Mike Allison
| Mike Allison | |
|---|---|
| Born | 28 March 1961 Fort Frances, ON, CAN |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) |
| Position | Forward |
| Played for | New York Rangers Toronto Maple Leafs Los Angeles Kings |
| NHL Draft | 35th overall, 1980 New York Rangers |
| Playing career | 1980–1990 |
Michael Earnest Allison (born March 28, 1961 in Fort Frances, Ontario) is a retired Canadian ice hockey forward, and the brother of former player and coach Dave Allison.
Playing career
After playing hockey at the junior level for the Kenora Thistles, Allison caught the attention of the Sudbury Wolves, who made him their first draft pick in the 1978 OHL Draft.[1] Playing on the left wing, Allison had an exceptional second season in Sudbury, achieving 95 points, on the strength of 71 assists, and was drafted by the New York Rangers in the second round of the 1980 NHL Entry Draft.[2] Allison began his National Hockey League career the very next season in 1980–81, and his first season proved to be his most productive.[1] He scored a goal on his very first shot on goal, on 9 October 1980,[2][3][4] and two days later scored his first hat trick against the Toronto Maple Leafs.[2] It would prove to be the only hat trick of Allison's entire career.[4] Playing on a line with Ulf Nilsson and Anders Hedberg for the first half of the season,[5] Allison finished the season as the Rangers' rookie leader in scoring, and in fact established team records for rookie assists (38) and points (64), although the records were surpassed the following season by Mark Pavelich.[2]
Allison played 5 more seasons for the Rangers, but a series of knee injuries prevented him from playing a full season again while in New York. In the summer of 1986 he was traded to the Maple Leafs for Walt Poddubny, and for only the second time played a full NHL season.[6] By this point in his career, knee injuries had made Allison adjust his playing style, to be more of a defensive player, often playing killing penalties, and less of an aggressive forward. In spite of this, he still was a strong contributor for the Maple Leafs in the 1986–87 NHL Playoffs.[1] Early in the 1987-88 NHL season Allison was traded to the Los Angeles Kings for Sean McKenna.[7] After playing three more partial seasons with the Kings, Allison retired from the NHL after the 1989–90 NHL season.[4]
Post-NHL Career
After his playing career ended, Allison spent one season as an assistant coach at Bemidji State,[3][5] and later served as an assistant to his brother Dave, who was head coach of the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL. From 1995 to 1998, Allison spent three seasons providing color commentary on Kings' radio broadcasts,[8] during which time he also became involved with the Kings' youth hockey camp, becoming co-director.[3] In 1999, the two Allison brothers founded their own hockey camp in Fort Frances, A & A Hockey Camps,[3] and Mike Allison served as an instructor there through 2003.[5]
On 27 September 2003, Mike Allison was inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in Thunder Bay, Ontario.[1][3]
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1976–77 | Kenora Thistles | MJHL | 47 | 23 | 29 | 52 | 64 | |||||||
| 1977–78 | Kenora Thistles | MJHL | 47 | 30 | 36 | 66 | 70 | |||||||
| 1977–78 | New Westminster Bruins | WCJHL | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1978–79 | Sudbury Wolves | OMJHL | 59 | 24 | 32 | 56 | 41 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 18 | ||
| 1979–80 | Sudbury Wolves | OMJHL | 67 | 24 | 71 | 95 | 74 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 6 | ||
| 1980–81 | New York Rangers | NHL | 75 | 26 | 38 | 64 | 83 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 20 | ||
| 1981–82 | New York Rangers | NHL | 48 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 74 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 18 | ||
| 1981–82 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1982–83 | New York Rangers | NHL | 39 | 11 | 9 | 20 | 37 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 10 | ||
| 1982–83 | Tulsa Oilers | CHL | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1983–84 | New York Rangers | NHL | 45 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 64 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 1984–85 | New York Rangers | NHL | 31 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 17 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1985–86 | New York Rangers | NHL | 28 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 22 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 38 | ||
| 1985–86 | New Haven Nighthawks | AHL | 9 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 4 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1986–87 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 71 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 66 | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 15 | ||
| 1987–88 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 15 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 10 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1987–88 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 37 | 16 | 12 | 28 | 57 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | ||
| 1988–89 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 55 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 122 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | ||
| 1989–90 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 55 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 78 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1989–90 | New Haven Nighthawks | AHL | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 14 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| NHL totals | 499 | 102 | 166 | 268 | 630 | 82 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 135 | ||||
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Mike Allison". Inductees. Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Mike Allison". All-Time Roster. New York Rangers.com. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "Allison to be inducted into NWO Hall of Fame". Fort Frances Times. 1 August 2003. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Mike Earnest Allison". Legends of Hockey. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Mike Allison". 1980 Entry Draft. Hockey Draft Central. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ↑ "Mike Allison". Hockey Reference.com. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ↑ "Michael Allison". All-Time Roster. Los Angeles Kings.com. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ↑ "MIKE ALLISON KINGS RADIO COLOR COMMENTATOR 1995–98". History. Los Angeles Kings.com. Retrieved 7 March 2011.