Playing career

Woodley was selected 7th overall in the 1986 NHL Entry Draft by the Canucks. He helped the Portland Winter Hawks to the 1986 Memorial Cup Finals and was considered a sure-fire NHL winger. He turned pro in 1987-88 and had a solid season, recording 66 points in 69 IHL games and scoring 2 goals in 5 games with the Canucks.

However, after General Manager Jack Gordon was replaced by Pat Quinn, Woodley was sent to Milwaukee to start the 1988-89 season in the IHL, he was traded in a swap of first round picks, to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Jose Charbonneau. He finished the year in Sherbrooke, Quebec on the first place Canadiens farm team with 18 goals. Following two more mediocre seasons for Montreal, he requested to be bought out in 1991. He then moved to the ECHL and played four more seasons before retiring in 1995.

Woodley's lack of success (5 games played 2 goals)was surprising, given his high place in the 1986 draft. No player who was drafted higher than Woodley in the 1980s played fewer than his 5 NHL games, and he was one of only three top-10 picks (Jason Herter and Dan Gratton being the others) to play fewer than 10 NHL games. In contrast, future Hockey Hall of Fame defender Brian Leetch, who would star against Vancouver in the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, was selected just 2 picks later than Woodley by the New York Rangers.

Woodley currently lives in Denver, Colorado with his family. He coaches the Regis Jesuit High School varsity team. In his third year with the team, the 2007-2008 Regis Jesuit HS team posted an overall record of 20-1-1 and captured the state High School championship with a dramatic double-overtime 3-2 victory. The Regis team went undefeated in 2008-2009 to win their second consecutive State Championship. In 2012 Woodley's team captured their third State title under his guidance going 22-1. This fall he will be in his eighth year with the team compiling a win loss record of 130-21-2 and winning three State Championships. Woodley has coached Regis Jesuit hockey to the State final-four, five consecutive years and has built Regis Jesuit into a hockey powerhouse in the state. Woodley also coaches a youth hockey team in Colorado.

Woodley is the son of Dave Woodley, who was playing for the Oklahoma City Blazers of the Central Hockey League when Dan was born. Dan Woodley has the distinction of being the only Oklahoma native ever selected in the first round of the NHL draft. He spent his early childhood in places such as Oklahoma, Arizona and Oregon (while his father was playing minor league pro hockey) as well as in Victoria, British Columbia, where he learned to play junior hockey.

Awards

• 1987-88: Ken McKenzie Trophy

Career statistics

 --- Regular Season --- ---- Playoffs ----
Season Team Lge GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1983-84 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 6 1 2 3 2 8 1 3 4 4
1983-84 Summerland Buckaroos BCJHL 54 17 34 51 31 -- -- -- -- --
1984-85 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 63 21 36 57 108 1 0 0 0 0
1985-86 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 62 45 47 92 100 12 0 8 8 31
1986-87 Portland Winter Hawks WHL 47 30 50 80 81 19 19 17 36 52
1987-88 Vancouver Canucks NHL 5 2 0 2 17 -- -- -- -- --
1987-88 Flint Spirits IHL 69 29 37 66 104 9 1 3 4 26
1988-89 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL 30 9 16 25 69 4 1 6 7 5
1988-89 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 30 9 12 21 48 -- -- -- -- --
1989-90 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL 65 18 40 58 144 10 1 6 7 58
1990-91 Fredericton Canadiens AHL 4 0 0 0 4 -- -- -- -- --
1990-91 Kansas City Blades IHL 20 6 4 10 30 -- -- -- -- --
1990-91 Albany Choppers IHL 31 8 17 25 36 -- -- -- -- --
1991-92 Winston-Salem Thunderbird ECHL 57 24 42 66 102 5 3 3 6 2
1992-93 Flint Bulldogs CoHL 39 20 36 56 112 6 4 7 11 21
1993-94 Muskegon Fury CoHL 58 43 58 101 217 1 0 0 0 0
1994-95 Muskegon Fury CoHL 43 25 26 51 87 -- -- -- -- --
1994-95 Saginaw Wheels CoHL 11 11 4 15 18 2 1 1 2 24
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NHL Totals 5 2 0 2 17 -- -- -- -- --
					

[ Source: Wikipedia ]