SILYE NAME MAKES RETURN TO CALGARY
Son of Stampeder alumnus looking to carve his own path with Flames' AHL farm team
Among Calgary-area sports fans, only the long-timers likely recognized this last name.
David Silye just joined the Flames' farm team for an end-of-season eye opener. The 25-year-old centre has already inked an Ahl-level contract with the Wranglers for the 2024-25 campaign.
Silye, who recently wrapped his collegiate hockey career with the Wisconsin Badgers, is looking to make a name for himself in the same city where his proud dad, Jim, won a Grey Cup with the Stampeders in 1971 and was later elected as a member of Parliament.
“You know what they say about fathers and sons . ... It's a father's dream to see his son move forward and be successful, and to be successful in what he wants to do,” Jim said, starting to chuckle as he added this lighthearted followup. “It's not what I wanted him to do. I wanted him to be a football player. What the heck is he doing in a hockey rink?”
What he's doing is chasing his dream job.
“Making it to the NHL, this is just a step in that direction,” David said. “I'm still pursuing that goal.
“I'm sure, deep down, my dad wanted me to play football. But I just fell in love with hockey more. He's been somebody to lean on, even though it's two different sports, just in terms of the team dynamic and going through the ranks and stuff like that. He's been big that way.”
David is a former captain of the BCHL'S powerhouse Penticton Vees and spent the past four seasons at the college level, including stints at Clarkson, Minnesota State and Wisconsin. A self-described “pass-first guy,” he notched nine goals and a team-high 23 assists in 40 games this winter and was one of the NCAA'S best faceoff men, successfully swiping 59.3 per cent of his draws.
While the Badgers were hoping to bring him back as a fifth-year senior, he has already earned a finance degree, is nearly finished with a master's in real estate and was eager to embark on his pro career.
David, who is listed at 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds, debuted for the Wranglers in Saturday's 5-2 road loss to the Bakersfield Condors. Jim, now 77, was watching the action on AHL TV.
“I think it was solid for him,” said Wranglers bench boss Trent Cull, asked during his weekly appearance on Flames Talk on Sportsnet 960 The Fan about his first impressions of Silye. “He's good in the faceoff circle, which is something we desperately need. That's an area that is not a strength for us as a team, so we need guys to win faceoffs. I think he was our best guy that night, so that's a positive.
“For him, it's just going to be can he catch up to the pace of the American Hockey League from college in time to be a part of our playoff run.”
Every rookie faces a similar challenge, needing to earn the trust of the coaches and prove they are ready to contribute.
It was no different for Jim when he arrived at Mcmahon Stadium in 1969.
Best remembered as a sure-handed punt returner, he helped the Stamps to a Grey Cup berth in 1970, though they were defeated by the Montreal Alouettes. They returned to the CFL'S championship showdown and won it the following year.
“If you go to a football game and look up at the wall of all those stars, I played with nine or 10 of those guys,” Jim said. “(Rudy) Linterman and Tommy Forzani and John Helton and Wayne Harris and Larry Robinson . ... Oh gosh, it goes on. Don Luzzi, Gerry Shaw, just wonderful players. Terry Evanshen, I was his backup, and I was a backup for Larry Robinson on defence. I was a two-way player. Sounds like David!
“Those guys would teach me and work with me in practice. They weren't worried about me taking their job. Robby and I got to be friends and I said, `It's kind of neat that you're telling me all these things, but you know I want to play.' And he says, `Yeah, I know. But you know what? We also want to win. And if we don't help you, we're not going to win. If I get hurt, you have to replace me. And if you're not ready, we're going to lose and that's not going to make me happy. So I have a job to do — not only to play but also to teach.'
“So I learned a lot from them. And one way or another, I think I passed some of these things along to David.”
The Wranglers have already clinched an invite to the Calder Cup playoffs. With four games remaining on their regular-season slate, all against the Abbotsford Canucks, they still have a shot at home-ice advantage.
David is hoping to help with that quest. The right-handed
I’m sure, deep down, my dad wanted me to play football. But I just fell in love with hockey more.
centre is thrilled to be back in the city where he took his first minor hockey strides — he moved to Arnprior, Ont., when he was in Grade 5 — and where he can remember cheering on Jarome Iginla and Dion Phaneuf and playing mini-sticks with family friend Roman Turek.
“It just happens to be that Calgary was the right opportunity for me,” David said. “To have it work out that way, it's special.”