Travis Oleksuk (born February 3, 1989) is a Canadian professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

. He is currently playing with

Starbulls Rosenheim Starbulls Rosenheim is a professional ice hockey team based in Rosenheim, Oberbayern, Germany. They currently play in Oberliga. Prior to the 2013–14 season they played in the 2nd Bundesliga. They play their home games at '' Rofa-Stadion'', loc ...

in the German Oberliga. Oleksuk most recently iced with

EC VSV EC Grand Immo VSV are an ice hockey team in the ICE Hockey League. They play their home games at Stadthalle (capacity approximately 4500 spectators) in Villach, Austria. The team colors are blue and white. Their mascot is an eagle - Villach's co ...

in the Austrian IceHL. Prior to that, Oleksuk had a short spell with

Sheffield Steelers The Sheffield Steelers are a professional ice hockey team located in Sheffield, England. They were formed in 1991 (see 1991 in sport) and play their home games at the Utilita Arena. They are currently a member of the Elite Ice Hockey League. ...

of the UK's

Elite Ice Hockey League The Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL), sometimes referred to as the British Elite League or, for sponsorship reasons, the Viaplay Elite League, is an ice hockey league in the United Kingdom. Formed in 2003 following the demise of the Ice Hockey ...

(EIHL). Oleksuk also previously played for

Graz99ers The Moser Medical Graz 99ers are an Austrian professional ice hockey team from Graz, Styria. The club was founded in 1999 after the previous club, EHC Graz, folded prior to the 1998–99 season due to financial difficulties. The Graz99ers started ...

of the

Austrian Hockey League The ICE Hockey League (International Central European Hockey League), known as the win2day ICE Hockey League for sponsorship reasons, is a Central European hockey league that also serves as the top-tier ice hockey league in Austria, it currently f ...

(IceHL).

Playing career

Oleksuk attended the

University of Minnesota Duluth The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) is a public university in Duluth, Minnesota. It is part of the University of Minnesota system and offers 16 bachelor's degrees in 88 majors, graduate programs in 25 different fields, and a two-year progr ...

where he played four seasons (2008-2012) of NCAA college hockey with the

Minnesota–Duluth Bulldogs The Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Minnesota Duluth. They were first named Bulldogs in 1933. Their colors are maroon and gold. The school competes in the NCAA's Division II in all sports except ic ...

, scoring 45 goals and 70 assists for 155 points, and earning 75 penalty minutes, in 133 games played. On March 30, 2012, the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

signed Oleksuk as an unrestricted free agent to an entry level contract, and he was assigned to play the 2012–13 season with the

Worcester Sharks The Worcester Sharks were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that played from 2006 to 2015. Affiliated with the National Hockey League's San Jose Sharks and located in Worcester, Massachusetts, Worcester, Massachu ...

of the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

. After three seasons within the Sharks organization, Oleksuk left as a free agent to sign a one-year AHL contract with the

Hartford Wolf Pack The Hartford Wolf Pack are a professional ice hockey team based in Hartford, Connecticut. A member of the American Hockey League (AHL), they play their home games at the XL Center. The team was established in 1926 as the Providence Reds. After a ...

, an affiliate of the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

on September 2, 2015. In the 2015–16 season with the Wolf Pack, Oleksuk appeared in 67 games recording 7 goals and 22 points in securing a regular role amongst the checking line. As a free agent in the following off-season, Oleksuk opted to pursue a European career, agreeing to a one-year contract with

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

based HCB South Tyrol, who compete in the Austrian EBEL on July 28, 2016. After two seasons with Bolzano and three with

Graz 99ers The Moser Medical Graz 99ers are an Austrian professional ice hockey team from Graz, Styria. The club was founded in 1999 after the previous club, EHC Graz, folded prior to the 1998–99 season due to financial difficulties. The Graz99ers start ...

, Oleksuk agreed terms with the

for the 2021–22 season. After just 5 games with the Steelers, Oleksuk departed Sheffield in October 2021 for personal reasons. He moved back to Austria to sign for

. For the 2022–23 season, Oleksuk continued his career in Europe by moving to German third-tier club,

of the Oberliga.

Career statistics

Awards and honours

References

External links

* 1989 births Living people Bolzano HC players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Italy Canadian ice hockey centres EC VSV players Graz 99ers players Hartford Wolf Pack players Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs men's ice hockey players Sioux City Musketeers players Sheffield Steelers players Starbulls Rosenheim players Worcester Sharks players {{Canada-icehockey-centre-1980s-stub