Scott Mellanby
Age: 58
Scott Edgar Mellanby (born June 11, 1966) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. He primarily played right wing throughout his career, on occasion shifting over to the left side. He is the son of former Hockey Night in Canada producer Ralph Mellanby. Mellanby was born in Montreal, Quebec, but grew up in Etobicoke, Ontario.
Playing career
Scott Mellanby was selected 27th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft. After being drafted, Mellanby went to the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he played for two seasons. After his second season in the WCHA was finished, he promptly played his first two NHL games.
In 1989 Mellanby suffered a serious injury in a barroom brawl when he tried to help a friend and he wound up getting a severe cut from a broken beer bottle on his left arm. The cut sliced four tendons, a nerve and an artery in the arm. Doctors repaired it through surgery, but Mellanby had been close to amputation. Mellanby would play for Philadelphia until the summer of 1991, when he was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in a 6-player deal that included Jari Kurri going to Philadelphia (though Kurri was traded to the Los Angeles Kings the same day).
Mellanby was left unprotected by the Edmonton Oilers in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft, allowing him to be claimed by the new Florida Panthers. This was the team where Mellanby would have his best years. In fact he became a fan favorite in Florida when he killed a rat with his hockey stick in the team dressing room, spawning the "rat trick" craze, where fans would litter the ice with thousands of plastic rats after each Panthers goal. It was brought to the hockey world's attention during the Panthers' run to the final in 1996. He also scored the Panthers' first ever goal in franchise history on October 9, 1993.
Mellanby was traded to the St. Louis Blues in February 2001, and the move revitalized his career. He scored 57 points during the 2002-03 season, his highest total since 1996. Mellanby then signed as a free agent with the Atlanta Thrashers in the summer of 2004 and he re-signed with Atlanta for the 2006-07 season.
Mellanby and his wife, Susan have a daughter, Courtney, and two sons Carter and Nicholas. Mellanby also is involved in many autism-related causes as his son Carter is autistic. Along with fellow NHLers Olaf Kolzig and Byron Dafoe, Mellanby is a founder of Athletes Against Autism.
Retirement
Mellanby announced his retirement on 24 April 2007, becoming the first player to retire as a Thrashers captain (the four previous Thrashers captains, were either traded or signed elsewhere via free-agency). Mellanby left the game having played the 3rd most NHL games (1431) without a Stanley Cup victory, only behind Phil Housley (1495) and Mike Gartner (1432). The closest Mellanby came to the cup was when his Philadelphia Flyers lost to Edmonton in the 1987 Stanley Cup Finals, 4 games to 3.
Following retirement, Mellanby worked for three years in the Vancouver Canucks organization as a special consultant to general manager Mike Gillis and the hockey operations department. Mellanby then spent two years as an assistant coach with the St. Louis Blues before stepping down following the 2011-12 season to pursue other opportunities in hockey.
On May 28, 2012, Mellanby was hired by the Montreal Canadiens as Director of Player Personnel and became an assistant GM on July 30, 2014.
Records
- Most assists in a game by a Florida Panther, (4 - shared with Ray Whitney)
- Most power play goals in a game, (4)
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
1984-85 | Wisconsin Badgers | WCHA | 40 | 14 | 24 | 38 | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1985-86 | Wisconsin Badgers | WCHA | 32 | 21 | 23 | 44 | 89 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1985-86 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1986-87 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 71 | 11 | 21 | 32 | 94 | 24 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 46 | ||
1987-88 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 75 | 25 | 26 | 51 | 185 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | ||
1988-89 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 76 | 21 | 29 | 50 | 183 | 19 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 28 | ||
1989-90 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 57 | 6 | 17 | 23 | 77 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1990-91 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 74 | 20 | 21 | 41 | 155 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1991-92 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 80 | 23 | 27 | 50 | 197 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 29 | ||
1992-93 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 69 | 15 | 17 | 32 | 147 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1993-94 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 80 | 30 | 30 | 60 | 149 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1994-95 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 48 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 90 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1995-96 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 79 | 32 | 38 | 70 | 160 | 22 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 44 | ||
1996-97 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 82 | 27 | 29 | 56 | 170 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||
1997-98 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 79 | 15 | 24 | 39 | 127 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1998-99 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 67 | 18 | 27 | 45 | 85 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1999-00 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 77 | 18 | 28 | 46 | 126 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
2000-01 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 40 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2000-01 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 23 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 25 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 17 | ||
2001-02 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 64 | 15 | 26 | 41 | 93 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 18 | ||
2002-03 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 80 | 26 | 31 | 57 | 176 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||
2003-04 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 68 | 14 | 17 | 31 | 76 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
2005-06 | Atlanta Thrashers | NHL | 71 | 12 | 22 | 34 | 55 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2006-07 | Atlanta Thrashers | NHL | 69 | 12 | 24 | 36 | 63 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
NHL totals | 1431 | 364 | 476 | 840 | 2479 | 134 | 24 | 29 | 53 | 220 |
Medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Representing Canada | ||
Ice hockey | ||
World Junior Championships | ||
1986 Hamilton |
International
Year | Team | Comp | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1986 | Canada | WJC | 7 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
Junior int'l totals | 7 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
Charities
Scott Mellanby supports the following charitable cause: Autism.