Defenceman Riley Stillman of the Buffalo Sabres at Keybank Center in downtown Buffalo. Stillman earned All-Prospect honours while playing for Cobourg of the OJHL in 2014-15. (Photo by Ray MacAloney / OJHL Images)
By Jim Mason/OJHL Communications
Riley Stillman is on the ice with the rest of the Buffalo Sabres at Keybank Center in downtown Buffalo.
An overhead walkway and less than a football field away, 500 young hockey players are trying to get where Riley is.
The youngsters are members of the 24 teams in the Ontario Junior Hockey League, playing in the annual OJHL Governors’ Showcase event at neighbouring LECOM Harborcenter last week.
Playing for NCAA, NHL, U SPORTS and OHL scouts and two points in the league standings at the twin-rink practice facility of the Sabres.
Now a six-year NHLer, Stillman, 25, was one of them nine years ago, playing defence for the Cobourg Cougars during his first season of junior.
“I do remember playing in the Showcase, coming into Buffalo to play,” he told the OJHL in the Sabres dressing room after practice, a stuffed buffalo head watching over the players from above their stalls. “I can’t remember how we did, to be honest. I think I was signed at that point, so I knew I was going to The O, but (the Showcase) is great for kids who are on the (NCAA vs OHL) fence or are trying to go to school. It’s a really great experience for them and an opportunity to show what they have.”
More than 175 scouts took in the 2023 Showcase.
Cobourg and the OJHL were an excellent fit for Riley.
“It was a good opportunity to go as a 16-year-old into a place to have the opportunity to develop and play and learning what it’s like to play with older guys,” the affable Stillman said. “I think it was huge for my development. At the same time, I wasn’t ready to play in the OHL yet and it was the perfect stepping stone.”
Stillman had 24 points (5 goals/19 assists) in 56 games with Cobourg that season and was called up to the Oshawa Generals for nine more games. When postseason awards were handed out, Stillman was named to the OJHL’s Second All-Prospect Team.
Following three more years in Oshawa – Memorial Cup champs in 2018 – and one with Hamilton of the OHL, he jumped to the AHL and eventually the big league.
A fourth-round pick by the Florida Panthers in the 2016 draft, he’s skated in 159 games in the NHL with Florida, Chicago, Vancouver and Buffalo.
Dad Cory played 1,025 games in the NHL. He is one of only 12 players in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back seasons with different teams.
Younger brother Chase, who won his own Memorial Cup with his hometown Peterborough Petes last season, was a first-round pick of the New Jersey Devils in 2021.
Any advice for those kids in the OJHL shooting for scholarships and pro careers of their own across the street, Riley?
“Stick with it, play, keep going,” he said. “There are so many guys that come out of the OJHL who play. Just because you don’t play in the OHL at 16 or you’re not playing in the USHL, there are all kinds of guys (who advanced) after playing in the OJ.
“There are all kinds of ways. It takes time. Stick to the process. Trust yourself, believe in yourself and play your game. And eventually things will work out the way they are supposed to.”
The Sabres open the regular season on Oct. 12 at home against the New York Rangers.
