Chris Wells (born November 12, 1975) 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 hockey player who played in the

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 ...

with the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

and

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 ...

Playing career

Wells was playing with the

Seattle Thunderbirds The Seattle Thunderbirds are a major junior ice hockey team based in the city of Kent, Washington. They are part of the U.S. Division of the Western Conference in the Western Hockey League. Founded in 1971 as the Vancouver Nats, the team arrive ...

in the WHL when he was drafted in the 1st round, 24th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft. His large size (6'6" 223 lbs) along with a strong physical presence and scoring touch contributed to his high draft choice. For the 1994–1995 season Wells returned to the Thunderbirds and scored 108 points in 68 games while contributing 148 PIMs as well. The following year Wells made his debut in the NHL, appearing in 54 games with the Penguins. Wells began the 1996–97 year with the

Cleveland Lumberjacks The Cleveland Lumberjacks were an International Hockey League (IHL) team based in Cleveland, Ohio. Facts :Owner: Larry Gordon :Logo design: "Buzz"- A beaver wearing overalls holding a homemade hockey stick framed by a circular saw blade :Divis ...

of the IHL when he was traded by the Penguins to the Florida Panthers for

Stu Barnes Stuart Douglas Barnes (born December 25, 1970) is a Canadians, Canadian former professional ice hockey Forward (ice hockey), forward. He played 16 seasons at Centre (ice hockey), centre in the NHL with the Winnipeg Jets (1972–96), Winnipeg Jets, ...

and Jason Woolley. He played 4 years with the Panthers, having his best year during the 1997–98 campaign in which he scored 15 points and appeared in 61 games. Wells also skated for the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

and was signed by the

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

in 2000 . Instead he was sent to the

Utah Grizzlies The Utah Grizzlies are a professional ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah. Franchise history The current Utah Grizzlies franchise started in 1981 as the Nashville South Stars i ...

. On November 20, 2002, Wells debuted in the Russian Superleague with the Khabarovsk Amur Tigers and played on a line with former NHL all-star Sergei Krivokrasov. He later played parts of three seasons in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, Russia and

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. Wells retired from hockey in 2005.

Career statistics

Awards

*1995: WHL West First All-Star Team *2000: Calder Cup winner AHL *2004: European championship Italy

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wells, Chris 1975 births Living people Amur Khabarovsk players Cleveland Lumberjacks players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Russia Florida Panthers players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Hartford Wolf Pack players Ice hockey people from Calgary Louisville Panthers players NHL first-round draft picks Peoria Rivermen (AHL) players Pittsburgh Penguins draft picks Pittsburgh Penguins players Portland Pirates players Rødovre Mighty Bulls players Seattle Thunderbirds players Utah Grizzlies (IHL) players Canadian ice hockey centres