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Blair Atcheynum

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Blair Atcheynum
Born (1969-04-20) April 20, 1969 (age 55)
Estevan, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb)
Position Right wing
Shot Right
Played for Ottawa Senators
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues
Chicago Blackhawks
NHL draft 52nd overall, 1989
Hartford Whalers
Playing career 1989–2001

Blair Michael Atcheynum (born April 20, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger. Atcheynum from Sweetgrass First Nation is of Cree descent.

Playing career

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Atcheynum was selected in the third round, 52nd overall, by the Hartford Whalers in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft after scoring 70 goals in 71 games with the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League during the 1988–89 season. He never reached the NHL with the Whalers and was later claimed by the new Ottawa Senators in the 1992 NHL Expansion Draft.[1]

He spent the majority of his career in the minor leagues but was able to break into the NHL for a total of 196 games over four seasons. He got his first taste of the NHL during the 1992–93 NHL season when he played four games for the Ottawa Senators, although he spent the majority of the season with their farm team, the New Haven Senators of the American Hockey League. It would take another four years to make it as a regular in the NHL. He played in 61 games (scoring a respectable 11 goals and 15 assists) during the 1997–98 NHL season for the St. Louis Blues after signing with the team as a free agent. The main reasoning behind Atcheynum being called up to the Blues during this period was due to the lack of depth on their roster early on in the 1997-98 season.[2] With St. Louis, Atcheynum would typically play on a line with Craig Conroy and Scott Pellerin that was fondly referred to as the "CPA Line". Blues general manager Larry Pleau was impressed by Atcheynum's hard work, saying "Blair's not a player in the bottom third of our roster. He's one of our first nine forwards. He can move up to the first or second line without missing a step if we need him".[3]

The next year he was selected in the 1998 NHL Expansion Draft by the newly formed Nashville Predators. He played 53 games with the Predators before being traded back to St. Louis for a sixth-round draft pick in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. In 1999 he was signed as a free agent by the Chicago Blackhawks, with whom he played 66 games between 1999 and 2001. Atcheynum retired as a professional hockey player in 2001.

Atcheynum is currently an assistant coach with the Battlefords North Stars of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League[4] Atcheynum is said to have been taking major strides with the North Stars program, as reports show that locals describe the North Stars level of play as "fast and intelligent hockey, free of buffoonery of the goon hockey that many people detest".[5] He was also most recently honoured at the 2012 First Nation Games, alongside Fred Sasakamoose, who was the first treaty Indian to play in the NHL. Atcheynum and Sasakamoose were recognized as role models at both the summer and winter games as hope for young First Nations athletes.[6]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1985–86 Battlefords North Stars SJHL 33 16 14 30 41 6 2 0 2 6
1985–86 Saskatoon Blades WHL 19 1 4 5 22 — — — — —
1986–87 Saskatoon Blades WHL 21 0 4 4 4 — — — — —
1986–87 Swift Current Broncos WHL 5 2 1 3 0 — — — — —
1986–87 Moose Jaw Warriors WHL 12 3 0 3 2 — — — — —
1987–88 Moose Jaw Warriors WHL 60 32 16 48 52 — — — — —
1988–89 Moose Jaw Warriors WHL 71 70 68 138 70 7 2 5 7 13
1989–90 Binghamton Whalers AHL 78 20 21 41 45 — — — — —
1990–91 Springfield Indians AHL 72 25 27 52 42 13 0 6 6 6
1991–92 Springfield Indians AHL 62 16 21 37 64 6 1 1 2 2
1992–93 New Haven Senators AHL 51 16 18 34 47 — — — — —
1992–93 Ottawa Senators NHL 4 0 1 1 0 — — — — —
1993–94 Columbus Chill ECHL 16 15 12 27 10 — — — — —
1993–94 Portland Pirates AHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
1993–94 Springfield Indians AHL 40 18 22 40 13 6 0 2 2 0
1994–95 Minnesota Moose IHL 17 4 6 10 7 — — — — —
1994–95 Worcester IceCats AHL 55 17 29 46 26 — — — — —
1995–96 Cape Breton Oilers AHL 79 30 42 72 65 — — — — —
1996–97 Hershey Bears AHL 77 42 45 87 57 13 6 11 17 6
1997–98 St. Louis Blues NHL 61 11 15 26 10 10 0 0 0 2
1998–99 Nashville Predators NHL 53 8 6 14 16 — — — — —
1998–99 St. Louis Blues NHL 12 2 2 4 2 13 1 3 4 6
1999–00 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 47 5 7 12 6 — — — — —
2000–01 Chicago Wolves IHL 7 1 0 1 0 — — — — —
2000–01 Norfolk Admirals AHL 37 12 8 20 16 4 0 0 0 6
2000–01 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 19 1 2 3 2 — — — — —
WHL totals 188 108 93 201 150 7 2 5 7 13
AHL totals 577 372 239 611 382 42 7 30 37 20
NHL totals 196 27 33 60 36 23 1 3 4 8

Awards

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  • WHL East First All-Star Team – 1989

References

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  1. ^ "LegendsofHockey.net - Blair Atcheynum". legendsofhockey.net. 2010-08-18. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  2. ^ Gare, Joyce (29 January 1998). "Blues struggling with lack of depth: Hull returns to lineup against Maple Leafs". The Globe and Mail. Toronto, Ont. p. S3. ProQuest 1143330371.
  3. ^ Gare Joyce (1998-03-09). "Lost causes? Wait just a minute". The Sporting News. Archived from the original on 2005-03-15. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
  4. ^ "North Stars staff". Battlefords North Stars. 2010-08-18. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2010-08-18..
  5. ^ "Battlefords North Stars hockey club is appreciated". 16 January 2014.
  6. ^ Cuthand, Doug (5 April 2012). "First Nations games a big-league affair". Star - Phoenix. Saskatoon. p. A.13. ProQuest 977911036.
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