Brenden Dillon
Canadian defenceman who reached 1,000 NHL games in 2025.
Last updated
Brenden Dillon is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who plays for the New Jersey Devils in the NHL. He was born on November 13, 1990, in Surrey, British Columbia. His mother is Debbie, and his father, who grew up in Portugal before moving to Toronto, speaks French and Portuguese—languages Dillon also knows.
Amateur
His younger sister played beach volleyball at York University. Before turning pro, Dillon went undrafted in the WHL and spent four seasons with the Seattle Thunderbirds. He played volleyball, basketball, soccer, and track in his youth, excelling in sprints and long jump, and at 15 he joined a junior B team, the Hope Icebreakers, after summer training.
Standing just five-foot-two at the time, he went unselected in the WHL draft but later signed with Seattle. Over 271 games with the Thunderbirds, he put up 85 points. On March 1, 2011, he signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Dallas Stars as a free agent.
Professional career
After signing, Dillon was sent to the AHL’s Texas Stars for the rest of the 2010–11 season, playing 10 games with no points and eight penalty minutes. He attended Dallas’s training camp the next fall but was reassigned to Texas.
After 31 games there with two goals and 11 assists, he got an NHL call-up to replace an injured Sheldon Souray but didn’t play. He was recalled again for the Stars’ final game of the 2011–12 season, making his NHL debut on April 8, 2012, against the St. Louis Blues, logging nearly 20 minutes of ice time, six shots on goal, four hits, and three blocked shots. He finished the season tied with Jordie Benn for most assists among Texas defencemen, though the team missed the Calder Cup playoffs.
During the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Dillon started with Texas and joined Dallas once the lockout ended. On February 1, 2013, he recorded his first Gordie Howe hat trick—a fight, an assist, and a goal—in a 4–3 shootout win over the Phoenix Coyotes, also notching his first career assist and goal.
He was selected for Canada at the 2013 IIHF World Championship, scoring one goal in eight games as Canada lost in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Sweden. The next season, 2013–14, he played all but two games (due to a lower-body injury) and set career highs with 17 points in 80 games, ranking fourth among NHL defencemen in plus-minus. On October 2, 2014, he signed a one-year extension with Dallas.
Lore & Background
Dillon grew up in Surrey, British Columbia, playing volleyball, basketball, soccer, and track and field. At age 15, he began training with Impact Hockey Development and earned a spot with the junior B Hope Icebreakers. Standing five-foot-two, he went undrafted in the WHL entry draft but was later signed by the Seattle Thunderbirds, where he spent four seasons and collected 85 points in 271 games. He signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Dallas Stars on March 1, 2011.
Dillon made his NHL debut on April 8, 2012, against the St. Louis Blues, playing nearly 20 minutes with six shots on goal. During the 2012–13 season, he recorded his first career Gordie Howe hat trick (fight, assist, goal) on February 1, 2013, against the Phoenix Coyotes. He was traded to the San Jose Sharks in November 2014 and later signed a five-year contract extension.
With the Sharks, he received the team's inaugural 'Media Good Guy' Award and was nominated for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy for his community work. He was traded to the Washington Capitals in February 2020, then to the Winnipeg Jets in July 2021. On July 1, 2024, he signed a three-year contract with the New Jersey Devils and played his 1,000th NHL game on December 1, 2025.
Reader's Guide
Brenden Dillon's career illustrates the path of an undrafted player who carved out a long NHL tenure through physical play and steady defensive work. His journey from a five-foot-two junior B player to a 1,000-game NHL defenceman is a notable example of perseverance. Dillon's Gordie Howe hat trick early in his career highlighted his willingness to fight, score, and set up teammates. His trade history—moving from Dallas to San Jose, Washington, Winnipeg, and finally New Jersey—reflects his value as a reliable veteran defenceman sought by contending teams.
Off the ice, his community involvement with the Sharks Foundation's Stick To Fitness program and Blacktop Resurfacing projects earned him a King Clancy Memorial Trophy nomination. His role as an ambassador for HEROS, a non-profit youth hockey organization, underscores his commitment to giving back, particularly in his hometown of Surrey, British Columbia. Dillon's ability to speak French and Portuguese, stemming from his father's Portuguese heritage, adds a multicultural dimension to his profile. Reaching 1,000 NHL games in 2025 places him among the 415 players to achieve that milestone, cementing his legacy as a durable and respected professional.
Career statistics and honours
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2006–07 | Hope Icebreakers | PIJHL | 45 | 4 | 27 | 31 | 38 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007–08 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 71 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 54 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 21 |
| 2008–09 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 70 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 68 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 2009–10 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 67 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 101 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2010–11 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 72 | 8 | 51 | 59 | 139 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2010–11 | Texas Stars | AHL | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| 2011–12 | Texas Stars | AHL | 76 | 6 | 23 | 29 | 97 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2011–12 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2012–13 | Texas Stars | AHL | 37 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 45 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2012–13 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 48 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 65 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2013–14 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 80 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 86 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014–15 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 20 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 23 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014–15 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 60 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 54 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 76 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 61 | 24 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
| 2016–17 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 81 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 60 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 2017–18 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 81 | 5 | 17 | 22 | 60 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 32 |
| 2018–19 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 82 | 1 | 21 | 22 | 61 | 20 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 24 |
| 2019–20 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 59 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 83 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2019–20 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| 2020–21 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 56 | 2 | 17 | 19 | 49 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2021–22 | Winnipeg Jets | NHL | 79 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 67 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022–23 | Winnipeg Jets | NHL | 82 | 2 | 21 | 23 | 76 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| 2023–24 | Winnipeg Jets | NHL | 77 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 92 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 2024–25 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 82 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 67 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025–26 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 82 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 89 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL totals | 1,056 | 42 | 185 | 227 | 1,014 | 84 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 94 | ||
International
Tables copied from the source article, totals included as the source gives them: Wikipedia: Brenden Dillon (CC BY-SA 4.0). Wide tables scroll sideways.
More in New Jersey Devils Players
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Brenden Dillon (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Statistics, medals and awards: the tables of the source article.
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced