Mike Vecchione

Michael Vecchione (born February 25, 1993) is an American professional ice hockey center who currently plays for the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Mike Vecchione
Born	February 25, 1993 Saugus, Massachusetts
Height	5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight	194 lb (88 kg; 13 st 12 lb)
Position	Center
Shoots	Right
NHL team (P) Cur. team Former teams	Colorado Avalanche Colorado Eagles (AHL) Philadelphia Flyers
NHL Draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2017–present

Prior to turning professional, Vecchione played for Union College where he was named to the All-ECAC Rookie Team, ECAC Hockey All-Tournament Team All-ECAC Hockey Third Team, ECAC Player of the Year and AHCA East First-Team All-American during his four-year career.

Playing career

Early career

Vecchione began his youth hockey career with the Valley Junior Warriors in Saugus Youth Hockey program. While a member of the 1993 team, the Valley Junior Warriors won four state championships.[1]

While attending Malden Catholic High School, Vecchione was drafted in the 2010 United States Hockey League (USHL) Draft by the Tri-City Storm.[2] That season, as team captain, he led his team to the Super 8 state championship for the first time.[1][3]

On August 21, 2012, while playing for the Storm, Vecchione committed to Union College for the 2013–14 season. He had previously been committed to the University of New Hampshire.[4] On November 6, 2012, Vecchione was named an alternate captain for the Storm after assistant captain Heikki Liedes was injured.[5]

Collegiate

In his freshman year at Union, Vecchione led the team rookies in scoring with 34 points in 38 games and ranked fourth across the ECAC. At the conclusion of the season, after having helped lead Union to their first NCAA Division 1 title, he was ranked ninth across the league in rookie scoring and was named to the All-ECAC Rookie Team.[6] He was also named to the ECAC Hockey All-Academic Team[7] and All-Tournament Team.[6]

In his sophomore year, Vecchione was named an alternate captain in December.[8] He led ECAC in assists with 31 in 39 games.[6] Vecchione was selected for the Frozen Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team[9] and was again named to the ECAC Hockey All-Academic Team while majoring in history.[10]

Prior to his junior year, Vecchione was named a co-captain for Union alongside Matt Wilkins, becoming the first captain pairing for Union since 2008.[11] He became the fastest player in Union Division I history to record 100 points when he recorded an assist against Princeton in his 96th career game on January 8, 2016. He became the 26th player in the program's Division 1 history to score 100 points.[12][13] He was named to the All-ECAC Hockey Third Team on March 18 for the first time in his collegiate career. He ended the season with a team leading 29 points scored in 34 games.[14]

In his last year with Union, Vecchione was again named team captain. On February 3, 2017, Vecchione became Union's all time Division I leading scorer when he recorded his 158th and 159th career point in a 5–3 loss to Cornell.[15] As a result of his breakout season, Vecchione was named a Hobey Baker Award finalist and the ECAC Hockey Player of the Year.[16] He was also named to the All-ECAC Hockey First Team and won Union's William M. Jaffe Award for most outstanding male student-athlete.[6] On June 21, Vecchione was named an AHCA East First-Team All-American.[17]

Professional

Vecchione signed a one-year entry-level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers on March 31, 2017.[18] He made his NHL debut on April 4, 2017, in a game against the New Jersey Devils.[19]

On July 1, 2017, Vecchione, as a restricted free agent, accepted a two-year, two-way deal to continue with the Philadelphia Flyers.[20] On September 27, 2017, he was loaned to the Flyers American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms to play the 2017–18 season.[21] During the season, Vecchione was named AHL October Rookie of the Month after he recorded 10 points in 10 games.[22] However, due to an injury on December 9 during a game against the Hershey Bears, he was forced to miss more than two weeks to recover.[23] Despite this, Vecchione concluded his first professional season with 40 points in 65 games.

Vecchione attended the Flyers 2018 Training Camp but was reassigned to the AHL on September 20, 2018.[24]

After parts of three seasons in the Flyers organization, Vecchione left as a free agent to sign on a one-year, two-way contract with the St. Louis Blues on July 1, 2019.[25] He attended the Blues 2019 training camp, before he was placed on waivers and assigned to the AHL to join affiliate, the San Antonio Rampage for the 2019–20 season. He led the Rampage with 21 goals and placed second with 36 points before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a free agent from the Blues after the conclusion of his contract, Vecchione agreed to a one-year, two-way contract to join the Colorado Avalanche on October 9, 2020.[26]

Personal life

Vecchione was born to parents Diane and Joe and grew up in Saugus with his two older siblings, Michelle and Joe.[27]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2011–12	Tri-City Storm	USHL		49	10	19	29	28		2	0	2	2	0
2012–13	Tri-City Storm	USHL		63	26	34	60	75		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Union Dutchmen	ECAC		38	14	20	34	32		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Union Dutchmen	ECAC		39	19	31	50	18		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Union Dutchmen	ECAC		34	9	20	29	30		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	Union Dutchmen	ECAC		38	29	34	63	45		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2017–18	Lehigh Valley Phantoms	AHL		65	17	23	40	24		12	3	4	7	2
2018–19	Lehigh Valley Phantoms	AHL		67	15	23	38	36		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	San Antonio Rampage	AHL		61	21	15	36	23		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—

Awards and honors

Award	Year
College
ECAC All Academic Team	2014, 2015, 2016	[6]
All-ECAC Hockey Rookie Team	2013–14
ECAC Hockey All-Tournament Team	2014
NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship	2014	[28]
All-ECAC Hockey Third Team	2015–16	[14]
AHCA East First-Team All-American	2016–17	[17]
ECAC Player of the Year	2017	[29]
Hobey Baker Award Finalist	2017
AHL
AHL Rookie of the Month October	2017–18	[22]

References

1. Joe McConnell (April 5, 2017). "Saugus' Mike Vecchione's Wide World of Hockey". Community Newspaper Company. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
2. "Tri-City Storm Gears up for 2011-12 Season". nebraska.tv. September 12, 2011. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
3. Joe McConnell (April 1, 2016). "Former Malden Catholic hockey captain, Saugus resident Mike Vecchione reflects on Super 8 run of championships". Community Newspaper Company. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
4. "Storm's Vecchione commits to powerhouse Union College". Kearney Hub. August 21, 2012. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
5. "Tri-City Storm add an assistant captain". Kearney Hub. November 6, 2012. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
6. "Mike Vecchione 2016-17 Men's Ice Hockey Union College". unionathletics.com. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
7. "SEVENTEEN DUTCHMEN EARN ECAC HOCKEY ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM HONORS". unionathletics.com. July 15, 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
8. Schott, Ken (March 27, 2015). "Union's Vecchione knows he's not ready for pros". The Daily Gazette. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
9. "Vecchione Named to Frozen Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team". jrwarriors.com. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
10. "18 Dutchmen Named to ECAC Hockey All-Academic Team". unionathletics.com. July 29, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
11. "Vecchione, Wilkins Named Dutchmen Captains". ecachockey.com. October 5, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
12. "Vecchione records 100th career point as Dutchmen skate to 4-4 tie with Princeton". unionathletics.com. January 8, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
13. "Mike Vecchione of Saugus records 100th career point for Union College against Princeton". Community Newspaper Company. January 9, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
14. "Vecchione earns All-ECAC Hockey honors". unionathletics.com. March 18, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
15. "Vecchione becomes Union's all-time Division I leading scorer in loss to Cornell". unionathletics.com. February 3, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
16. Panaccio, Tim (April 7, 2017). "Flyers' Mike Vecchione beat out by Will Butcher for 2017 Hobey Baker Award". nbcsports.com. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
17. "2016–2017 All-American Team". The American Hockey Coaches Association. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
18. "Flyers Sign F Mike Vecchione to Entry Level Contract". Philadelphia Flyers. March 31, 2017. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
19. "OTF: Morin, Vecchione to make NHL debuts against NJD". Philadelphia Flyers. April 4, 2017. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
20. "Flyers sign Vecchione, Knight and Varone". Philadelphia Flyers. July 1, 2017. Retrieved July 1, 2017.
21. "Forward Mike Vecchione Loaned to Phantoms". phantomshockey.com. September 27, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
22. "Phantoms F Mike Vecchione Named CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month". phantomshockey.com. November 1, 2017. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
23. Meltzer, Bill (May 18, 2018). "MELTZER: Vecchione valuable in Phantoms playoff run". NHL.com. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
24. Boruk, John (September 20, 2018). "German Rubtsov, Mike Vecchione among Flyers' 11 cuts". nbcsports.com. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
25. "Blues agree to two-way contract with six players". St. Louis Blues. July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
26. "Avalanche re-signs Dries, adds three forwards". Colorado Avalanche. October 9, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
27. Joe McConnell (April 5, 2017). "Nobody's stronger than Saugus' Team Vecc: Family support carries Vecchione to the pros". Community Newspaper Company. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
28. "Union beats Minnesota for first title". ESPN. April 13, 2014. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
29. "Vecchione rewrites Union record books, named ECAC Hockey Player of the Year". uscho.com. March 17, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2019.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database