Daniel Cleary

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Position	Right Wing
Shoots	Left
Height Weight	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 210 lb (95 kg)
NHL Team F. Teams	Detroit Red Wings Phoenix Coyotes Edmonton Oilers Chicago Blackhawks
Nationality	Canada
Born	December 18, 1978, Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, CAN
NHL Draft	13th overall, 1997 Chicago Blackhawks
Pro Career	1998 – present

Daniel Cleary (born 18 December 1978 in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland and Labrador) is a professional ice hockey winger playing for the Detroit Red Wings . He was selected in the first round of the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, 13th overall, by the Chicago Blackhawks.

Cleary had a phenomenal junior career with the Belleville Bulls of the OHL, although his performance tailed off in his draft year. Nevertheless, Chicago still selected him midway through the first round. Just one year removed from junior, Cleary was dealt to the Edmonton Oilers as part of a package that landed Boris Mironov in Chicago.

Cleary played parts of four seasons in Edmonton. Cleary's $1 million contract was bought out by the Oilers in the summer of 2003. Shortly thereafter, he was signed to a much cheaper contract by the Phoenix Coyotes. He played in Sweden during the 2004-05 NHL lockout. Following the lockout, Phoenix did not offer Cleary a qualifying contract. Cleary was invited to the Detroit Red Wings training camp, and he made the team.

After a solid season with the Detroit Red Wings in 2005-06, playing on the third and fourth lines, Detroit signed Cleary to a 2 year, $1.325M contract. Most of Cleary's minutes come short handed, as he has become a specialist with a man short on the ice.

Thanks to dedication and hard work, Cleary has been taking on a more offensive role during the 2006-07 season. He is on pace to career numbers, and has earned powerplay time, and his overall time on ice has been steadily increasing. Currently, Cleary is playing a top-6 forward with the Wings.

[edit] Career statistics

			Regular Season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1994-95	Belleville Bulls	OHL	62	26	55	81	62	16	7	10	17	23
1995-96	Belleville Bulls	OHL	64	53	62	115	74	14	10	17	27	40
1996-97	Belleville Bulls	OHL	64	32	48	80	88	6	3	4	7	6
1997-98	Belleville Bulls	OHL	30	16	31	47	14	10	6	17	23	10
1997-98	Indianapolis Ice	IHL	4	2	1	2	6	-	-	-	-	-
1997-98	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	6	0	0	0	0	-	-	-	-	-
1998-99	Portland Pirates	AHL	30	9	17	26	74	-	-	-	-	-
1998-99	Hamilton Bulldogs	AHL	9	0	1	1	7	3	0	0	0	0
1998-99	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	35	4	5	9	24	-	-	-	-	-
1999-00	Hamilton Bulldogs	AHL	58	22	52	74	108	5	2	3	5	18
1999-00	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	17	3	2	5	8	4	0	1	1	2
2000-01	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	81	14	21	35	37	6	1	1	2	8
2001-02	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	65	10	19	29	51	-	-	-	-	-
2002-03	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	57	4	13	17	31	-	-	-	-	-
2003-04	Phoenix Coyotes	NHL	68	6	11	17	42	-	-	-	-	-
2004-05	Mora IK	SEL	47	11	26	37	138	-	-	-	-	-
2005-06	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	77	3	12	15	40	6	0	1	1	6
2006-07	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	28	10	8	18	8	0	0	0	0	0
NHL Totals			434	895	91	145	241	6	0	1	1	6