David Wilkie (ice hockey)

David Wilkie
Born	(1974-05-30) May 30, 1974 Ellensburg, WA, USA
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	215 lb (98 kg; 15 st 5 lb)
Position	Defense
Shot	Right
Played for	Montreal Canadiens Tampa Bay Lightning New York Rangers
NHL draft	20th overall, 1992 Montreal Canadiens
Playing career	1994–2002

David John Wilkie (born May 30, 1974) is a retired American ice hockey player who played in the NHL with the Montreal Canadiens, Tampa Bay Lightning, and New York Rangers. He played defense and shot right-handed.

Playing career

After a successful season with the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL Wilkie was seen as one of the top upcoming defensive prospects for the 1992 NHL Entry Draft and was selected in the 1st round, 20th overall by the Montreal Canadiens. The following season Wilkie returned to the Blazers and made his international debut representing the U.S. in the 1993 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship. The 1993–94 season saw Wilkie split the year between the Blazers and Regina Pats while also returning to the WJC for 1994.

For the 1994–95 season Wilkie made his pro debut and played the majority of the year with the Fredericton Canadiens of the AHL while also making his NHL debut, appearing in one game with the Montreal Canadiens. The following season he split time with Fredericton and Montreal, appearing in 23 and 24 games respectively. The 1996–97 season saw Wilkie make the Montreal Canadiens full-time, appearing in 61 games and scoring 15 points, both NHL career highs.

The 1997–98 season saw Wilkie play 5 games with the Canadiens before being traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Injuries would hamper Wilkie in his time with the Lightning though. He played in 29 games with the Lightning during the 1997–98 season and only 46 for the 1998–99 season. The following season Wilkie signed with the New York Rangers, but ended up playing the majority of the time in the minors. He played the majority of 2 seasons with the Houston Aeros, appearing in one game with the Hartford Wolf Pack during the 1999–2000 season and one game with the Rangers during the 2000–01 season.

For the 2001–02 season Wilkie signed with the Augusta Lynx of the ECHL as a player-coach. After one season with the Lynx Wilkie retired from hockey in 2002.

Coaching career

Following his player-coach stint, Wilkie returned for the 2002–03 as an assistant coach for the Augusta Lynx. Midway through the season he replaced the head coach and finished the year as the head coach of the team, leading them to a 24–32–6 record. After this he went on to coach the Omaha Gladiators Bantam AA (majors) and led them to a 3rd-place finish at Nationals.

Currently, Wilkie is the head coach of the Omaha AAA Hockey Club that competes in the North American Prospects Hockey League. Also, Wilkie led the Omaha Jr. Lancers U16 to the National Championship Game at the 2008 USA Hockey Nationals in Buffalo, NY, placing second and finished the season with a 40–23–5 record. In the 2009–10 season he head coached the Omaha Jr. Lancers U18 to the 2010 USA Hockey Nationals in Rochester, NY, where they finished second and finished the season with a 28–28–5 record. Has also coached PeeWee AA teams, Squirt AA teams, and also coaches the Omaha Tropics summer hockey team. He has also served as the Volunteer Assistant Coach to the University of Nebraska at Omaha Mavericks, a Division I hockey school.

Career statistics

Regular season

				Regular season
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1994–1995	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		1	0	0	0	0
1995–1996	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		24	1	5	6	10
1996–1997	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		61	6	9	15	63
1997–1998	Montreal-Tampa Bay Lightning	NHL		34	2	5	7	21
1998–1999	Tampa Bay Lightning	NHL		46	1	7	8	69
2000–2001	New York Rangers	NHL		1	0	0	0	2
6 Years	Totals	NHL		167	10	26	36	165

International play

Year	Team	Comp	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1993	USA	WJC	7	0	2	2	2
1994	USA	WJC	6	2	1	3	0

External links

• David Wilkie career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
• David Wilkie biography at Legends of Hockey (archived)