Riley Sheahan

Lore & Background

Sheahan grew up in St. Catharines, Ontario, in a basketball-focused family; both parents played the sport, and his mother was an Ontario University Athletics all-star. He played shooting guard until ninth grade, then chose hockey. He played junior B for the St. Catharines Falcons, collecting 49 goals and 85 assists over two seasons, and won the OHA Junior B Top Prospect Award in 2008. He forwent major junior hockey to play NCAA Division I for the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and was invited to Canada's 2011 National Junior Team selection camp.

Sheahan made his NHL debut for Detroit on April 7, 2012. On April 9, 2017, he scored his only two goals of the 2016–17 season during the final game at Joe Louis Arena, including the final goal in the arena's history.

He had set a team record for most games to start a season without a goal and an NHL record as the only forward with at least 100 shots to start a season without a goal. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins on October 21, 2017, along with a fifth-round pick, for Scott Wilson and a third-round pick. He finished the 2017–18 season with 32 points in 81 games and signed a one-year contract with the Penguins on June 27, 2018.

Sheahan later played for Florida, Edmonton, Buffalo, and Seattle. With the expansion Kraken, he scored the team's first ever preseason goal on September 26, 2021, and served as the primary penalty killer, collecting 4 goals and 13 assists in 69 games. After a brief return to Buffalo in 2022, his contract was terminated after he refused to report to the AHL affiliate. He then joined EHC Biel of the National League for the remainder of the 2022–23 season, and announced his retirement on October 12, 2024.

Reader's Guide

Riley Sheahan's NHL career spanned over a decade, defined by versatility as a centre and penalty killer across six teams. His most notable moment came on April 9, 2017, when he scored the final goal in the history of Joe Louis Arena, capping a season in which he set an NHL record for most shots without a goal by a forward. That trade to the Pittsburgh Penguins in October 2017 revitalized his production, yielding 32 points in 81 games.

Sheahan also holds a unique place in Seattle Kraken history, scoring the franchise's first preseason goal. Off the ice, his legal issues—including a 2012 arrest for driving with a blood-alcohol level of 0.30 while wearing a Teletubby costume and carrying a teammate's ID—and his later openness about depression and mental health through the Speak Your Mind podcast he co-founded in 2021, add layers to his legacy. His career reflects both the grind of a depth forward and the human challenges behind professional sports.