Derian Hatcher

Derian Hatcher
Hatcher with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2007
Born	(1972-06-04) June 4, 1972 (age 52) Sterling Heights, Michigan, U.S.
Height	6 ft 5 in (196 cm)
Weight	245 lb (111 kg; 17 st 7 lb)
Position	Defense
Shot	Left
Played for	Minnesota North Stars Dallas Stars Detroit Red Wings Philadelphia Flyers
National team	United States
NHL draft	8th overall, 1990 Minnesota North Stars
Playing career	1991–2008

Derian John Hatcher (born June 4, 1972) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Minnesota North Stars, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, and Philadelphia Flyers. He is the current owner of the Sarnia Sting of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL).

He is the younger brother of former NHL player Kevin Hatcher, with whom he was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame on October 21, 2010. ^[1] In 2014, Hatcher and David Legwand, a fellow OHL alumnus, NHL player and Michigan native, purchased and became co-owners of the Sarnia Sting, with Hatcher serving as head coach from 2015 to 2020. ^[2]

Playing career

As a youth, Hatcher played in the 1985 and 1986 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with the Detroit Compuware minor ice hockey team. ^[3]

Hatcher was known as a physical defenseman and a strong bodychecker and used his intimidating size to good effect. He was drafted in the 1st round as the eighth overall selection by the Minnesota North Stars in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft and scored in his NHL debut game on October 12, 1991. Hatcher played for the North Stars and went with them when they moved to Dallas in 1993.^{[ citation needed ]}

Hatcher played another ten years for the Dallas Stars, collecting 71 goals, 223 assists, 1,380 penalty minutes, and captained the Stars to the Stanley Cup in 1999. In doing so, he became the first American-born captain to win the Stanley Cup. ^[4] In July 2003, Hatcher signed with the Detroit Red Wings on a five-year, $30 million contract. A knee injury in just the third game of the season forced Hatcher to miss most of the year, playing in just 15 regular season games with the Red Wings.^{[ citation needed ]}

In 2004, due to the cancellation of the NHL season, Hatcher, along with fellow Detroit Red Wings teammates Chris Chelios and Kris Draper, decided to play minor league hockey with the Motor City Mechanics based out of Fraser, Michigan.^{[ citation needed ]}

On August 2, 2005, Hatcher signed with the Philadelphia Flyers after his contract with Detroit was bought out due to the new salary cap.^{[ citation needed ]}

On January 29, 2006, Hatcher was named interim captain of the Flyers. He served as captain for the rest of the 2005–06 season due to the absence of injured captain Keith Primeau. Hatcher has also served as an alternate captain for the Flyers.^{[ citation needed ]}

Suffering from a right knee injury, he missed the entire 2008–09 NHL season. Hatcher later returned as a "co-coach" for the playoffs. After having replacement surgery on the same knee on June 1, 2009, Hatcher said that he would most likely not return to playing hockey.^{[ citation needed ]} On June 15, 2009, Hatcher formally announced his retirement from the NHL, done so with the Dallas Stars. He remained in the Flyers organization as a player development coach, taking a job vacated by another former Flyer defenseman and captain, Éric Desjardins, who resigned to pursue business interests. ^[5] Hatcher is the second longest-serving captain in the history of the Dallas Stars and their predecessor, the Minnesota North Stars.^{[ citation needed ]}

Awards

• Played in NHL All-Star Game - 1997
• 1999 Stanley Cup champion
• NHL Second All-Star Team - 2003
• Inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame - 2010

^[6]

Personal life

A native Michigander, Hatcher continues to live in the state today. He and his brother Kevin Hatcher, also a former NHL player, previously owned a bar/restaurant in Utica, Michigan.^{[ citation needed ]}

In 2015, Hatcher, along with David Legwand, purchased the OHL's Sarnia Sting. ^[7] Hatcher served as head coach of the team, with Legwand as an assistant coach, ^[8] from 2015 to 2021. ^[9]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1987–88	Detroit G. P. D. Midgets	MNHL		25	5	13	18	52		—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	Detroit G. P. D. Midgets	MNHL		51	19	35	54	100		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	North Bay Centennials	OHL		64	14	38	52	45		5	2	3	5	8
1990–91	North Bay Centennials	OHL		64	13	50	63	163		10	2	10	12	28
1991–92	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		43	7	5	12	88		5	0	2	2	8
1991–92	Kalamazoo Wings	IHL		2	1	2	3	21		—	—	—	—	—
1992–93	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		67	4	15	19	178		—	—	—	—	—
1993–94	Dallas Stars	NHL		83	12	19	31	211		9	0	2	2	14
1994–95	Dallas Stars	NHL		43	5	11	16	105		—	—	—	—	—
1995–96	Dallas Stars	NHL		79	8	23	31	129		—	—	—	—	—
1996–97	Dallas Stars	NHL		63	3	19	22	97		7	0	2	2	20
1997–98	Dallas Stars	NHL		70	6	25	31	132		17	3	3	6	39
1998–99	Dallas Stars	NHL		80	9	21	30	102		18	1	6	7	24
1999–2000	Dallas Stars	NHL		57	2	22	24	68		23	1	3	4	29
2000–01	Dallas Stars	NHL		80	2	21	23	77		10	0	1	1	16
2001–02	Dallas Stars	NHL		80	4	21	25	87		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Dallas Stars	NHL		82	8	22	30	106		11	1	2	3	33
2003–04	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		15	0	4	4	8		12	0	1	1	15
2004–05	Motor City Mechanics	UHL		24	5	12	17	27		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		77	4	13	17	93		6	0	2	2	10
2006–07	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		82	3	6	9	67		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		44	2	5	7	33		15	1	2	3	40
NHL totals				1,045	80	251	331	1,581		133	7	26	33	248

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1993	United States	WC		6	1	2	3	8
1996	United States	WCH		6	3	2	5	10
1998	United States	OG		4	0	0	0	0
2002	United States	WC		7	0	1	1	0
2006	United States	OG		6	0	0	0	12
Senior totals				29	4	5	9	30

See also

• Notable families in the NHL
• List of NHL players with 1,000 games played

References

1. "Former Flyer Captain Derian Hatcher inducted to US Hockey Hall of Fame". NHL.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
2. "Sting Co-Owner Derian Hatcher to Step Down as Head Coach, Remains Committed to Success of the Sting – Sarnia Sting" . Retrieved June 25, 2023.
3. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2019. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
4. "Flyers' Hatcher retires, joins coaching staff". Yahoo! Sports. June 15, 2009. Retrieved June 17, 2009. He won a Stanley Cup with Dallas in 1999 and is the only American-born player to captain a team to a championship.^{[ permanent dead link ‍]}
5. "National Post".^{[ permanent dead link ‍]}
6. "Legends of Hockey -- NHL Player Search -- Player -- Derian Hatcher". www.hhof.com. Archived from the original on August 7, 2016.
7. "Sting Most Recent OHL Team Sold – Chatham-Kent Sports Network". January 22, 2015.
8. "Hockey Operations – Sarnia Sting". January 12, 2024.
9. "Sting Co-Owner Derian Hatcher to Step Down as Head Coach, Remains Committed to Success of the Sting". Sarnia Sting. June 1, 2021.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  Hockey-Reference.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database

Preceded by Doug Zmolek	Minnesota North Stars first round draft pick 1990	Succeeded by Richard Matvichuk
Preceded by Neal Broten	Dallas Stars captain 1995–2003	Succeeded by Mike Modano
Preceded by Keith Primeau	Philadelphia Flyers captain 2006 (while Primeau was injured)	Succeeded by Peter Forsberg