Chris Chelios

Christos Kostas Chelios (born January 25, 1962) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman.

He was one of the longest tenured players in the National Hockey League (NHL), and is a three-time Stanley Cup champion—one with the Montreal Canadiens and two with the Detroit Red Wings.

Chelios played for the Canadiens, Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, and the Atlanta Thrashers.

Chelios was born in Chicago, Illinois, on January 25, 1962, and raised by his parents, Gus and Susan Chelios.

They lived in Evergreen Park, Illinois.

He attended Mount Carmel High School in Chicago until his family moved to Poway, California, where he attended Mira Mesa High School.

Unable to play high school hockey in Southern California, Chelios was not recruited by any U.S. colleges.

His only scholarship offer came from San Diego-based United States International University, the only NCAA Division I hockey team west of the Rockies.

However, when Chelios arrived on campus as a freshman in 1979, he soon realized he was in the wrong environment, facing bigger players with considerably more junior hockey experience.

He was eventually cut from the team and considered quitting hockey.

Instead, Chelios tried his luck in Canada, where he was twice cut by Junior B teams and hit a low point when he had to borrow money from strangers to get home to California one year.

He said, "I wasn't any bigger or any better than the other guys, so they weren't going to take a kid from the States when they could have a local guy."

Chelios returned home and grew three inches while adding 40 pounds of muscle.

He scored 64 points in 74 games, a high total for a defenseman even in the high-scoring 1980s, and finished second to Mario Lemieux for the Calder Memorial Trophy.

In the playoffs that year, he had 10 points in 9 games, with a +17 plus/minus.

He had played the most games of any active player in the NHL, was the last player from the 1981 NHL Entry Draft still active (or any draft from 1986 and earlier), and had the most career penalty minutes of any active player.

He is the former record-holder for most games played in the NHL by a defenseman, is eighth overall with 1,651 games played, holds the record for most career playoff games played with 266 and is tied with Gordie Howe for most NHL seasons played with 26.

He was then drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft.

Prior to that, he played for the Moose Jaw Canucks of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League, where he tallied 87 points and 175 penalty minutes in just 54 games in his final season.

Chelios then enjoyed two strong years playing for the Wisconsin Badgers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison after being drafted.

As one of the top collegiate players in the country, he was selected for the United States team at the 1982 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship.

In 1983, he was part of the Badgers' NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship team and was named to the all-tournament team and the second WCHA all-star team.

Chelios was a member of the U.S. team for the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia.

After that, he made his debut for the Canadiens, playing 12 games in the regular season and 15 in the playoffs.

That summer he joined the U.S. team at the 1984 Canada Cup.

In 1984, Chelios made the Montreal Canadiens for good, distinguishing himself with his play.

During his early days, he was known for his offensive abilities, and his teammates even called him "Soft Hands Chelios."

However, he only lost one Game 7 in his career, a 3–2 OT loss in the 1985 Adams Division Finals against the Nordiques.

He earned a trip to the National Hockey League All-Star Game and was named to the 1985 NHL All-Rookie Team.

Although he only played 41 games in the 1985–86 season, he won his first Stanley Cup, playing in front of Conn Smythe Trophy-winning goaltender Patrick Roy.

Following two more good seasons in Montreal, Chelios really broke out in the 1988–89 campaign.

He scored 73 points in 80 games at +35, was named to the All-Star first-team, and won his first James Norris Memorial Trophy.

During that year's Wales Conference (now Eastern Conference) Finals series against the Philadelphia Flyers (which the Canadiens won in six games), Chelios became reviled by Flyer fans for a dirty hit on Brian Propp that left the Philadelphia winger with a serious concussion and forced him to miss the next game.

When he was called up from the AHL's Chicago Wolves to play for the Thrashers during the 2009–10 NHL season, Chelios was the oldest active player in the NHL and the second oldest of all time.

On May 1, 2009, he appeared in the playoffs for an NHL record 24th time, having missed the playoffs only once (1997–98).

Chelios is also the record-holder for most career postseason losses, with 117 (also the most in any professional sport in North America).

Chelios was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 8, 2013, and inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2018.

In 2017, Chelios was named one of the "100 Greatest NHL Players" in history.

Chelios is of Greek heritage.

His cousin, Nikos Tselios, also played professional hockey and is a former first round draft pick of the Carolina Hurricanes.