# Matthew Phillips (ice hockey)

Matthew Phillips (born April 6, 1998) is a Canadian professional ice hockey right wing who is currently playing with the Colorado Eagles in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract with the Colorado Avalanche in the National Hockey League (NHL).

## Playing career
### Junior

Phillips was drafted in the second round, 33rd overall by the Victoria Royals in the 2013 WHL Bantam Draft. The season prior to being drafted, Phillips scored forty goals and 77 points in 37 games played with the Calgary Bisons of the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League (AMBHL). Phillips participated in the Royals' training camp and preseason for the 2013–14 WHL season as a 15-year old, despite not being eligible to play in the regular season, as WHL rules prevent players under the age of 16 from playing. He was subsequently returned to his minor ice hockey team, the Alberta Midget Hockey League (AMHL) Calgary Buffaloes, where he finished the season with fifteen goals and 35 points in 33 games played.
Phillips joined the Royals' training camp and preseason for the 2014–15 WHL season, but was again returned to his minor ice hockey team in Calgary. Playing with the AMHL Calgary Buffaloes for the second straight season, Phillips was leading the league in scoring when he was called up to the Royals. Phillips made his Western Hockey League debut for the Royals on January 23, 2015, against the Kamloops Blazers, scoring one goal in a 4–3 overtime loss. He played one more game during the 2014–15 WHL season, finishing with three points in two games played, before being returned to the Buffaloes. He finished his second season with the Buffaloes winning the Harry Allen Memorial Trophy as the top scorer in the AMHL with 33 goals and 73 points in 34 games played. He also won the Trevor Linden Trophy as the league's top forward and was named to the AMHL First All-Star Team.

### Professional

On December 31, 2017, Phillips signed a three-year, $2.325 million entry-level contract with the Calgary Flames. Philips made his National Hockey League debut with the Flames on May 19, 2021, against the Vancouver Canucks, finishing the game with two shots on goal in 14:19 of ice time in a 6–2 victory.
On August 8, 2021, Phillips signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Flames worth $750,000 at the NHL level. During the 2021–22 season with the Stockton Heat, the Flames' American Hockey League affiliate, Phillips became the Heat's franchise leader in career goals and points.
On July 23, 2022, Phillips signed another one-year, two-way contract extension with the Flames worth $750,000 at the NHL level.
Phillips would spend the majority of the 2022–23 season with the Flames affiliate the Calgary Wranglers, where he led the team in goals and points. On December 8, 2022, Phillips was called up to the Calgary Flames, where he would play in two games before being reassigned to the Wranglers. Phillips would enjoy significant success during the season, including being named AHL player of the month for November 2022, being named to the AHL All-Star Classic along with teammate Dustin Wolf and coach Mitch Love, and being named to the AHL First All-Star team along with Wolf.
On July 2, 2023, Phillips as a free agent from the Flames signed a one-year, one-way contract worth $775,000 with the Washington Capitals, joining former coach Mitch Love for the 2023–24 season. He scored his first career NHL goal and added an assist in his first game against his former team on October 16. After contributing with 3 points through his first five appearances with the Capitals, Phillips was unable to cement a forward role, resulting in reduced minutes through 27 games. On February 16, 2024, after Phillips was claimed off waivers from the Capitals by the Pittsburgh Penguins. He made his debut with the Penguins in a 2-1 defeat to the Los Angeles Kings on February 18, 2024. Phillips was scoreless through just 3 games with the Penguins before he was returned on waivers and re-claimed by the Washington Capitals on March 6, 2024. He was immediately re-assigned to AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears,finishing with 6 points through 9 regular season games, while adding one further appearance in the NHL. Remaining with Hershey through the 2024 Calder Cup playoffs, Phillips was sparingly used in 6 post-season games as the Bears defended the Calder Cup.
Leaving the Capitals as a free agent, Phillips was later signed through the summer to a one-year, two-way contract with the Colorado Avalanche on August 9, 2024.

## Career statistics

| | | | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2014–15 | Victoria Royals | WHL | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | Victoria Royals | WHL | 72 | 37 | 39 | 76 | 16 | 13 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 2 |
| 2016–17 | Victoria Royals | WHL | 70 | 50 | 40 | 90 | 50 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| 2016–17 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2017–18 | Victoria Royals | WHL | 71 | 48 | 64 | 112 | 32 | 11 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 6 |
| 2018–19 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 65 | 13 | 25 | 38 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2019–20 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 38 | 15 | 18 | 33 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2020–21 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 30 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2020–21 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2021–22 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 65 | 31 | 37 | 68 | 16 | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 4 |
| 2022–23 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022–23 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL | 66 | 36 | 40 | 76 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 15 |
| 2023–24 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 28 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2023–24 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2023–24 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 9 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NHL totals | NHL totals | NHL totals | 34 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and honours

| Award | Year |
| AMHL |||
| Harry Allen Memorial Trophy (AMHL Top Scorer) | 2015 |
| Trevor Linden Trophy (AMHL Top Forward) | 2015 |
| AMHL First All-Star Team | 2015 |
| WHL |||
| Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy (WHL Rookie of the Year) | 2016 |
| WHL Western Conference First All-Star Team | 2017, 2018 |
| AHL |||
| First All-Star Team | 2023 |
| Calder Cup | 2024 |