4 Fun Facts About Devils’ Miles Wood

Today Miles Wood turns 27 years old. The second longest-tenured New Jersey Devils forward made his NHL debut during the 2015-16 campaign and has appeared in 326 career games and collected 121 points (65 goals, 56 assists). Sadly he missed last season after having surgery on his right hip. He attempted to come back in late March and played three games before the decision was made to shut him down for the remainder of the 2021-22 campaign. There is a lot of excitement about getting a healthy Wood back on the ice, as his presence was missed last season. Here are four fun facts about the Devils’ winger.

1. Wood Attended the Same Boarding School as Two Other Devils Players

Wood attended the Noble and Greenough School in Dedham, Massachusetts. The five-day boarding school is for students in grades seven through 12 and was founded as an all-boys preparatory school for Harvard University. The now co-educational school is 10 miles outside of Boston and its list of alumni includes three hockey players who suited up for New Jersey including Wood, Mark Fayne and the late Jimmy Hayes. Wood never suited up alongside Fayne who was a member of the Edmonton Oilers when the Buffalo, NY native made his Devils debut but did play with Hayes during the 2017-18 season in New Jersey.

It was also during this time that Wood first came in contact with future teammate Brian Boyle. During an interview in 2017, he recounted the event and admitted the 6-foot-7 veteran wouldn’t likely remember their meeting.

“I was picking up pucks and I walked in [to the locker room] behind him,” he said. “He probably doesn’t remember this story but I do. I looked up to this guy and said ‘Oh my God,’ because he’s 6-5 or whatever. He sat down in my stall and I thought it was the coolest thing in the world that a pro hockey player is sitting in my stall.” (from ‘Miles Wood details funny encounter with new Devil Brian Boyle back in high school’, NJ.com, 07/14/17)

2. As a Child Wood Wrote a Letter to Ovechkin Requesting an Autograph

The 6-foot-2 forward eventually lived out his childhood dream when he played against this idol, Alexander Ovechkin. At the age of 11, Wood wrote a letter to the Washington Capitals’ captain asking him to autograph his hockey card. Within the letter, he wrote that if Ovechkin didn’t sign and return the card he would check him the first time he got the chance to play against him when he made it to the NHL.

The card was never returned, but sometimes things are worth the wait.

Fast forward to Dec. 29, 2016, when Wood was in the lineup at Verizon Center preparing to faceoff against Ovechkin and the Capitals. During warmups, he recalled the moment they acknowledged each other.

“When I was in warmups I looked over at [Ovechkin] and we smiled at each other type thing,” Wood said during an interview with Tom Gulitti. “That was good to see him out there. He’s huge in person, so that’s something I learned.”