Whatever Happened to...? A Laker Alumni Update

Whatever happened to Neil Musselwhite?

Neil Musselwhite was a forward born on November 13, 1985 in Burlington, Ontario.  He was five feet, ten inches tall and weighed 177 pounds.  He shot left-handed.

Musselwhite was a promising amateur player in high school who was extremely fast on skates but went undrafted due to his small size.  He decided to  play juniors and signed a two-year contract with his hometown Burlington Cougars of the OPJHL in 2002.

In his first year with Burlington he played in four games and tallied two points.  In his second year in Burlington he played in 22 games and tallied 19 points before being traded to the Hamilton Red Wings, where he played in 24 games and tallied an additional 14 points.  He signed another two-year contract with Hamilton at the end of that season and returned with them in 2004, where he played in 48 games and tallied an amazing 52 points.  In his last year in juniors he played in 27 games for Hamilton and tallied 26 points.

He again went undrafted out of juniors and was unable to get much attention from Division I colleges with scouts at both the pro and college level complaining of his small size, in spite of his outstanding speed.  Eventually, though, Musselwhite accepted an offer from head coach Ed Gosek to play for the Division II/III Oswego State Lakers.

He first came to the Lakers in 2006, where he played in 28 games and tallied 14 points in helping lead the team to a National Championship at the 2007 Division III Frozen Four in Superior, Wisconsin.  In his sophomore year with Oswego State he played in 26 games and tallied 14 points.  In his junior year in Lakerland Musselwhite played in 25 games and tallied 12 points.  In his senior year Musselwhite was named an assistant captain on the team, played in 29 games and tallied an amazing 36 points.  In addition, Musselwhite was selected to play in the Division I Frozen Four Skills Competition in Detroit, Michigan, the only Division II/III player selected to participate in the Competition.  While there he came in second place in the hardest shot competition and came in first place in the fastest skater competition, setting a new NCAA record and finally getting the recognition he so rightfully deserved from scouts.

But that still wasn't enough.  Musselwhite again went undrafted out of college and was unable to gain a contract from a professional hockey team in the U. S., due again to complaints from scouts about his small size.  Luckily, he was able to gain a spot on a hockey team in the Developmental League in Germany.  Many Lakers fans were befuddled that the fastest player in the history of the NCAA at any level would end up playing in the Minor League in Germany, but were hopeful that his career would advance thereafter.  And their hopes were rewarded when he signed a contract with the independent Fort Wayne Komets of the CHL early in the 2010 season.

With the Komets he played in 26 games and tallied 12 points before he was signed to a contract by the Florida Panthers and was assigned to the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL.  After his acquisition by Florida/Cincinnati, Musselwhite played in an additional 20 games without recording a point. 

He was cut by the Panthers at the end of the season and retired, noting that he probably wouldn't be able to go straight into another NHL contract and didn't want to return to the small arenas of independent Minor League hockey.  He now lives in Burlington, Ontario and works as a color commentator for the Cougars.