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A. J. Thelen
American ice hockey player

A. J. Thelen

The basics

Quick Facts

Intro
American ice hockey player
Work field
Gender
Male
Place of birth
Savage, USA
Age
38 years
Stats
Weight:
212 lbs
Sports Teams
Houston Aeros
The details (from wikipedia)

Biography

Anthony James "A. J." Thelen (born March 11, 1986) is an American retired professional ice hockey defenseman. He was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, selected 12th overall.

Playing career

After playing for the U.S. National Under-18 Development Program in 2002–03, Thelen joined Michigan State University to play college hockey. After his freshman season in 2003–04, he was drafted in the first round, 12th overall, in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the Minnesota Wild. Following his sophomore season with Michigan State, however, he was dismissed by the league for rules infractions.

Accordingly, he joined the major junior Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Prince Albert Raiders. Upon completing his first season in the WHL, Thelen was assigned by the Wild to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Houston Aeros, where he made his professional debut, playing in one game. The next season, in 2006–07, after missing some time due to a knee sprain, Thelen was traded by the Raiders to the Vancouver Giants, in exchange for defenseman John Flatters and prospect Nathan Deck, where he captured the 2007 Memorial Cup championship with the Giants as tournament hosts.

Unsigned by the Wild out of major junior, Thelen turned pro in the ECHL with the Texas Wildcatters, tallying 35 points in his rookie season.

In 2008–09, Thelen joined the Florida Everblades. During the 2009-10 ECHL season, Thelen was named to the ECHL All-Star Team and took part in the skills competition. Thelen won the Hardest Shot Competition with a shot of 101.9 mph. On February 13, 2010, Thelen would suffer another concussion, the third of his career. He attempted to come back a week later, but ended up sitting out the rest of the season due to post-concussion syndrome.

On September 17, 2010, Thelen signed with the Kalamazoo Wings, the ECHL affiliate of the NHL's New York Islanders

With back issues and a history of concussions, Thelen retired from hockey after the completion of the 2010-11 ECHL season at age 25.

Career statistics

Regular seasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamLeagueGPGAPtsPIMGPGAPtsPIM
2002–03USNTDPNAHL4427972
2003–04Michigan State UniversityCCHA4211182950
2004–05Michigan State UniversityCCHA330111148
2005–06Prince Albert RaidersWHL7213233679
2005–06Houston AerosAHL10002
2006–07Prince Albert RaidersWHL23481253
2006–07Vancouver GiantsWHL30459352217818
2007–08Texas WildcattersECHL63728357040112
2008–09Florida EverbladesECHL3431417271001114
2009–10Florida EverbladesECHL488182652
2009–10Rochester AmericansAHL90006
2010–11Kalamazoo WingsECHL65623293219481212
AHL totals100008

Awards and honors

AwardYear
All-CCHA Rookie Team2003-04
All-CCHA First Team2003-04
CCHA Best Offensive Defenseman2003-04
AHCA West Second-Team All-American2003–04
CHL Memorial Cup2007
The contents of this page are sourced from Wikipedia article. The contents are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.
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