Craig Weller

Craig Weller (born March 17, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman and right winger who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). Drafted 167th overall in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, Weller played for the Phoenix Coyotes, Minnesota Wild, and Florida Panthers during his career.

Craig Weller
Born (1981-03-17) March 17, 1981
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight 220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Right
Played for Phoenix Coyotes
Minnesota Wild
Florida Panthers
Cardiff Devils
Villacher SV
ERC Ingolstadt
NHL Draft 167th overall, 2000
St. Louis Blues
Playing career 2002–2013

Playing career

Weller was born in Calgary, Alberta. As a youth, he played in the 1995 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Calgary Junior Flames minor ice hockey team.[1]

Weller was the St. Louis Blues 5th round choice, 167th overall, in the 2000 NHL Draft. After playing with the Charlotte Checkers of the ECHL and the Hartford Wolfpack of the American Hockey League, he was signed as a free agent by the Phoenix Coyotes on July 19, 2007.[2]

He scored his first career NHL goal on October 25, 2007, against the Anaheim Ducks; the goal turned out to be the game-winning goal.[3]

On July 1, 2008, Weller signed a two-year, $1.2 million contract with the Minnesota Wild. On October 18, 2009, he was traded to the Boston Bruins along with prospect Alexander Fallstrom and a second round draft pick in 2011 in exchange for Chuck Kobasew.[4]

On March 3, 2010, Weller was traded from the Bruins to the Florida Panthers along with Byron Bitz and a second round draft pick in exchange for Dennis Seidenberg and Matt Bartkowski.[5]

On 1 November 2010, the Cardiff Devils of the EIHL in the UK announced they had signed Weller, who was a free agent at the time. He became the most experienced NHL player after Theoren Fleury to play in the Elite League, playing in his preferred position as a defenceman.

With Weller on board, the Devils embarked on 22-game unbeaten streak, breaking the league and world records. However, the Devils narrowly missed out on the league title, finishing level on points with the Sheffield Steelers but having won 1 regulation game less, before being beaten in the Playoff final 5–4 to the Nottingham Panthers. After his first season in the UK Weller quickly established himself as a reliable, solid two way defenceman, drawing admiration from across the league, culminating in 3 awards - League Player of the Season (Journalist's Choice), Player of the Season (Voted by League GM's and Coaches) and Defenceman of the Season (Voted by League GM's and Coaches).

Weller left the Devils to join Villacher SV of the Austrian Hockey League for a single season before venturing to Germany to accept a try-out with ERC Ingolstadt for the 2012–13 season. In establishing a position within Panther's lineup, Weller was signed for the remainder of the campaign on September 5, 2012.[6]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1997–98 Calgary AAA Flames AMHL 33 2 10 12 65 3 0 1 1 2
1998–99 Calgary Canucks AJHL 49 4 14 18 80 13 0 1 1 10
1999–00 Calgary Canucks AJHL 53 3 14 17 100 4 0 0 0 4
2000–01 Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs WCHA 6 0 1 1 0 — — — — —
2000–01 Kootenay Ice WHL 30 1 5 6 40 11 0 2 2 26
2001–02 Kootenay Ice WHL 69 5 13 18 127 22 3 7 10 27
2002–03 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 11 0 0 0 8 2 0 0 0 0
2002–03 Charlotte Checkers ECHL 48 3 11 14 84 — — — — —
2003–04 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 68 5 9 14 86 16 2 2 4 30
2004–05 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 76 10 9 19 182 6 0 1 1 6
2005–06 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 80 12 21 33 152 13 2 3 5 44
2006–07 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 56 11 6 17 96 4 0 0 0 4
2007–08 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 59 3 8 11 80 — — — — —
2008–09 Minnesota Wild NHL 36 1 2 3 47 — — — — —
2009–10 Houston Aeros AHL 5 0 1 1 7 — — — — —
2009–10 Providence Bruins AHL 55 4 10 14 62 — — — — —
2009–10 Chicago Wolves AHL 14 0 3 3 21 4 0 0 0 4
2010–11 Cardiff Devils EIHL 41 16 36 52 52 4 2 0 2 6
2011–12 Villacher SV EBEL 45 5 6 11 107 — — — — —
2012–13 ERC Ingolstadt DEL 34 0 1 1 36 4 0 1 1 27
2013–14 Bentley Generals ChHL 8 2 5 7 0 5 2 1 3 6
NHL totals 95 4 10 14 127 — — — — —

Awards and honours
Award Year
WHL
West Second All-Star Team 2002
EIHL
Defenseman of the season 2011
Player of the season 2011
League Player of the season 2011

References
  1. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved 2019-02-10.
  2. "COYTOES SIGN CRAIG WELLER". NHL.com. July 19, 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  3. "Auld blanks Ducks as Coyotes' end Anaheim losing streak". espn.com. October 26, 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  4. "B's sign Fallstrom to entry-level contract". Boston Bruins. 2013-03-17. Retrieved 2013-03-17.
  5. "Bruins trade Bitz, Weller for Seidenberg". ESPN. 2010-03-03. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
  6. "Weller remains a Panther" (in German). ERC Ingolstadt. 2012-09-05. Archived from the original on 2012-12-09. Retrieved 2012-09-05.
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