Jamie Oleksiak

Jamieson Oleksiak (born December 21, 1992) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Nicknamed the "Big Rig", Oleksiak was selected 14th overall in the first round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft by the Dallas Stars, the highest draft choice in Northeastern University's history.

Oleksiak attended Northeastern University for one year and had 13 points on 4 goals and 9 assists and team-best +13 plus/minus.

After his freshman season with the Northeastern Huskies, Oleksiak decided to return to the Canadian Hockey League for further development, and on July 25, 2011, the Saginaw Spirit announced that they had signed Oleksiak to an Ontario Hockey League contract, and on October 6, 2011, it was announced that Oleksiak had signed a three-year entry level contract with the National Hockey League's Dallas Stars.

Following the 2011–12 season, Oleksiak turned professional and was assigned to the Stars' American Hockey League affiliate, the Texas Stars, to begin the 2012–13 season.

He tallied his first professional point on October 14 in a win over the Charlotte Checkers.

He later scored his first professional goal, the game-winner, on October 24.

With the Spirit out of contention during the 2011–12 season, Oleksiak was traded to the title-contending Niagara IceDogs on January 10, 2012.

Through the first 13 games of the 2012–13 season, Oleksiak tallied one goal and four assists to tie for the team lead in scoring among defensemen.

He continued to produce as the season continued and quickly accumulated two goals and 10 assists through the next 25 games.

Upon returning to the AHL, Oleksiak continued to shine offensively and was named to the 2012 AHL All-Star Game in Providence, Rhode Island.

At the time of the selection, he led the Stars and ranked third amongst all rookies in assists with 20.

He was also recognized as the AHL's Rookie for the Month of January.

Oleksiak played a total of 16 games for the Dallas Stars during the 2012–13 season, accumulating two assists, 14 penalty minutes and 11 shots.

He struggled near the end of his time with the Dallas Stars and had two assists and a minus-5 rating.

Oleksiak finished his first AHL season with six goals and 27 assists for 33 points through 59 games.

As a result of his outstanding play, Oleksiak earned his first NHL callup on January 15, 2013.

The callup was short-lived however as he was shortly thereafter reassigned to the AHL.

Shortly after these selections, Oleksiak was recalled to the NHL level on January 31, 2013.

He subsequently made his NHL debut on February 1 in a 4–3 win over the Phoenix Coyotes.

Upon making his NHL debut listed at 6-foot-7, Oleksiak became the tallest player in Dallas Stars history to play for the team.

Over the next five games, he averaged nearly 16 minutes of ice time but remained pointless.

He eventually tallied his first NHL assist on February 13 in a game against the Calgary Flames but was reassigned to the AHL the following day.

Oleksiak played five games for the Texas Stars before being recalled to the NHL level again on February 24.

Despite playing just five games since February 1, he still ranked first among team defensemen in scoring and plus/minus (+20).

He also participated in the 2013 Calder Cup playoffs where he tallied one assist through nine games.

During the 2013 offseason, Oleksiak changed his Dallas Stars jersey number from 43 to 5.

Oleksiak participated in four preseason games with the Dallas Stars before being returned to the AHL for the 2013–14 season.

He began the season strong, leading all Texas defensemen with three goals through the first 22 games of the season.

Following an injury to defenseman Stephane Robidas, Oleksiak earned his first NHL recall of the season on November 30.

He played in seven games for the Stars, collecting five shots and two penalty minutes, before being reassigned to the AHL on December 18.

Upon returning to the AHL, Oleksiak helped the Texas Stars win the 2014 Calder Cup playoffs.

In the final year of his entry-level contract, Oleksiak dipped in production at the AHL level but tallied eight points through 36 games with the Dallas Stars in the NHL.

For the first time, Oleksiak was named to the Dallas Stars' opening night roster for the 2014–15 season.

He was one of six defencemen the Stars planned on relying on throughout the season.

However, as injuries befell the roster, the Stars recalled numerous defencemen from their AHL affiliate through the season.

Oleksiak scored his first career NHL goal on October 28, in the first period of an eventual 4–3 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues.

However, he struggled to continue to produce and was reassigned to the Texas Stars on December 11, after accumulating four points through 21 games.

He recorded two shots on goal in one game with the Texas Stars before being recalled to the NHL level on December 13.

He played one more game for the Dallas Stars before returning to the AHL on December 23.