Canadian ice hockey winger (born 1984)
Ice hockey player
Wesley Cody McLeod
(born June 26, 1984) is a Canadian former professional
ice hockey
winger
who is the player development coach for the
Minnesota Wild
of the National Hockey League. As an undrafted player, McLeod previously played in the
National Hockey League
for the
Colorado Avalanche
,
Nashville Predators
, and
New York Rangers
. McLeod was best known for his role as a tough, physical forward.
Playing career
[
edit
]
McLeod was a fourth-round
WHL Bantam Draft
pick for the
Portland Winterhawks
in 1999.
[1]
In the
2004?05 season
, his fourth and final year with the Winterhawks, he scored 31 goals and 60 points.
Undrafted and looking to turn pro, McLeod attended the
Boston Bruins
training camp in the summer of 2005.
[2]
McLeod was then reassigned to affiliate, the
Providence Bruins
training camp on September 17, 2005, before ultimately leaving without a contract.
[3]
McLeod was signed by the
Lowell Lock Monsters
of the
AHL
for the
2005?06
. He spent his first full professional season with the Monsters and their
ECHL
affiliate, the
San Diego Gulls
.
The Colorado Avalanche, as the parent club of the Monsters, signed McLeod to his first NHL contract with the Avalanche on July 6, 2006.
[4]
After the Avalanche training camp for the
2006?07 season
, Mcleod was assigned to new affiliate the
Albany River Rats
on September 19, 2006.
[5]
In the
2007?08 season
, McLeod received his first NHL recall on December 16, 2007.
[6]
He made his NHL debut with the Avalanche on December 19, 2007, in a 2?1 loss against the
Anaheim Ducks
.
[7]
A week later, on December 27, he scored his first NHL goal against
Dominik Ha?ek
of the
Detroit Red Wings
in a 4?2 loss.
[8]
McLeod dressed and played for every remaining Avalanche game after he was called up from the
Lake Erie Monsters
. McLeod became the first Avalanche rookie in history to record over 100 penalty minutes.
[9]
McLeod gained notoriety on April 27, 2008, the second game of the second round of the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Detroit Red Wings by picking up the traditional octopus thrown onto the ice in the
Joe Louis Arena
and throwing it into the stands.
[9]
McLeod scored his first playoff goal also against the Red Wings in game three on April 29, 2008. With an impressive debut season with Colorado, McLeod was re-signed by the Avalanche to a one-year deal on July 14, 2008.
[10]
In the
2008?09 season
, McLeod sustained a shoulder injury in a 3?2 home loss against Detroit on March 4, 2009, causing him to miss three straight games. He ended the season third in goals on the Avs with 15, behind only
Ryan Smyth
and
Milan Hejduk
. McLeod's 162 penalty minutes were just one minute shy of team-leading
Ian Laperriere
. McLeod was re-signed by the Avalanche to a 3-year deal on June 19, 2009.
[11]
The
2011?12 season
saw McLeod set a franchise record becoming the only player in Quebec/Colorado history to register at least 100 PIMs in five consecutive seasons.
[12]
Behind only
Paul Stastny
and
Milan Hejduk
in terms of tenure currently with the club, the Avs signed the pending
unrestricted free agent
to another three-year contract on June 4, 2012.
[13]
He was suspended five games in
2013?14
for a hit-from-behind on Detroit Red Wings defenceman
Niklas Kronwall
in which Kronwall received a concussion.
[14]
With Paul Stastny signing with the Blues prior to the
2014?15 season
, McLeod became the longest-tenured member of the Avalanche also serving as the club's
alternate captain
between 2013 and 2016. On September 30, 2014, McLeod agreed to a three-year contract extension to remain with Colorado.
[15]
In the
2016?17 season
, his 10th with the Avalanche, McLeod saw limited playing time and was reduced to a depth role amongst the forwards. With the Avalanche suffering as the league's worst team through the midpoint of the season, McLeod's tenure with the club ended as he was traded to the Nashville Predators in exchange for
Felix Girard
on January 13, 2017.
[16]
He left having played in 659 games, leading the Avalanche franchise with 1359 penalty minutes.
[
clarification needed
]
McLeod remained in Denver, making his Predators debut the following day against his previous club. He scored his first goal with the Predators and fought against former teammate
Jarome Iginla
, sparking a 3?2 victory over the Avalanche on January 14, 2017.
[17]
In the
2017?18 season
, McLeod was used in rotation on the fourth line by the Predators. He posted 1 goal and 1 assist in 23 games before he was placed and later claimed off waivers by the
New York Rangers
on January 25, 2018.
[18]
He made his debut with the Rangers against the
Toronto Maple Leafs
, recording a game and Rangers season-high 8 hits on February 1, 2018. Adding his physicality and veteran presence to the rebuilding Rangers, he played out the season contributing with 2 assists in 25 games.
As a free agent in the off-season, McLeod agreed to remain with the Rangers, securing a one-year, $650,000 contract on July 12, 2018.
[19]
During the
2018?19 season
, McLeod suffered a fractured hand in a fight against
New York Islanders
enforcer
Ross Johnston
on November 21, 2018.
[20]
After 31 games with the Rangers, on February 6, he was traded back to the Nashville Predators for a 7th-round pick in
2020
.
[21]
On August 26, 2019, the
Minnesota Wild's
AHL affiliate
Iowa Wild
signed McLeod to a standard AHL player contract.
[22]
Entering his 16th professional year, McLeod appeared in 21 games for Iowa in the
2019?20 season
collecting seven points and 41 PIM. Adding a positive veteran presence, McLeod signed a one-year extension with Iowa on July 13, 2020.
[23]
Following his third season with the Iowa Wild, captaining the club in the
2021?22
campaign, McLeod announced his retirement to end his 17-year professional career on July 11, 2022. He accepted a role within the
Minnesota Wild
coaching staff as a player development coach.
[24]
Career statistics
[
edit
]
Regular season and playoffs
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Portland Winterhawks Bantam Drafts"
. winterhawks.com. 2006-05-02
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
"Bruins training camp preview"
. hockeysfuture.com. 2005-09-08
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
"Bruins re-assign 13 players from training camp"
. bruins.nhl.com. 2005-09-17
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
[
permanent dead link
]
- ^
"McLeod's bio"
. nhl.com. 2006-07-06
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
"Avalanche trims roster to 35"
. avalanche.nhl.com. 2006-09-19. Archived from
the original
on 2011-10-02
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
"Avalanche recalls McLeod"
. avalanche.nhl.com. 2007-12-16. Archived from
the original
on 2008-06-23
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
"Schneider scores in overtime to lift Ducks over Avalanche"
. cbssports.com. 2007-12-19
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
"Filppula makes it back-to-back games with two goals for Red Wings"
. cbssports.com. 2007-12-27
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
a
b
"Ignorance is bliss for McLeod"
. mlive.com. 2008-04-30
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
"Avalanche re-signs McLeod, McCormick"
.
Colorado Avalanche
. 2008-07-14. Archived from
the original
on 2008-08-25
. Retrieved
2009-03-23
.
- ^
Dater, Adrian (2009-06-21).
"Three-year deal given to McLeod"
.
Denver Post
. Retrieved
2009-06-21
.
- ^
"Predators rally, finish off Avs in OT"
.
CBS Sports
. 2012-01-12
. Retrieved
2012-06-04
.
- ^
Dater, Adrian (2012-06-04).
"Cody McLeod signs new $3.45 million deal with Colorado Avalanche"
.
Denver Post
. Retrieved
2012-06-04
.
- ^
NHL.com
(2013-10-21),
Avalanche's McLeod suspended five games
,
NHL
, retrieved
2013-10-21
- ^
"Avalanche signs McLeod, Stuart to extensions"
.
Colorado Avalanche
. 2014-09-30
. Retrieved
2014-09-30
.
- ^
"Avalanche ship Cody McLeod to Nashville"
.
Denver Post
. 2017-01-13
. Retrieved
2017-01-13
.
- ^
"Cody McLeod helps Predators defeat Avalanche"
.
National Hockey League
. 2017-01-14
. Retrieved
2017-01-14
.
- ^
"Rangers Claim Forward Cody McLeod"
.
New York Rangers
. January 25, 2018
. Retrieved
January 25,
2018
.
- ^
"Rangers agree to terms with Cody McLeod"
.
New York Rangers
. 2018-07-12
. Retrieved
2018-07-12
.
- ^
"Rangers' Cody McLeod out long term"
.
CBS Sports
. 2018-11-21
. Retrieved
2018-11-12
.
- ^
"Predators get Boyle from Devils, McLeod from Rangers"
.
The Sports Network
. 2019-02-06
. Retrieved
2019-02-06
.
- ^
"Iowa Wild signs three to AHL contracts"
.
Iowa Wild
. Retrieved
26 August
2019
.
- ^
"Iowa re-signs forward Cody McLeod"
.
Iowa Wild
. July 13, 2020
. Retrieved
July 13,
2020
.
- ^
"Portland to the Pros: Cody McLeod announces retirement"
.
Portland Winter Hawks
. July 12, 2022
. Retrieved
July 12,
2022
.
External links
[
edit
]