Darren Eliot says the Edmonton Oilers "dynasty of the mid 80's" is the greatest team he's ever seen. "Given the brevity of my career and the loftiness of my goals against average, it is accurate to assume that I witnessed their prowess too closely and took it oh so personally," says Eliot, who played in the NHL for five seasons.

Eliot's weekly column, View from the Ice, has appeared on SI.com since 2001. It is one of a number of mediums where readers and viewers can find Eliot's work. He has served as the television analyst for the Atlanta Thrashers since the team's 1999-2000 inaugural season, winning sports Emmys for Sports Programming (2002) and Sports Coverage Live Event (2004). Before joining the Thrashers television team, Eliot worked for two seasons as a broadcaster for the Anaheim Mighty Ducks. He has also worked extensively as an analyst for the Versus Network since the network began nationally airing NHL games in 2005-06.

A 1983 graduate of Cornell University with a degree in agricultural economics, Eliot earned membership into the Red Key Society for students exemplifying excellence in academics and athletics. With the Big Red, Eliot was a two-time All-Ivy selection and earned All-America honors as a senior. He entered the Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame in 1996.

Eliot was selected by Los Angeles Kings in the sixth round of the 1980 NHL entry draft. He played for Team Canada during the 1984 Olympic Games in Sarajevo before embarking on a five-year professional career with the Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Buffalo Sabres.

Prior to his career in broadcasting, Eliot worked for Computer Methods Corporation, a software-consulting firm headquartered in Livonia, MI. There he served as president of CMC's engineering services subsidiary, EnGenius Inc., from 1997-99.

Darren and his wife, Meredith, have two daughters, Avery and Gillian, and a son, Mitchell. The family resides in Duluth, Ga.

EXTRA POINTS

• Favorite SI Vault story: The Man Behind The Mask (Oct., 4, 2004) "It's the book review for The Ballard of the Whiskey Robber. The book came at a time when the NHL was in lockout mode, so keeping hockey topical was a challenge."
• Writers who have inspired my work: "Mostly the sportswriters of my youth who made the game sound riveting in recap but personalized as well with their own insight and opinion. Milt Dunnell and Scott Young of the Toronto Star and Dick Beddoes of the Hamilton Spectator come to mind. I have to also include Stan Fischler because I read and reread his books Hockey Heroes and Goaltending Greats while I was growing up and to see him still going strong in the New York media is an inspiration.
• Hobbies: "Writing (short form fiction), reading, music and youth sports."
• Person you would most like to interview: "Bob Dylan. I find his prodigious body of work compelling, especially when contrasted with the arcs of fame. I can think of no one in my lifetime that better exemplifies being true to a craft, regardless of how the public responds."

Updated 21 October 2009