Michael McLeod (ice hockey)
Michael McLeod | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 3, 1998 Mississauga, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation | Professional ice hockey centre |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Known for | Playing for New Jersey Devils in the NHL, Avangard Omsk in the KHL |
Michael McLeod (born February 3, 1998) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre currently an unrestricted free agent. His latest team was Avangard Omsk in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). McLeod was the 12th overall pick by the New Jersey Devils during the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He made his NHL debut in the 2019–20 season and spent five seasons with New Jersey before transitioning to the KHL in 2024, following his involvement in the 2018 Hockey Canada controversy.
Junior
McLeod developed his skills in minor hockey with the Toronto Marlboros, part of the Greater Toronto Hockey League. In 2014, he captained his team to an OHL Cup championship and was honored with the Tim Adams Memorial Trophy as the tournament’s most outstanding player.
Selected fifth overall by the Mississauga Steelheads in the 2014 OHL Priority Selection, McLeod began his tenure with them in the 2014–15 season. He was appointed alternate captain for the 2015–16 campaign and elevated to captain for the 2016–17 season. During that year, he earned OHL Player of the Week recognition after registering five goals and accumulating 11 points across three games.
Professional
The New Jersey Devils picked McLeod 12th overall in the 2016 NHL entry draft. He inked a three-year entry-level contract with New Jersey on October 7, 2016.
In a preseason contest in 2017, McLeod suffered a meniscus tear requiring arthroscopic surgery. After rehabilitating, he was reassigned to continue playing with the Mississauga Steelheads. Upon concluding his junior career, McLeod joined the Binghamton Devils of the American Hockey League (AHL) in April 2018. He received a recall to New Jersey on November 29, 2018, and made his NHL debut the following day. Throughout the 2018–19 season, McLeod appeared in 21 games and tallied three assists. His first NHL goal came on January 27, 2021, during his 39th game.
In the course of the 2022–23 NHL season, McLeod achieved a personal best with 26 points over 80 games. On May 1, 2023, he netted both the decisive game-winning and series-clinching goal in New Jersey’s 4–0 triumph against their rivals, the New York Rangers, in game seven of the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. He concluded that postseason with two goals and six points across 12 contests. On July 1, 2023, McLeod secured a one-year contract extension worth $1.4 million with the Devils.
On January 24, 2024, both McLeod and defenceman Cal Foote were placed on indefinite leave amid an ongoing investigation. McLeod did not rejoin for the remainder of that season, finishing with career-high marks of ten goals and nineteen points over forty-five games.
On August 2, 2024, McLeod agreed to a one-year deal with Barys Astana of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), reuniting with former Devils teammate Will Butcher. After just sixteen games and leading Barys Astana with six points, he was released on October 18 as part of broader cost reductions by the club. Subsequently, on November 19, he signed with another KHL organization, Avangard Omsk.
International play
McLeod was initially named as Canada’s thirteenth forward for the Canada national junior team at the 2017 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. Following an injury to Mitchell Stephens, he was promoted to the active roster. He returned as one of seven veterans for Canada at the 2018 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, helping secure a gold medal for his country.
Personal life
McLeod is the eldest sibling of Ryan McLeod, who plays for the Buffalo Sabres, and Matt McLeod, a member of the Belfast Giants competing in the British Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). He shares a strong friendship with former teammate Nathan Bastian.
On January 30, 2024, McLeod, along with four other teammates, faced charges of sexual assault connected to an event that occurred in London, Ontario in 2018. Subsequently, on February 5, the London Police Service officially filed two sexual assault charges against him. Ultimately, on July 24, 2025, he was found not guilty of both accusations.
Regular season and playoffs
2020–21 NHL season | New Jersey Devils | NHL |52||9||6||15||42 |— |— |— |— |— |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" 2021–22 NHL season | New Jersey Devils | NHL |77||6||14||20||52 |- 2022–23 NHL season | New Jersey Devils | NHL |80||4||22||26||43 |12||2||4||6||15 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" 2023–24 NHL season | New Jersey Devils | NHL |45||10||9||19||10 |— |— |— |— |— |- 2024–25 KHL season | Barys Astana | KHL |16||3||3||6||16 |— |— |— |— |— |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" 2024–25 | Avangard Omsk | KHL |19||3||10||13||21 |9||1||7||8||6 |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0"| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–14 | Toronto Marlboros | GTHL | 33 | 21 | 36 | 57 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–15 | Mississauga Steelheads | OHL | 63 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–16 | Mississauga Steelheads | OHL | 57 | 21 | 40 | 61 | 71 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016–17 | Mississauga Steelheads | OHL | 57 | 27 | 46 | 73 | 49 | 20 | 11 | 16 | 27 | 19 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–18 | Mississauga Steelheads | OHL | 38 | 16 | 28 | 44 | 34 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–18 | Binghamton Devils | AHL | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–19 | Binghamton Devils | AHL | 55 | 6 | 27 | 33 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–19 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 21 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019–20 | Binghamton Devils | AHL | 47 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019–20 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 12 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| NHL totals !287 | 29 | 56 | 85 | 164 !12 | 2 | 4 | 6 | }
International2014 | Canada Red | U17 World U-17 Hockey Challenge | 6th place |5||0||1||1||2 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" 2015 | Canada | Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament (IH18) | Gold medal |4||1||1||2||2 |- 2016 | Canada | IIHF World U18 Championships (U18) | 4th place |7||2||2||4||2 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" 2017 | Canada | World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (WJC) | Silver medal |7||2||1||3||2 |- 2018 | Canada | WJC | Gold medal |7||1||3||4||2 |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0"
Awards and honours
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- Pages with script errors
- Articles with short description
- Articles with hCards
- No local image but image on Wikidata
- 1998 births
- Living people
- Barys Astana players
- Binghamton Devils players
- Canadian ice hockey centres
- Ice hockey people from Mississauga
- Mississauga Steelheads players
- NHL first-round draft picks
- New Jersey Devils draft picks
- New Jersey Devils players
- Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States
- 21st-century Canadian sportsmen
- Avangard Omsk players