Mitchell Heard
| Mitch Heard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
March 12, 1992 Bowmanville, Ontario, CAN | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 182 lb (83 kg; 13 st 0 lb) | ||
| Position | Center | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| AHL team Former teams |
Charlotte Checkers Lake Erie Monsters Stockton Heat | ||
| NHL Draft |
41st overall, 2012 Colorado Avalanche | ||
| Playing career | 2012–present | ||
Mitchell Heard (born March 12, 1992) is a Canadian professional ice hockey center currently under contract with the Charlotte Checkers of the American Hockey League (AHL). Heard was drafted 41st overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche.
Playing career
Heard first played at the Junior A level for the Bowmanville Eagles in the Central Canadian Hockey League registering 30 points in 22 games and leading the Eagles in the post-season with 19 points in 22 games before joining the Plymouth Whalers midway into the 2009–10 season.
In his rookie campaign with the Whalers, Heard immediately established himself within the offensive lines in finishing fourth on the club with 48 points in 66 games. He increased his scoring to a point-per-game rate the following season to be selected with the Colorado Avalanche's first selection in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, 41st overall.
With a physically mature frame, Heard was later signed in the off-season on August 14, 2012, to a three-year entry-level contract with the Colorado Avalanche.[1] In the 2012–13 pre-season, Heard participated in his first Avalanche training camp and was assigned to AHL affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters. Heard made his professional debut with the Monsters and used sparingly as a depth forward before he was later reassigned to his junior club, the Plymouth Whalers, mid-season on January 1, 2013.[2] In his return to the Whalers, Heard was leaned on offensively to finish with 36 points in 32 regular season games but was unable to advance the Whalers to the Conference finals.
In his first full professional season in 2013–14, Heard was in the familiar position of starting the year with the Monsters. Used primarily an checking-line agitator with the ability to fight, Heard finished fourth amongst the AHL in penalty minutes with 167 in 63 games.
Struggling to find his offensive game in the AHL, and in the last year of his entry-level deal with the Avalanche, Heard was reassigned to the Fort Wayne Komets during the 2014–15 season. He responded immediately to contribute with 10 goals and 16 points in just 12 games to earn the ECHL player of the week award in November.[3] He was returned to the Monsters for the remainder of the regular season to post consecutive 100 plus penalty minute seasons.[4] With the Monsters out of playoff contention, Heard was reassigned to the Komets Kelly Cup run. He contributed with 9 points in 10 games before falling to the Toledo Walleye in the Conference semi-finals.[5]
In the offseason, Heard was not tendered a qualifying offer by the Avalanche to be released to free agency. On July 15, 2015, Heard was signed to a one-year AHL contract with the Stockton Heat.[6] After attending the Heat's training camp, Heard was reassigned to begin the 2015–16 season, with ECHL affiliate, the Adirondack Thunder. Over the course of the year, Heard split his time between the Thunder and Heat, appearing in 22 games for 7 points in the AHL.
As a free agent in the off-season, Heard continued his career in the AHL, securing a one-year deal with the Charlotte Checkers on August 11, 2016.[7]
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2009–10 | Bowmanville Eagles | CCHL | 22 | 17 | 13 | 30 | 24 | 22 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 34 | ||
| 2009–10 | Plymouth Whalers | CCHL | 16 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Plymouth Whalers | OHL | 66 | 19 | 29 | 48 | 67 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 | ||
| 2011–12 | Plymouth Whalers | OHL | 57 | 29 | 28 | 57 | 111 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 26 | ||
| 2012–13 | Lake Erie Monsters | AHL | 23 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 72 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Plymouth Whalers | OHL | 32 | 17 | 19 | 36 | 34 | 14 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 37 | ||
| 2013–14 | Lake Erie Monsters | AHL | 63 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 167 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Lake Erie Monsters | AHL | 51 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 137 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Fort Wayne Komets | ECHL | 12 | 10 | 6 | 16 | 15 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 22 | ||
| 2015–16 | Adirondack Thunder | ECHL | 33 | 12 | 20 | 32 | 114 | 12 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 39 | ||
| 2015–16 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 22 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 71 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| AHL totals | 159 | 14 | 21 | 35 | 447 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
References
- ↑ "Avalanche signs Heard". Colorado Avalanche. 2012-08-15. Retrieved 2012-08-12.
- ↑ "Lake Erie Monsters transactions 2012-13". American Hockey League. 2013-01-01. Retrieved 2013-01-01.
- ↑ "Heard named sherwood ECHL player of the Week". ECHL. 2014-11-11. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
- ↑ Sebring, Blake (2014-11-21). "Heard has been recalled to Monsters". News-Sentinel. Retrieved 2014-11-21.
- ↑ "Heard excited about coming back to Komets". News-Sentinel. 2015-04-20. Retrieved 2015-04-20.
- ↑ "Heat signs three to AHL deals". Stockton Heat. 2015-07-15. Retrieved 2015-07-15.
- ↑ "Checkers sign Mitchell Heard to AHL contract". Charlotte Checkers. 2016-08-11. Retrieved 2016-08-11.
External links
- Mitchell Heard's career statistics at EliteProspects.com
- Mitchell Heard's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database