Tyler Motte
Tyler Motte is an American ice hockey forward for the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League. Motte was drafted 121st overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, and spent 33 games with the team in 2017 before being traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Playing career
Amateur
As a youth, Motte played in the 2008 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Detroit Red Wings minor ice hockey team.During the 2010–11 season, Motte played for the Detroit Honeybaked U16 team of the Tier 1 Elite Hockey League. He recorded 22 goals and 14 assists in 33 games. Honeybaked captured USA Hockey's Tier 1 national championship and Motte had three goals and three assists in six tournament games. He scored two third period goals for Honeybaked in the 3–2 comeback win over Shattuck St. Mary's in the championship game.
Motte trained with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program U-17 team during the 2011–12 season, where he recorded 25 goals and 16 assists in 53 games. Motte played two games for the U-18 team, scoring once. In two USHL playoff games he scored two goals. During the 2012–13 season, he recorded 26 goals and 19 assists in 67 games for the U-18 team.
College
Motte began his collegiate career for the Michigan Wolverines during the 2013–14 season. During his freshman season, Motte recorded nine goals and nine assists in 34 games. He scored his first career goal on October 12, 2013, against Jordan Ruby of RIT. He was named the Big Ten Second Star of the Week for the week ending October 20, 2013, his first career Big Ten weekly award. He was named the Big Ten Second Star of the Week for the week ending November 26, 2013. Motte was awarded the conference's second star after he recorded his first career multiple-point effort with a goal and two assists against Niagara.During the 2014–15 season, Motte recorded nine goals and 22 assists in 35 games, finishing third on the team in assists, and fourth in points. He led all Michigan forwards with 43 blocked shots. He was named the Big Ten Second Star of the Week for the week ending December 9, 2014. He recorded his first career four-point night with four assists in an 8–3 win over Ohio State. He became the first Michigan player to record four assists in a game since Aaron Palushaj on February 13, 2009.
During the 2015–16 season, Motte recorded 32 goals and 24 assists in 38 games. His 56 points ranked third in the country in scoring. During the season opener on October 16, 2015, Motte scored the game-winning goal against Mercyhurst. He was named the Big Ten First Star of the Week, and NCAA Second Star of the Week, for the week ending January 19, 2016. He recorded four goals and three assists in two games against Ohio State. On January 17, he recorded a career-high five points, including his first career hat-trick.
He was named the Big Ten First Star of the Week, and NCAA First Star of the Week, for the week ending February 2, 2016. He recorded four goals and three assists, 17 shots on goal and a plus-5 rating in two wins against Penn State. Motte matched a career-high with five points on January 28, and followed that up with two goals on January 30. Motte was named the Hockey Commissioners' Association National Player of the Month for the month of January. He recorded a goal in every game during the month and held lead the Wolverines to a 5–0–1 record in January. He led the nation with 18 points and 10 goals in just six contests for an average of 3.00 points per game. By reaching 20 goals in 22 games, he and teammate Kyle Connor became the fastest Michigan players to reach 20 goals since Kevin Porter had 20 goals in 21 games during the 2007–08 season. He was named the Big Ten First Star of the Week for the week ending February 9. Motte scored three of Michigan's six goals on the weekend for a total of four points. He joined Kyle Connor as the only players in the Big Ten to earn First Star of the Week honors three times this season.
During the 2016 Big Ten Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Motte tied the Big Ten Tournament championship game record for most goals by an individual with two goals. With four points during the Big Ten Tournament, Motte surpassed 100 career points, becoming the 85th Michigan player to reach the milestone.
During the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Motte scored the overtime game-winning goal in the Regional Semifinals against Notre Dame, giving Michigan its first NCAA Tournament win since 2011.
Following an outstanding season with the Wolverines, Motte was named to the All-Big Ten First Team. He ranked No. 2 in the nation in goal scoring, and his 12-game goal scoring streak from December 30, 2015 to February 19, 2016, was the longest by a Michigan player in the Red Berenson coaching era, since 1984. Motte led the team in blocked shots among forwards, and ranked No. 2 in the NCAA, with 70. He was named a top-ten finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. He was also named an AHCA First Team All-American.
Professional
On April 6, 2016, Motte signed a three-year, entry level contract with the Chicago Blackhawks. He was signed to an amateur tryout contract with the Rockford IceHogs, the AHL affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks. Motte scored his first career NHL goal on October 21, 2016, in a 3-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets.On June 23, 2017, Motte was included in a blockbuster trade by the Blackhawks to the Blue Jackets along with Artemi Panarin and a sixth-round pick in 2017 in exchange for Brandon Saad, Anton Forsberg and a fifth-round pick in 2018.
On February 26, 2018, Motte and Jussi Jokinen were traded to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Thomas Vanek.
International play
Motte represented the United States at the 2012 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, where he recorded one assist in five games, and won a silver medal. Motte represented the United States at the 2013 IIHF World U18 Championships, where he recorded five goals and two assist in seven five games, and won a silver medal. His five goals led the team, while his seven points were tied with J. T. Compher for the team lead.Motte represented the United States at the 2015 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship, where he recorded one assist in five games, and finished in fifth place.
Motte represented the United States at the 2016 IIHF World Championship alongside line-mates J. T. Compher and Kyle Connor. He recorded one goal and two assists in ten games.