Blake Speers (born January 2, 1997) 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 ...

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 ...

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

who is currently a

Free Agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

Speers was most recently with

Västerås IK Västerås IK (''Västerås Ishockey klubb'') is a professional ice hockey club from Västerås, Sweden. The team is currently playing in the second-tier league in Sweden, HockeyAllsvenskan. Västerås IK played 12 seasons in the top Swedish leagu ...

in the

HockeyAllsvenskan HockeyAllsvenskan (previously Allsvenskan and SuperAllsvenskan) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league, and the second-highest league in the Swedish ice hockey system, after the Swedish Hockey League, SHL. Since the 2009–10 season, t ...

(Allsv), and has formerly played in the

National Hockey League 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 ...

(NHL) with the

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The club w ...

and the

Arizona Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...

Playing career

Speers began his major junior career playing with the

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds The Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (often shortened to Soo Greyhounds) are a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. The Greyhounds play home games at the GFL Memorial Gardens. The present team was founded in 1962 as a team in th ...

in 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 ...

before he was drafted in the 3rd round, 67th overall, by the

in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. On September 21, 2016, Speers signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Devils. On October 11, 2016, it was announced that Speers had made the Devils opening night roster for the 2016–17 season. He made his NHL debut on October 13, 2016 in a 2–1 overtime defeat against the

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Panthers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team initially played it ...

. After three scoreless games with the Devils, Speers was returned for his final junior eligible season with the Greyhounds on October 24, 2016. On December 16, 2019, Speers was traded to the

as a part of a trade that sent

Taylor Hall Taylor Hall (born November 14, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger for the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was the first overall pick in the 2010 NHL entry draft selected by the Edmonton Oilers. ...

to the Devils. After recording 4 goals and 9 points in 32 games with their

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

(AHL) affiliate, the

Tucson Roadrunners The Tucson Roadrunners are a professional ice hockey team based in Tucson, Arizona. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's (NHL) Utah Mammoth. They play their home games at the Tucson Convention Cente ...

, in addition to one assist in 10 AHL games before the trade, Speers signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Coyotes in August 2020. As a free agent from the Coyotes following the season, Speers left North America to pursue a European career in agreeing to a one-year deal with Swedish second tier club,

of the

, on August 1, 2022. In February 2024, Speers signed with

Elite Ice Hockey League The Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL), sometimes referred to internationally as the British Elite League, is an ice hockey league in the United Kingdom. Formed in 2003 following the demise of the Ice Hockey Superleague, it is the highest level ...

(EIHL) side

Belfast Giants The Belfast Giants (known officially as the Stena Line Belfast Giants due to sponsorship) are a professional ice hockey team based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. They compete in the UK's Elite Ice Hockey League, Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). T ...

for the remainder of the season.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Speers, Blake 1997 births Living people Albany Devils players Arizona Coyotes players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Belfast Giants players Binghamton Devils players Canadian ice hockey centres New Jersey Devils draft picks New Jersey Devils players Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds players Ice hockey people from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Tucson Roadrunners players 21st-century Canadian sportsmen