Canadian defenseman Mark Astley spent most of his ice hockey career in Switzerland, but got his start with the Calgary Canucks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League in 1987. He entered Lake Superior State University in 1988 and spent four years on their hockey squad prior to joining the Canadian men’s national team. In the lead-up to the 1994 Winter Olympics he spent his first two seasons in Switzerland with HC Lugano and HC Ambri-Piotta, and was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres, suiting up for his first match with them in 1993. At the Olympic tournament he skated in eight games and took home a silver medal. Upon his return he spent two years with the Buffalo Sabres, as well as the American Hockey League’s Rochester Americans, but was sent to the minor International Hockey League’s Phoenix Roadrunners for the 1996-1997 season. At that point he opted to move to Switzerland and, until his 2007 retirement, he played with HC Lugano (1997-2004), SCL Tigers Langnau (2004-2005), and EHC Basel (2005-2007).
Canada