Cory Stillman
Cory Stillman was born in Peterborough, Ontario, and grew up playing for the Minor Petes of the OMHA program, also playing competitive baseball incidentally. He played for the Peterborough Roadrunners Junior club before being chosen in the second round of the OHL Priority Selection draft by the Windsor Spitfires. Stillman played for the Spitfires starting in 1990 and was eventually drafted to the NHL by the Calgary Flames in the 1992 NHL Entry draft, going 6th overall. He reported to the St. John’s Flames in the AHL after playing a year for the Peterborough Petes in the OHL. Having racked up significant time in the minors, Stillman was called up to Calgary in the 1994-1995 season for ten games. He recorded two assists during that period and earned a roster spot, never again returning to the minors. Stillman played his first full NHL season during the 1995-1996 season, finishing with 35 points in 74 games. He also saw two games worth of playoff experience that year, registering 2 points. Stillman played with the Flames until the 2001-2002 NHL season, in which he was traded to the St. Louis Blues. He stayed in St. Louis for three seasons, scoring 67 points in his last season there. Stillman was moved to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2003-2004 and had his best season ever, finishing with 80 points in 81 games and helping the Lightning win the Stanley Cup with a playoff performance that added up to 7 playoff points in 21 games. After the Cup win, Stillman was on the move again and signed with the Carolina Hurricanes in August of 2005. He had a great season with Carolina finishing the regular season with a better points-per-game average than the previous season and helping the Hurricanes win the Stanley Cup, making Stillman a member of a very short list of players to win two Cups in subsequent years with different teams. He had a stellar playoff performance with Carolina, too, icing 25 playoff points in 23 playoff games and winning loads of accolades. Stillman was a money player in every sense of the word and returned to Carolina the following year, only to experience a drop in production. He finished 2006-2007 with 27 points in 43 games and his team missed the playoffs. Stillman will start the upcoming NHL season with the Hurricanes again and will hope to reclaim the glory of the past few years. He’ll need to be healthy to be effective, however, and recent injuries have slowed him down overall. Stillman will likely bounce back.
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