bio
Christopher John Nilan earned every minute of the 688 NHL regular season games he played patrolling the right-wing for the Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins and New York Rangers. Fiercely loyal to his teammates and his club, Chris answered the call every time, racking up over 3,000 penalty minutes during his pro career, many of them earned against some of the toughest players the NHL has ever seen. For an Irish kid from the streets of West Roxbury, near Boston, Massachusetts, where the Irish settled scores with their fists, there was no other way. Chris learned one important lesson early on: whatever happens, never back down, never stay down. The lesson stuck.
Growing up, Chris played his youth hockey with the Parkway team of the Greater Boston Youth Hockey League (GBYHL). He loved the Big Bad Bruins of that era and idolized . hockey legends Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge, Wayne Cashman, Derek Sanderson and Gerry Cheevers. Chris knew he wanted to live the same dream.
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