Chris Mueller (ice hockey)

Christopher M. Mueller (born March 6, 1986) is an American professional ice hockey forward. He is currently playing with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the American Hockey League (AHL).

Chris Mueller
Mueller with the New York Rangers in 2014
Born (1986-03-06) March 6, 1986
West Seneca, New York, U.S.
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 203 lb (92 kg; 14 st 7 lb)
Position Center
Shoots Right
AHL team
Former teams		 Lehigh Valley Phantoms
Nashville Predators
Dallas Stars
New York Rangers
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 2008–present

Playing career

Undrafted, Mueller attended Michigan State University where he played four full seasons of collegiate hockey in the CCHA.

In the 2010–11 season, on December 27, 2010, Mueller signed a one-year contract with the Predators from American Hockey League affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals.[1] On December 28, 2010, Mueller made his NHL debut with the Predators in a 4–2 defeat against the Dallas Stars.[2]

On July 7, 2011, Mueller re-signed to a one-year contract with the Predators.[3]

On July 8, 2013 Mueller left the Predators organization after three seasons and signed a one-year contract with the Dallas Stars.[4] On October 14, 2013, after skating in just one NHL contest with the Dallas Stars, Mueller was assigned to play with the Texas Stars of the AHL.[5]

On July 1, 2014, for a second consecutive year, Mueller was on the move, joining his third NHL club, the New York Rangers, on a one-year deal.[6]

Mueller familiarly signed a one-year, two-way contract as a free agent with the Anaheim Ducks on July 1, 2015.[7] In the 2015–16 season, Mueller was assigned to newly relaunched AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls. He continued his offensive prowess in the American League, contributing with 57 points in 63 games.

Unable to feature with the Ducks, Mueller left at the conclusion of his contract to sign as a free agent to a one-year, two-way deal with the Arizona Coyotes on July 1, 2016.[8] Mueller played the entirety of the 2016–17 season with the Coyotes AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, for their inaugural season. As a veteran on the club, he led the Roadrunners in scoring with 67 points in 68 games.

On July 1, 2017, Mueller left the Coyotes as a free agent and signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs.[9]

On the opening day of free agency, having concluded a successful tenure within the Maple Leafs organization, Mueller agreed to a one-year, two-way contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning on July 1, 2019.[10] In the 2019–20 season, Mueller registered 23 points in 31 contests with the Lightning's AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, before he traded by Tampa Bay in a return to the Anaheim Ducks organization in exchange for Patrick Sieloff on December 31, 2019.[11] He was immediately assigned by the Ducks to the San Diego Gulls, returning for a second stint after playing with the Gulls in their inaugural season.

As a free agent heading into the pandemic delayed 2020–21 season, Mueller was signed to a one-year AHL contract with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, affiliate to the Philadelphia Flyers, on January 26, 2021.[12]

Career statistics
Mueller (left) with the Toronto Marlies during the 2018 Calder Cup Final.
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2004–05 Michigan State University CCHA 41 2 16 18 32 — — — — —
2005–06 Michigan State University CCHA 41 11 16 27 47 — — — — —
2006–07 Michigan State University CCHA 42 16 16 32 30 — — — — —
2007–08 Michigan State University CCHA 42 13 14 27 32 — — — — —
2007–08 Grand Rapids Griffins AHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2008–09 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 59 5 11 16 23 — — — — —
2008–09 Johnstown Chiefs ECHL 3 3 3 6 2 — — — — —
2009–10 Cincinnati Cyclones ECHL 5 4 1 5 0 — — — — —
2009–10 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 67 13 14 27 37 7 3 2 5 4
2010–11 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 67 24 26 50 34 13 4 7 11 13
2010–11 Nashville Predators NHL 15 0 3 3 2 — — — — —
2011–12 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 73 32 28 60 30 3 1 0 1 0
2011–12 Nashville Predators NHL 4 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2012–13 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 55 18 18 36 35 2 0 0 0 2
2012–13 Nashville Predators NHL 18 2 3 5 6 — — — — —
2013–14 Texas Stars AHL 60 25 32 57 29 19 6 5 11 12
2013–14 Dallas Stars NHL 9 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 2
2014–15 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 64 14 26 40 26 15 5 4 9 6
2014–15 New York Rangers NHL 7 1 1 2 0 — — — — —
2015–16 San Diego Gulls AHL 63 20 37 57 50 9 4 7 11 6
2016–17 Tucson Roadrunners AHL 68 19 48 67 48 — — — — —
2017–18 Toronto Marlies AHL 73 19 33 52 30 20 4 12 16 6
2018–19 Toronto Marlies AHL 60 33 32 65 32 13 5 5 10 2
2019–20 Syracuse Crunch AHL 31 11 12 23 24 — — — — —
2019–20 San Diego Gulls AHL 29 8 7 15 10 — — — — —
NHL totals 53 3 7 10 8 4 0 0 0 2

Awards and honors
Award Year
AHL
Second All-Star Team 2018–19[13]
All-Star Game 2012
Calder Cup (Texas Stars) 2014
Calder Cup (Toronto Marlies) 2018[14]

References
  1. "Predators sign forward Chris Mueller; Activate Mueller to NHL roster". Nashville Predators. December 27, 2010. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  2. "Stars 4, Predators 2". CBS Sports. December 28, 2010. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  3. "Predators continue to work through RFA offer sheet mess, sign four players". NBC Sports. July 7, 2011. Retrieved July 7, 2011.
  4. "Dallas Stars sign Center Chris Mueller". Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  5. "Stars make roster moves". Dallas Stars. October 13, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2013.
  6. "Rangers agree to terms with Chris Mueller". New York Rangers. July 1, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  7. "Ducks sign Hackett, Mueller and Piskula to contracts". Anaheim Ducks. July 1, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  8. "Coyotes sign Mueller to one-year contract". Arizona Coyotes. July 1, 2016. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  9. "Maple Leafs sign Chris Mueller to two-year contract". Sportsnet.ca. July 1, 2017. Retrieved July 1, 2017.
  10. "Lightning sign three players one-year, two-way contracts". Tampa Bay Lightning. July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  11. "Ducks acquire Mueller from Tampa Bay". Anaheim Ducks. December 31, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  12. "Phantoms add pair of veteran forwards". Lehigh Valley Phantoms. January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  13. "2018-19 American Hockey League First and Second All-Star Teams Named". OurSports Central. April 11, 2019.
  14. "Marlies bring a hockey championship to Toronto, win Calder Cup". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. June 15, 2018. Retrieved June 15, 2018.
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