William K. Houlder (born March 11, 1967) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the l ...

. In his

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

career, Houlder appeared in 846 games. He tallied 59 goals and added 191 assists.

Playing career

He was drafted by the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The Capitals compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NH ...

in the fourth round, 82nd overall, of the 1985 NHL Entry Draft. After playing three seasons with the

North Bay Centennials The North Bay Centennials were a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League, who played from 1982–2002. The team was based in North Bay, Ontario, Canada. History The North Bay Centennials or "Cents" as they were popularly known, were na ...

of the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...

, Houlder joined the Capitals during the 1987–88 season. After going back and forth between Washington and their AHL affiliate

Baltimore Skipjacks The Baltimore Skipjacks were a minor league professional ice hockey team from Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The Skipjacks originated in 1979, and played as the Baltimore Clippers in the Eastern Hockey League for two seasons. The team was ...

for three seasons, Houlder was traded to the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...

before the 1990–91 season in exchange for Shawn Anderson. Houlder remained with the Sabres until being selected by the

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Mighty may refer to: Businesses *Mighty Audio, an American company known for its product ''Mighty'', a portable audio player *Mighty Animation, an animation studio based in Guadalajara, Mexico Films *''The Mighty'', a 1998 comedy–drama * ''The ...

in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft. Houlder's journeyman status continued for the remainder of his career, as he played just one season for Anaheim before moving on to play with the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. Th ...

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. The Lightning compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the ...

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. The Sharks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Con ...

, the Lightning again, and the

Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (colloquially referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Predators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Divisio ...

. Houlder retired after the 2002–03 season as a Predator. In his

career, Houlder appeared in 846 games. He tallied 59 goals and added 191 assists.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Houlder, Bill 1967 births Living people Baltimore Skipjacks players Buffalo Sabres players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey defencemen Mighty Ducks of Anaheim players Nashville Predators players North Bay Centennials players Rochester Americans players St. Louis Blues players San Diego Gulls (IHL) players San Jose Sharks players Ice hockey people from Thunder Bay Tampa Bay Lightning players Washington Capitals draft picks Washington Capitals players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen