Mitchell Heard
Born (1992-03-12) March 12, 1992
Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 182 lb (83 kg; 13 st 0 lb)
Position Center
Shoots Left
Slovak team
Former teams
HK Dukla Michalovce
Lake Erie Monsters
Stockton Heat
Charlotte Checkers
Straubing Tigers
SC Bietigheim Steelers
Belleville Senators
NHL Draft 41st overall, 2012
Colorado Avalanche
Playing career 2012present

Mitchell Heard (born March 12, 1992) is a Canadian professional ice hockey center who is currently playing HK Dukla Michalovce of the Slovak Extraliga.

Heard was drafted 41st overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche.

Playing career

Heard first played at the Junior A level for the Bowmanville Eagles in the Central Canadian Hockey League registering 30 points in 22 games and leading the Eagles in the post-season with 19 points in 22 games before joining the Plymouth Whalers midway into the 2009–10 season.

In his rookie campaign with the Whalers, Heard immediately established himself within the offensive lines in finishing fourth on the club with 48 points in 66 games. He increased his scoring to a point-per-game rate the following season to be selected with the Colorado Avalanche's first selection in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, 41st overall.

With a physically mature frame, Heard was later signed in the off-season on August 14, 2012, to a three-year entry-level contract with the Colorado Avalanche.[1] In the 2012–13 pre-season, Heard participated in his first Avalanche training camp and was assigned to AHL affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters. Heard made his professional debut with the Monsters and used sparingly as a depth forward before he was later reassigned to his junior club, the Plymouth Whalers, mid-season on January 1, 2013.[2] In his return to the Whalers, Heard was leaned on offensively to finish with 36 points in 32 regular season games but was unable to advance the Whalers to the Conference finals.

In his first full professional season in 2013–14, Heard was in the familiar position of starting the year with the Monsters. Used primarily an checking-line agitator with the ability to fight, Heard finished fourth amongst the AHL in penalty minutes with 167 in 63 games.

Struggling to find his offensive game in the AHL, and in the last year of his entry-level deal with the Avalanche, Heard was reassigned to the Fort Wayne Komets during the 2014–15 season. He responded immediately to contribute with 10 goals and 16 points in just 12 games to earn the ECHL player of the week award in November.[3] He was returned to the Monsters for the remainder of the regular season to post consecutive 100 plus penalty minute seasons.[4] With the Monsters out of playoff contention, Heard was reassigned to the Komets Kelly Cup run. He contributed with 9 points in 10 games before falling to the Toledo Walleye in the Conference semi-finals.[5]

In the offseason, Heard was not tendered a qualifying offer by the Avalanche to be released to free agency. On July 15, 2015, Heard was signed to a one-year AHL contract with the Stockton Heat.[6] After attending the Heat's training camp, Heard was reassigned to begin the 2015–16 season, with ECHL affiliate, the Adirondack Thunder. Over the course of the year, Heard split his time between the Thunder and Heat, appearing in 22 games for 7 points in the AHL.

As a free agent in the off-season, Heard continued his career in the AHL, securing a one-year deal with the Charlotte Checkers on August 11, 2016.[7] Heard would play two seasons within the Checkers organization, also playing on assignment with the Florida Everblades in the ECHL, leading the club in scoring to help reach the Kelly Cup finals against the Colorado Eagles in the 2017–18 season.

Heard opted for a move abroad following his fifth professional season, securing a one-year contract with German club, the Straubing Tigers of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL), on July 12, 2018.[8]

Heard played and produced offensively with the Straubing Tigers through three seasons, before opting to terminate his contract mid-way through the 2020–21 season, and return to Canada for personal reasons on March 23, 2021.[9]

Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2009–10 Bowmanville Eagles CCHL 2217133024 226131934
2009–10 Plymouth Whalers CCHL 162134
2010–11 Plymouth Whalers OHL 6619294867 1112310
2011–12 Plymouth Whalers OHL 57292857111 13471126
2012–13 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 2313472
2012–13 Plymouth Whalers OHL 3217193634 14851337
2013–14 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 634812167
2014–15 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 516612137
2014–15 Fort Wayne Komets ECHL 121061615 1036922
2015–16 Adirondack Thunder ECHL 33122032114 12561139
2015–16 Stockton Heat AHL 2234771
2016–17 Charlotte Checkers AHL 3604453
2016–17 Florida Everblades ECHL 11671329 810149
2017–18 Florida Everblades ECHL 63254267153 209132239
2017–18 Charlotte Checkers AHL 40002
2018–19 Straubing Tigers DEL 285111667
2019–20 Straubing Tigers DEL 496243056
2020–21 Straubing Tigers DEL 1733631
2021–22 SC Bietigheim Steelers DEL 19741119
2021–22 Toledo Walleye ECHL 4923264970 212101225
2022–23 Toledo Walleye ECHL 46162743145
2022–23 Belleville Senators AHL 1312339
AHL totals 212152742541

References

  1. "Avalanche signs Heard". Colorado Avalanche. 2012-08-15. Retrieved 2012-08-12.
  2. "Lake Erie Monsters transactions 2012-13". American Hockey League. 2013-01-01. Retrieved 2013-01-01.
  3. "Heard named sherwood ECHL player of the Week". ECHL. 2014-11-11. Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  4. Sebring, Blake (2014-11-21). "Heard has been recalled to Monsters". News-Sentinel. Retrieved 2014-11-21.
  5. "Heard excited about coming back to Komets". News-Sentinel. 2015-04-20. Retrieved 2015-04-20.
  6. "Heat signs three to AHL deals". Stockton Heat. 2015-07-15. Retrieved 2015-07-15.
  7. "Checkers sign Mitchell Heard to AHL contract". Charlotte Checkers. 2016-08-11. Retrieved 2016-08-11.
  8. "New Center for Straubing - Mitch Heard" (in German). Straubing Tigers. 2018-07-12. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  9. "Thankyou Heardy!" (in German). Straubing Tigers. March 23, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
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