DRAFT PROFILE: Another 'Mad Dog' Madden chasing the NHL dream

It didn't take long to single out the kid.
Standing in the Chicago Blackhawks' locker room, mingling with his dad's teammates back in 2010, Tyler Madden quickly became a 10-year old, baby-faced witness to the Hawks' locker-room hijinks, which they were known for pulling during that championship season.
The main culprit was hulking defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, generously listed at 6-foot-5, 258 pounds and probably weighing 10 more, at least.
"He learned a valuable lesson that day," said John Madden, Tyler's father and coach of the Cleveland Monsters, the Blue Jackets' AHL affiliate. "A couple of the guys were playing pranks. 'Buff' was one of the guys that did a prank and Ty saw who did the prank. I think it was Ben Eager who came in and was like, 'Who did it? Who did it?'"

Madden chuckles remembering the scene, which happened eight years ago. His son is now an 18-year old forward prospect, who participated at the NHL Scouting Combine last week in Buffalo and hopes to be selected at the 2018 NHL Draft later this month in Dallas.
Madden only played one season in Chicago, helping the Blackhawks break a 49-year championship drought by winning the Stanley Cup for the third time in his career. He was a cagey veteran, gritty to the core and eager to teach the intangible lessons of an NHL veteran to a team filled with highly-skilled "kids."
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Madden helped the young Blackhawks learn how to become champions. They returned the favor by teaching his son a few lessons of their own.
Tyler not only got invaluable ice time with guys like Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp before practices, but also learned the hard way what happens to guys with loose lips in the locker room.
"They cornered him and were like, 'C'mon, tell me,'" Madden said, chuckling. "Ty was 10-years old, so he was like, 'Him.' He ratted 'Buff' out. So, 'Buff' threw him in the cold tub. Full clothes and everything."
Later, with Tyler's clothing still sopping wet, there was a brief father-son chat.
"I said, 'You learned a lesson?'" Madden said. "He was like, 'Yeah. I'll never rat anybody out again.' I was like, 'There you go.'"
The lessons didn't stop there. In fact, they're still being taught.
Tyler has learned quite a bit about the process of becoming a professional hockey player from his father, who carved out his own NHL career after going undrafted.
Despite a standout career for the University of Michigan, which included three trips to the Frozen Four, one NCAA title and an NCAA Tournament MVP Award, Madden began his pro career as an undrafted free agent with the Albany River Rats of the American Hockey League.
A year later, he signed with the New Jersey Devils. Tyler was also born that season and three years later, in Madden's fourth NHL season, his son put on hockey skates for the first time.
"I think as soon as I put those skates on and had a hockey stick in my hand, I knew what I wanted to do," said Tyler, who played this season for two teams in the United States Hockey League (USHL). "I was able to play other sports, and my dad actually wanted me to be a golfer, you know, so he could go play a lot. I think that's what the main reason was … but I just fell in love with the game at such a young age."
It didn't hurt growing up in NHL locker rooms, despite his unwanted visit to the cold tub in Chicago.
"It was just growing up around the rink," he said. "Meeting my dad's friends was awesome. They're all great guys. I think that's why I like the game so much. It's just the people you meet and stuff like that. [The NHL] was a goal as soon as I was able to think for myself."
That trait, thinking for himself, has turned out to be a common thread along the path of his career thus far. It makes his dad proud, even though it meant Tyler picking Northeastern for college over John's beloved Michigan Wolverines.
It also meant picking hockey over golf, which Tyler showed a keen ability to play at an early age. Once a scratch golfer, the younger Madden said he's now a five or six handicap, which is still a level many people would love to reach.
"We kind of tracked two sports, basically, for him," said Madden, who attended the combine and watched from the bleachers at HarborCenter. "I just thought that kind of allowed him to make his own choice. He still hits it a ton and still has fun with it, but I just always wanted him to have another sport. I kind of pushed him more toward golf, because, I don't know … he was really good at it. I was like, 'Wow, this is something you might be able to do for a living.' So, we just kind of stayed with both as long as we could."
Hockey won out because Tyler's really good that, too, and that's where his passion lies.
He's ranked No. 39 among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting and had 34 points (15 goals, 19 assists) in 50 games this season as a USHL rookie. That was after compiling 64 points on 25 goals and 39 assists in two seasons (48 games) for Avon Old Farms School in Connecticut - where captained the prep school's team in his second season.
Tyler doesn't weigh much, only about 155 pounds on a good day, but the 5-foot-11 center has worked hard to become a two-way player like his dad - albeit one with a tick more offensive upside.
"I don't think my weight affects me that much," he said. "I'm a very quick, elusive player. I kind of have that and still compete. I'm able to play with guys because I'm good on my edges and stuff like that, so I don't think it affects me too much and I don't think teams should be too worried about it."
Teams should notice his offensive ability, too, along with his hatred of losing. He has inherited more than just the family name, it turns out, which he has tattooed in the form of a family crest on his right shoulder (paid for by his dad). The Maddens share the need to win at everything they do, from hockey to golf and everything in-between.
"He's obviously more gifted offensively, or an offensive-minded player, but he still has a lot of compete in him," Madden said. "I don't know how you get that, but he has it. He competes. He competes really hard. He hates to lose."
That's especially true against the old man.
"When he and I compete at something, there's generally a lot of bantering afterwards or during," Madden said. "That's putting it mildly, compared to what actually happens. And when we're partners, playing golf, we usually get in an argument out there. It's all in good fun though."
The "Mad Dog's" son is more of a scorer, though, than his dad was in the NHL. He's learned the defensive side of the puck from his dad, and works hard at it, but what really lights his eyes up is lighting the lamp.
"Chicago was kind of that year where I spent a lot of time around the rink," said Tyler, who celebrated the Blackhawks' championship in 2010 on the ice with his dad in Philadelphia. "I didn't really realize it back then, that I was passing the puck around with Patrick Kane. Now, it's kind of surreal for me."
Sharp was out there, too, and recalls how impressed he was at some of the kid's skill.
"I remember shooting pucks from the point," said Sharp, who won the Cup three times with the Blackhawks. "He was deflecting them at 8 or 9-years old."
He's still doing it now, as a prospect, and hopes to do it in the NHL someday - a dream Tyler has chased most of his life. The latest lesson for the younger Madden was given by his dad, prior to the scouting combine - which included meetings with 28 of the NHL's 31 teams, including the Blue Jackets.
The advice was simple.
"I told him, 'You're a mature kid, you understand what's going on … go have fun,'" Madden said. "Enjoy the experience. You're going to be in meetings. If somebody gives you feedback on your game or something you can get better at, these guys know what they're talking about. Listen and learn. It's a learning experience, this whole thing."
It always has been, from that first time he put on skates.
"I just say, 'Have fun with it,' because some of the guys you're going to see in these rooms are in the hall-of-fame," Madden said. "If they give you something, take it. It's there. It's good advice."
It might even get him drafted higher. Or keep him out of the cold tub.