Lyle Odelein

Lyle Theodore Odelein (born July 21, 1968) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played for eight National Hockey League (NHL) teams in 16 seasons, and was the inaugural captain of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Lyle Odelein
Born (1968-07-21) July 21, 1968
Quill Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Right
Played for Montreal Canadiens
New Jersey Devils
Phoenix Coyotes
Columbus Blue Jackets
Chicago Blackhawks
Dallas Stars
Florida Panthers
Pittsburgh Penguins
National team  Canada
NHL Draft 141st overall, 1986
Montreal Canadiens
Playing career 19892006

Playing career

Odelein played junior hockey for the Moose Jaw Warriors before being drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the seventh round (141st overall) in 1986.

His playing style adapted through his career; primarily used as a defensive defenceman early in his career (as well as an enforcer), but became more of a two-way threat when former Montreal Canadiens coach Jacques Demers used him on the power play.

His first NHL goal was a highlight-reel end-to-end rush against Chicago Blackhawks goalie Ed Belfour on December 19, 1991.

Odelein won the Stanley Cup with the Montreal Canadiens in 1993.

The 1993–94 NHL season marked Odelein's career highlight. He scored 11 goals, 29 assists and 40 points, all career highs, scoring 24 of those points in 26 games in February and March that season.

    As well, he scored a hat trick against the St. Louis Blues and goalie Jim Hrivnak on March 9, 1994. His 5 assists on February 2, 1994, against the Hartford Whalers, tied a single-game record for a Canadiens defenseman held by Doug Harvey, which was also tied in 2004 by Sheldon Souray.

    Prior to the 1996–97 season, Odelein was traded by the Canadiens to the New Jersey Devils for Stéphane Richer on August 22, 1996. In the 1999–2000 season, his fourth with the Devils, Odelein was traded by the Devils to the Phoenix Coyotes for Deron Quint and a third round selection on March 7, 2000.

    Odelein's tenure with the Coyotes was short as he was claimed in the expansion draft by the Columbus Blue Jackets on June 23, 2000. He was later named the first captain of the Blue Jackets before their inaugural season in 2000–01.

    During his second season in Columbus he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks for defensemen Jaroslav Špaček. The following season he was on the move again when he was traded to the Dallas Stars. After just three regular season games and two more in the playoffs, he was done in Dallas and found himself without a guaranteed contract offer in the off-season.

    His next opportunity came from the Florida Panthers who offered him a try out that proved successful and led to a $650,000 one-year contract.[1] For the first—and only—time in his career, Odelein stayed healthy for the full season and played in all 82-games for the Panthers. The Panthers' general manager Rick Dudley expressed interest in retaining Odelein[1] when his contract expired, however, a lockout that erased the 2004-05 NHL season, and a changing of the guard in Florida that saw Dudley replaced by Mike Keenan, spelled the end of Odelein in Florida.

    His final NHL stint came with the Pittsburgh Penguins when he inked a one-year, $500,000 deal[2] on September 2, 2005. However, he managed just 27 games before injuring his knee, gaining just a single assist, and retired from professional hockey.

    Odelein finished his NHL career with 182 fights and his 2,316 career penalty minutes place him 29th all-time.

    Personal

    His brother Selmar Odelein lives in Saskatchewan also and played briefly for the Edmonton Oilers before playing for Team Canada and moving to Europe. Another brother, Lee Odelein, has also played professionally in Europe. After retirement, Odelein spent time on his family farm in Saskatchewan and also maintains a home in Pittsburgh. Odelein has three children from a previous marriage.

    In March 2018, Odelein was hospitalized and diagnosed with Critical Illness Polyneuropathy, after falling into a coma and paralysis. Odelein underwent a heart valve, liver and kidney transplant at Allegheny General Hospital in Pennsylvania. He was released from a rehabilitation facility in July 2018 and walking unaided by September 2018.[3]

    Career statistics

    Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season Playoffs
    Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
    1985–86 Moose Jaw Warriors WHL 67 9 37 46 117 13 1 6 7 34
    1986–87 Moose Jaw Warriors WHL 59 9 50 59 70 9 2 5 7 26
    1987–88 Moose Jaw Warriors WHL 63 15 43 58 166
    1988–89 Peoria Rivermen IHL 36 2 8 10 116
    1988–89 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL 33 3 4 7 120 3 0 2 2 5
    1989–90 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL 68 7 24 31 265 12 6 5 11 79
    1989–90 Montreal Canadiens NHL 8 0 2 2 33
    1990–91 Montreal Canadiens NHL 52 0 2 2 259 12 0 0 0 54
    1991–92 Montreal Canadiens NHL 71 1 7 8 212 7 0 0 0 11
    1992–93 Montreal Canadiens NHL 83 2 14 16 205 20 1 5 6 30
    1993–94 Montreal Canadiens NHL 79 11 29 40 276 7 0 0 0 17
    1994–95 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 3 7 10 152
    1995–96 Montreal Canadiens NHL 79 3 14 17 230 6 1 1 2 6
    1996–97 New Jersey Devils NHL 79 3 13 16 110 10 2 2 4 19
    1997–98 New Jersey Devils NHL 79 4 19 23 171 6 1 1 2 21
    1998–99 New Jersey Devils NHL 70 5 26 31 114 7 0 3 3 10
    1999–00 New Jersey Devils NHL 57 1 15 16 104
    1999–00 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 16 1 7 8 19 5 0 0 0 16
    2000–01 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 81 3 14 17 118
    2001–02 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 65 2 14 16 89
    2001–02 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 12 0 2 2 4 4 0 1 1 25
    2002–03 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 65 7 4 11 76
    2002–03 Dallas Stars NHL 3 0 0 0 6 2 0 0 0 0
    2003–04 Florida Panthers NHL 82 4 12 16 88
    2005–06 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 27 0 1 1 50
    NHL totals 1056 50 202 252 2316 86 5 13 18 209

    International

    Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
    1996 Canada WCH 2 0 0 0 0
    Senior totals 2 0 0 0 0

    Awards and honours

    Award Year
    NHL
    Stanley Cup (Montreal Canadiens) 1992–93

    See also

    • Fighting in ice hockey
    • List of NHL players with 1000 games played
    • List of NHL players with 2000 career penalty minutes

    References

    1. "Odelein Could Go Elsewhere". Sun Sentinel. 21 February 2004. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
    2. "Penguins sign veteran defenceman Odelein". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 3 September 2005. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
    3. Portzline, Aaron. "At Death's Door: Former NHL star Lyle Odelein is a medical miracle after surviving a coma, triple transplant and paralysis". The Athletic. The Athletic Media Company. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
    Sporting positions
    Preceded by
    Position created
    Columbus Blue Jackets captain
    200002
    Succeeded by
    Ray Whitney
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