger announced his retirement from hockey on August 26, 2009.

Personal life Sillinger was born and raised in Regina, Saskatchewan. He has three sons, Owen, Lukas, and Cole, with his wife Karla, also a Regina native. During Sillinger's NHL career, the family spent the off-seasons in Regina, and have chosen to remain in Regina following Sillinger's retirement. Owen played for the Regina Pat Canadians midget hockey team and was named the most valuable player at the 2015 Telus Cup. Owen now plays with the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL, and Lukas plays with Greensboro in the ECHL. Cole was the 11th overall pick in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft to the Medicine Hat Tigers. Cole was selected twelfth overall in the 2021 NHL entry draft by the Columbus Blue Jackets, one of Mike’s former teams.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1987–88 Regina Pats WHL 67 18 25 43 17 4 2 2 4 0 1988–89 Regina Pats WHL 72 53 78 131 52 — — — — — 1989–90 Regina Pats WHL 70 57 72 129 41 11 12 10 22 2 1989–90 Adirondack Red Wings AHL — — — — — 1 0 0 0 0 1990–91 Regina Pats WHL 57 50 66 116 42 8 6 9 15 4 1990–91 Detroit Red Wings NHL 3 0 1 1 0 3 0 1 1 0 1991–92 Adirondack Red Wings AHL 64 25 41 66 26 15 9 19 28 12 1991–92 Detroit Red Wings NHL — — — — — 8 2 2 4 2 1992–93 Adirondack Red Wings AHL 15 10 20 30 31 11 5 13 18 10 1992–93 Detroit Red Wings NHL 51 4 17 21 16 — — — — — 1993–94 Detroit Red Wings NHL 62 8 21 29 10 — — — — — 1994–95 Wiener EV AUT 13 13 14 27 10 — — — — — 1994–95 Detroit Red Wings NHL 13 2 6 8 2 — — — — — 1994–95 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 15 2 5 7 6 — — — — — 1995–96 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 62 13 21 34 32 — — — — — 1995–96 Vancouver Canucks NHL 12 1 3 4 6 6 0 0 0 2 1996–97 Vancouver Canucks NHL 78 17 20 37 25 — — — — — 1997–98 Vancouver Canucks NHL 48 10 9 19 34 — — — — — 1997–98 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 27 11 11 22 16 3 1 0 1 0 1998–99 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 25 0 3 3 8 — — — — — 1998–99 Tampa Bay Lightning NHL 54 8 2 10 28 — — — — — 1999–00 Tampa Bay Lightning NHL 67 19 25 44 86 — — — — — 1999–00 Florida Panthers NHL 13 4 4 8 16 4 2 1 3 2 2000–01 Florida Panthers NHL 55 13 21 34 44 — — — — — 2000–01 Ottawa Senators NHL 13 3 4 7 4 4 0 0 0 2 2001–02 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 80 20 23 43 54 — — — — — 2002–03 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 75 18 25 43 52 — — — — — 2003–04 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 60 8 6 14 54 — — — — — 2003–04 St. Louis Blues NHL 16 5 5 10 14 5 3 1 4 6 2005–06 St. Louis Blues NHL 48 22 19 41 49 — — — — — 2005–06 Nashville Predators NHL 31 10 12 22 14 5 2 1 3 12 2006–07 New York Islanders NHL 82 26 33 59 46 5 1 1 2 2 2007–08 New York Islanders NHL 52 14 12 26 28 — — — — — 2008–09 New York Islanders NHL 7 2 0 2 0 — — — — — 2008–09 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 3 1 3 4 2 — — — — — NHL totals 1,049 240 308 548 644 43 11 7 18 28

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 1991 Canada WJC 7 4 2 6 2 2000 Canada WC 4th 9 3 0 3 4 Junior totals 7 4 2 6 2 Senior totals 9 3 0 3 4

Awards and honours Award Year WHL East Second All-Star Team 1990 East First All-Star Team 1991 AHL Calder Cup (Adirondack Red Wings) 1992