Jim Sandlak
| Jim Sandlak | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
December 12, 1966 Kitchener, ON, CAN |
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| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
| Weight | 220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb) | ||
| Position | Right Wing | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for |
Vancouver Canucks Hartford Whalers |
||
| National team |
 Canada
|
||
| NHL Draft | 4th overall, 1985 Vancouver Canucks |
||
| Playing career | 1985–1998 | ||
James Sandlak, Jr. (born December 12, 1966 in Kitchener, Ontario) is a retired professional ice hockey player who spent 11 seasons in the National Hockey League and was known as "The House" due to his large stature.
Sandlak played major junior with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Heading into the 1985 NHL Entry Draft he was regarded as one of the top rated players for the draft. He was selected by the Vancouver Canucks with the 4th overall pick; at 6'4" and 220 lbs he was chosen to address the Canucks' desire for a big scoring forward. He cemented this status with a dominant performance at the 1986 World Junior Championships, at which he was the captain of the Canadian team and was named the tournament's top forward. Convinced that Sandlak was a better prospect than the slow-developing Cam Neely (who played the same position and style), Canuck management decided that the future Hall of Famer Neely was expendable, and dealt him to the Boston Bruins for Barry Pederson in what would later be labelled by many commentators as one of the worst trades ever made.
Sandlak had a solid rookie year in 1986–87, scoring 15 goals and being selected to the NHL All-Rookie Team. After a poor training camp in 1987, he was sent to the AHL, but responded well upon his recall, scoring 16 goals in just 49 games. He scored 20 goals the following season, but continued to struggle with comparisons to the now-superstar Neely and frustrate fans and management alike with his inconsistency. By the 1990–91 season he was little more than a bit player on the Canucks, scoring just 7 goals.
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