Tyler Graovac (born April 27, 1993) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He is currently playing with Kunlun Red Star of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Graovac was selected by the Minnesota Wild in the 7th round (191st overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.[1]
| Tyler Graovac | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Graovac with the Iowa Wild in 2014 | |||
| Born |
April 27, 1993 Brampton, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) | ||
| Weight | 212 lb (96 kg; 15 st 2 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| KHL team Former teams |
Kunlun Red Star Minnesota Wild Washington Capitals Vancouver Canucks Dinamo Minsk HC Vityaz Admiral Vladivostok | ||
| NHL draft |
191st overall, 2011 Minnesota Wild | ||
| Playing career | 2013–present | ||
Playing career
editGraovac played four seasons of major junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the Ottawa 67's and Belleville Bulls, registering a total of 58 goals, 72 assists, and 76 penalty minutes, in 228 OHL games. He was recognized for his outstanding play when, following his final year, he was awarded the William Hanley Trophy as the OHL's most sportsmanlike player,[2] and was further honoured when he was named 2012–13 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Sportsman of the Year.[3]
On April 2, 2013, the Minnesota Wild signed Graovac to a three-year, two-way entry-level contract worth $750,000.[4]
In the 2014–15 season, his second professional season, Graovac made his NHL debut with the Wild on December 29, 2014 against the Winnipeg Jets.[5]
On October 5, 2016, he was placed on waivers by the Wild.[6]
On June 14, 2017, he was traded by the Wild to the Washington Capitals in exchange for a fifth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.[7] Graovac opened the 2017–18 season on the Capitals roster, however appeared in just 5 scoreless games before he was waived and reassigned to AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears for the remainder of the season.
On July 1, 2018, having left the Capitals as a free agent, Graovac was signed to a one-year, two-way contract with the Calgary Flames.[8] In the 2018–19 season, Graovac played exclusively with the Flames' AHL affiliate, the Stockton Heat. In 65 games with the Heat, he led the team with 24 goals, finishing second in points with 50.
Unable to earn a recall with the Flames, Graovac left as a free agent at the conclusion of his contract. On July 1, 2019, Graovac agreed to a one-year, two-way contract with fellow Canadian club, the Vancouver Canucks.[9] Following the Canucks training camp, Graovac was sent to their AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets. He was recalled to the Canucks on November 13.[10] Graovac scored two goals in eight games with the Canucks before leaving a December 1 game against the Edmonton Oilers due to a long-term lower-body injury.[11]
On December 13, 2020, the Vancouver Canucks re-signed Graovac to a one-year, two-way contract.[12] After attending the Canucks training camp, Graovac was initially assigned to the Utica Comets. On January 20, 2021, Graovac was re-assigned by the Canucks to the Winnipeg Jets AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, due to shorter quarantine recall regulations.[13] He contributed with 9 points in as many games with the Moose before returning to the Canucks and contributing with 3 goals and 4 points in 14 games.
As a free agent from the Canucks, Graovac left the NHL and signed his first contract abroad in agreeing to a one-year deal with Belarusian based club, HC Dinamo Minsk of the KHL, on July 26, 2021.[14]
At the conclusion of his contract with Minsk, Graovac continued in the KHL in joining Russian based club, HC Vityaz, on a one-year contract on July 27, 2022.[15]
Graovac continued his tenure in the KHL following his departure from Vityaz as a free agent, signing a one-year contract for the 2023–24 season with Admiral Vladivostok on June 21, 2023.[16] Graovac made 20 appearances with Admiral before he was traded to Chinese KHL outfit, Kunlun Red Star, in exchange for Cliff Pu on November 29, 2023.[17]
Career statistics
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2009–10 | Ottawa 67's | OHL | 52 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 17 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2010–11 | Ottawa 67's | OHL | 66 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Ottawa 67's | OHL | 50 | 8 | 19 | 27 | 31 | 18 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 12 | ||
| 2012–13 | Ottawa 67's | OHL | 30 | 21 | 14 | 35 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Belleville Bulls | OHL | 30 | 17 | 21 | 38 | 10 | 15 | 6 | 16 | 22 | 17 | ||
| 2013–14 | Iowa Wild | AHL | 64 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Iowa Wild | AHL | 73 | 21 | 25 | 46 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Iowa Wild | AHL | 39 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Iowa Wild | AHL | 26 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 52 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 53 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 65 | 24 | 26 | 50 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Utica Comets | AHL | 11 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Manitoba Moose | AHL | 9 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 14 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | Dinamo Minsk | KHL | 44 | 11 | 15 | 26 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2022–23 | HC Vityaz | KHL | 49 | 9 | 11 | 20 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24 | Admiral Vladivostok | KHL | 20 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | Kunlun Red Star | KHL | 30 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 84 | 12 | 3 | 15 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| KHL totals | 143 | 30 | 35 | 65 | 92 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||||
Awards and honours
edit| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| OHL | ||
| William Hanley Trophy - Most Sportsmanlike Player | 2012–13 | [18] |
| CHL Sportsman of the Year | 2012–13 | [19] |
References
edit- ^ "Could Tyler Graovac be the next great coup by the Minnesota Wild?". State of Hockey News. April 5, 2012. Retrieved April 5, 2012.
- ^ Bayshore Broadcasting News Centre - Graovac Most Sportsmanlike
- ^ "Graovac named CHL Sportsman of the Year". Brampton Guardian. March 1, 2013. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
- ^ "Wild Sign Tyler Graovac To ELC". Hockey Wilderness.com. April 2, 2013. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
- ^ "Granlund undergoes wrist surgery; Graovac's NHL debut; Bigtime message to Haula; Hackett on waivers and lots more". Minnesota Star Tribune. December 29, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
- ^ "#mnwild has assigned Jordan Schroeder, Alex Tuch, Kurtis Gabriel and Hunter Warner to @iawild and placed Tyler Graovac on waivers". Twitter.com. October 5, 2016. Retrieved October 5, 2016.
- ^ "Capitals acquire Tyler Graovac from Minnesota". Washington Capitals. June 14, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
- ^ "Flames sign Graovac, Quine". Calgary Flames. July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
- ^ "Canucks sign center Tyler Graovac". Vancouver Canucks. July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
- ^ "Canucks recall MacEwen & Graovac". NHL.com. November 13, 2019. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
- ^ "Oilers 3, Canucks 2: No margin for error against the dynamic duo". The Province. December 1, 2019. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
- ^ "Canucks sign Graovac". Vancouver Canucks. December 13, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
- ^ "Canucks enter player loan agreement with Manitoba Moose". Vancouver Canucks. January 20, 2021. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
- ^ "Canadian forward Tyler Graovac joins Dinamo" (in Russian). HC Dinamo Minsk. July 26, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- ^ "Vityaz sign contract with Graovac" (in Russian). HC Vityaz. July 27, 2022. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
- ^ "Tyler Graovac will continue his career at Admiral" (in Russian). Admiral Vladivostok. June 21, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
- ^ Kunlun Red Star (November 29, 2023). "Kunlun trade Cliff Pu in exchange for Tyler Graovac". Twitter. Retrieved November 29, 2023.
- ^ "OHL Network - Bulls' Graovac Most Sportsmanlike Player". Ontario Hockey League. April 1, 2013. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
- ^ "Graovac named FRAM CHL Sportsman of the Year". Belleville Bulls. April 1, 2013. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database