Chris Nilan
Christopher John Nilan ( born February 9, 1958 in Boston, Massachusetts ) is a retired American professional ice hockey player and coach, who of during his active career for the Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers and Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League on the position winger played. He is regarded as so-called Enforcer.
Career
Chris Nilan began his career in 1976 in the Hockey Team Northeastern University and spent three years active in the National Collegiate Athletic Association. During this time, he was selected in the NHL Amateur Draft 1978 in the 19th round at 231 position of the Montreal Canadiens. He began the 1979/80 season at the Nova Scotia Voyageurs of the American Hockey League and were in the same season, his NHL debut for the Canadiens. A year later, he was placed permanently into the senior squad the Canadiens and became an important player of the team. In the 1983/84 season he made with the team a place in the Conference Finals and defeated there in six games against the New York Islanders.
Two years later he succeeded with the Canadiens after victories over the Boston Bruins, Hartford Whalers and New York Rangers of the way into the finals for the Stanley Cup. The series against the Calgary Flames in five games was decided in favor of the Canadiens and Nilan won the trophy. In 1987 the Division was achieved Finals against the Philadelphia Flyers lost the team after seven games. A year later, Nilan left the Canadiens and the New York Rangers joined them. In three years, twice was managed to qualify for the play-offs, in which the team each in the first round again eliminated from the competition. In the summer of 1990 he went to the Boston Bruins and two years later he returned shortly return to the Montreal Canadiens to there still aground in 24 NHL games and then to end his career.
His coaching career was instead characterized less successful, he began in 1995 as an assistant coach with the New Jersey Devils and took over as head coach from 1997 to 1999, the Chesapeake Icebreakers in the East Coast Hockey League. The Icebreakers he qualified in both years for the play- offs and retired there in the first and third round of the competition. In 1998 he was honored as head coach of the year in the ECHL.