Chris Nilan

Chris Nilan was born on February 9, 1958 in Boston, Massachusetts. He played his junior hockey in the NCAA with the local Northeastern University Huskies. In the 1978 NHL amateur entry draft, Chris was drafted in the 19th round, 213st overall by the Montreal Canadiens. The tough forward found his niche during his first pro-season with the Nova-Scotia Voyageurs of the American Hockey League (AHL) racking up 304 penalty minutes. By 1980 he was up with the big club, playing in 15 regular season games. Now a regular on the Canadiens, Chris had no trouble playing the tough guy role on the Canadiens.

He lead the NHL in penalty minutes in the 1983-84 and 1984-85 regular seasons with 338 and 358 minutes respectively. After 9 seasons in Montreal, Nilan was traded to the New York Rangers in 1988 in a deal that also saw the two teams swap first round draft picks in 1989. He played in parts of 3 seasons with the Rangers before being on the move once again, this time traded to the Boston Bruins for future considerations and Greg Johnson. After playing a year and a half in Boston, Chris' career came full circle when he was claimed by the Montreal Canadiens in 1992. He played 17 games that season with the Habs before retiring at the end of the 1992 regular season. Chris Nilan stuck around in pro-hockey for a couple of seasons as an assistant coach with the New Jersey Devils and later with the Chesapeake Icebreakers of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL).

Chris Nilan's Career Statistics

Year      Team                  League  GP   G   A  Pts   Pim
1976-77 Northeastern University  NCAA   20   3   2    5     0      
1977-78 Northeastern University  NCAA   20   8   9   17     0      
1978-79 Northeastern University  NCAA   26   9  17   26    92      
1979-80 Nova Scotia Voyageurs    AHL    49  15  10   25   304
1979-80 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    15   0   2    2    50
1980-81 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    57   7   8   15   262
1981-82 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    49   7   4   11   204
1982-83 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    66   6   8   14   213
1983-84 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    76  16  10   26   338
1984-85 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    77  21  16   37   358
1985-86 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    72  19  15   34   274
1986-87 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    44   4  16   20   266
1987-88 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    50   7   5   12   209
1987-88 New York Rangers         NHL    22   3   5    8    96
1988-89 New York Rangers         NHL    38   7   7   14   177
1989-90 New York Rangers         NHL    25   1   2    3    59
1990-91 Boston Bruins            NHL    41   6   9   15   277
1991-92 Boston Bruins            NHL    39   5   5   10   186
1991-92 Montreal Canadiens       NHL    17   1   3    4    74
NHL Totals                             688 110 115  225  3043 

Chris Nilan's Hockey Goon Stat - 1.99

Chris Nilan Pictures