John Vigilante Explained

Played For:Milwaukee Admirals
Syracuse Crunch
Quad City Flames
Grand Rapids Griffins
IK Oskarshamn
Position:Left wing
Shoots:Left
Height Ft:6
Height In:0
Weight Lb:167.5
Birth Date:24 May 1985
Birth Place:Dearborn, Michigan, U.S.
Death Place:Dearborn, Michigan, U.S.
Draft:Undrafted
Career Start:2006
Career End:2013

John Vigilante (May 24, 1985 – July 18, 2018) was an American professional ice hockey forward. At the time of his death he was the head coach for the 19u Belle Tire Girls Hockey Program.[1] [2]

Playing career

Undrafted, Vigilante was an Ontario Hockey League priority selection for the Plymouth Whalers in the 11th Round (209th) in 2001. Vigilante was named the team captain of the Whalers at the beginning of the 2005–06 OHL season. He represented the Whalers at the 2006 OHL All-Star Game, held in Belleville, Ontario. His season was cut short with a broken finger, after blocking a shot by the Barrie Colts, as they surged looking for a tying goal at the end of a game. Out for a month, Vigilante returned for the final three games of the regular season to help Plymouth win the West Division.

Vigilante was signed by the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL) on December 7, 2005.[3] Vigilante was then assigned to Nashville's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals, where he made his professional debut.

On July 8, 2008, Vigilante was signed by the Columbus Blue Jackets to a one-year deal.[4] He was then assigned to their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, where he played with former Plymouth Whaler teammates Jared Boll and Tom Sestito. Midway through the 2008–09 season on February 21, 2009, Vigilante was reassigned by the Blue Jackets when he was loaned to the Quad City Flames for the remainder of the season.[5]

On September 11, 2009, Vigilante signed with the Grand Rapids Griffins,[6] the Detroit Red Wings' AHL affiliate. After appearing in one preseason game, Vigilante was released from his tryout contract with Detroit and assigned to the Griffins.

On June 1, 2012, Vigilante signed with Swedish team IK Oskarshamn, playing in league Hockeyallsvenskan.[7]

Vigilante was a 2003 graduate of Edsel Ford High School in Dearborn, Michigan.

Coaching career

On April 9, 2014, Vigilante was announced as the new head coach, beginning with the 2014-15 season, of the Compuware Midget Majors of the Compuware Youth Program.[8]

Career statistics

Regular seasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamLeagueGPGAPtsPIMGPGAPtsPIM
2002–03Plymouth WhalersOHL6515243931186398
2003–04Plymouth WhalersOHL663038682591788
2004–05Plymouth WhalersOHL682438621740000
2005–06Plymouth WhalersOHL552453773413412160
2006–07Milwaukee AdmiralsAHL62819271020002
2007–08Milwaukee AdmiralsAHL731531461260110
2008–09Syracuse CrunchAHL52781514
2008–09Quad City FlamesAHL2478152
2009–10Grand Rapids GriffinsAHL143360
2012-13[9] [10] IK OskarshamnHA52917265060112
AHL totals21137661033880112

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Former Syracuse Crunch forward dies at age 33. July 20, 2018.
  2. Web site: OHL Mourns Loss of John Vigilante.
  3. Web site: Predators sign forward John Vigilante. predators.nhl.com. 2005-12-07. 2009-03-06. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110721222759/http://predators.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=317689&page=NewsPage&service=page. July 21, 2011. mdy-all.
  4. Web site: Columbus Blue Jackets sign Clay Wilson, Andrey Plekhanov, John Vigilante. bluejackets.nhl.com. 2008-07-08. 2009-03-06. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20080808102141/http://bluejackets.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=368016. August 8, 2008. mdy-all.
  5. Web site: John Vigilante joins Flames . qcflames.com . 2009-02-21 . 2009-03-06.
  6. Web site: Wing John Vigilante among Griffins' four signings . mlive.com . 2009-09-11 . 2009-09-22.
  7. http://www.ikoskarshamn.se/Pages/Page.aspx?pageId=25&playerId=1267 Info from IK Oskarshamn official homepage.
  8. Web site: Whalers Alum John Vigilante Named Head Coach of Compuware – Ontario Hockey League. www.ontariohockeyleague.com.
  9. Web site: HockeyAllsvenskan - stats.swehockey.se. stats.swehockey.se.
  10. Web site: PlayOff-serien - stats.swehockey.se. stats.swehockey.se.