Nick Swaney (born September 9, 1997) is an American 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 ...

forward for Graz99ers of the ICE Hockey League (ICEHL). He was selected 209th overall by the

Minnesota Wild The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Confer ...

in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

Playing career

Swaney, a

Lakeville, Minnesota Lakeville is an exurb of Minneapolis-Saint Paul, and the largest city in Dakota County, Minnesota, United States. It is about south of both downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul along Interstate 35 in Minnesota, Interstate 35. Lakeville w ...

native, attended Lakeville South High School before playing in the

United States Hockey League The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the Midwestern United States and Great Plains, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. Th ...

(USHL) with the

Waterloo Black Hawks The Waterloo Black Hawks are a Tier I junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL) under Head Coach Matt Smaby. The Black Hawks' home ice is the Young Arena in Waterloo, Iowa. History ...

. During his tenure with Lakeville South High, he committed to a collegiate career with the University of the Minnesota-Duluth of the

National Collegiate Hockey Conference The National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) is an NCAA men's Division I hockey conference. The league was formed on July 9, 2011 and began playing for the 2013–14 season, the same season that the Big Ten Conference began competition, as a ...

(NCHC). After recording 115 points through 120 career games in the USHL, Swaney was drafted by homestate club, the Minnesota Wild, in the seventh-round, 209th overall, of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft before joining the Bulldogs as a freshman. In his senior season with the Bulldogs in 2020–21, Swaney as an alternate captain, recorded 28 points in as many games to lead Minnesota-Dulth in scoring. At the conclusion of his collegiate career, Swaney was signed by the Wild to a one-year, entry-level contract on April 11, 2021, and was immediately signed to an Amateur Tryout contract to join AHL affiliate, the

Iowa Wild The Iowa Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Des Moines, Iowa. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Wild play their home games at Wells Fargo Arena. The ...

, for the remainder of the season. In his first full professional season, Swaney after attending Minnesota's 2021 training camp, was assigned to continue his tenure with the Iowa Wild in the AHL. Remaining with Iowa for the entirety of the 2021–22 season, Swaney as a rookie tallied 16 goals and 38 points through 62 games, placing fifth in team scoring. As a restricted free agent, Swaney was re-signed by the Minnesota Wild to a one-year, two-way contract on July 17, 2022. In the season, Swaney remained with the Iowa Wild, solidifying his role as a scoring forward in notching 18 goals and 30 points through 48 games despite missing games through injury. On April 13, 2022, Swaney was recalled by Minnesota and made his NHL debut in the Wild's final regular season game, in a 4–3 overtime defeat to 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 ...

. For the second consecutive off-season, Swaney was re-signed by the Wild as a restricted free agent to a one-year, two-way contract on June 30, 2023. Leaving the Wild organization after four seasons, Swaney as a free agent was signed to a one-year AHL contract with the

Chicago Wolves The Chicago Wolves are a professional ice hockey team based in Rosemont, Illinois. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena ...

on August 2, 2024. Following his fifth professional season in North America, Swaney as a free agent opted to pursue a career abroad, agreeing to a one-year contract with Austrian based club, Graz99ers of the ICEHL, on May 6, 2025.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Swaney, Nick 1997 births Living people Chicago Wolves players Iowa Wild players Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs men's ice hockey players Minnesota Wild draft picks Minnesota Wild players Waterloo Black Hawks players American ice hockey right wingers NCAA men's ice hockey national champions