Lyle Odelein
| Lyle Odelein | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 21, 1968 Quill Lake, SK, CAN |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| 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 | 1989–2006 |
Lyle Theodore Odelein (born July 21, 1968) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. He played for the Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, Phoenix Coyotes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Chicago Blackhawks, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers and Pittsburgh Penguins.
Playing career
Odelein played junior hockey for the Moose Jaw Warriors before being drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the 7th 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 St. Louis Blues goalie Jim Hrivnak on March 9, 1994. His 5 assists on February 20, 1994, against the Hartford Whalers, tied a single-game record for Canadiens defensemen 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 3rd 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. Lyle was later named the first captain of the Columbus Blue Jackets before their inaugural season in 2000–01.
Odelein signed as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Penguins 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 on occasion used dirty tactics, including headbutting Darren Langdon, sucker-punching Rob Ray, and knocking out Dallas Drake's front teeth with a high stick.
His 2316 career penalty minutes place him 29th all-time.
Awards and achievements
Career statistics
| 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 | ||||
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 is also co-owner of a bar/restaurant in Pittsburgh.
See also
- Captain (ice hockey)
- Fighting in ice hockey
- List of NHL players with 1000 games played
- List of NHL players with 2000 career penalty minutes
External links
- Lyle Odelein's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
- Le syndrôme de Lyle Odelein (French)
| Preceded by Position created |
Columbus Blue Jackets captain 2000–02 |
Succeeded by Ray Whitney |