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Gillies Prefers Gym To Golf

June 23, 2008

By Lindsay Kramer
NHL.com Correspondent


Many hockey players would feel that veteran Albany tough guy Trevor Gillies is living in an off-season paradise.

The 29 year old had two assists and 23 penalty minutes in seven games with Augusta in 2006-07 while also playing in the AHL where he had seven points (1g-6a) and 151 penalty minutes in 51 games with Portland. He made his NHL debut with Anaheim on Nov. 6, 2005 and had 21 penalty minutes, including a first-period fight with former ECHL left wing Derek Boogaard, in the Ducks' 4-3 shootout loss to Minnesota.

Gillies spends his summers in Augusta, Ga., and lives about 15 minutes from Augusta National, the home of The Masters. Though it's true that you can't simply grab your bag and hike over to the first tee for a quick 18 holes, most golf-crazed hockey players would likely love to hang out near the hallowed grounds just to be near history and hope it rubbed off on them.

Not Gillies. He doesn't really care for golf.

"If Bill Gates and Michael Jordan can't get on, Trevor Gillies isn't going to get on. It's not something I'm going to try to accomplish," he said. "It’s like 100 degrees. Sitting out there sweating in a golf shirt at a sport I'm not good at is not my idea of fun. I'm more in the gym, doing my thing."

Right, the gym. That's always been Gillies' bread-and-butter. His bodywork has served him well since his rookie year in 1999-2000, and it will put food on the table for at least one more season.

Gillies, 29, recently signed a one-year deal that will return him to the Carolina organization for 2008-09. A broken hand limited him to 51 games with Albany this past season. He's got his sights set a little higher now.


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