Doug Weight

Doug Weight
Weight with the New York Islanders in 2008
Born	(1971-01-21) January 21, 1971 (age 53) Warren, Michigan, U.S.
Height	5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight	196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb)
Position	Center
Shot	Left
Played for	New York Rangers Edmonton Oilers St. Louis Blues Carolina Hurricanes Anaheim Ducks New York Islanders
National team	United States
NHL draft	34th overall, 1990 New York Rangers
Playing career	1991–2010
Medal record Representing   United States Ice hockey Winter Olympics 2002 Salt Lake City World Cup 1996 United States

Douglas Daniel Weight (born January 21, 1971) is an American professional ice hockey coach, executive, and former player. He is also the former head coach and assistant general manager for the New York Islanders. During his 19-year National Hockey League career, he played for the New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, Anaheim Ducks, St. Louis Blues and the New York Islanders.

Playing career

As a youth, Weight played in the 1983 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Detroit Compuware minor ice hockey team. ^[1]

He graduated in 1989 from Notre Dame High School in Harper Woods, Michigan. He was drafted by the Bloomfield Jets of the North American Junior Hockey League (now known as the NAHL).^{[ citation needed ]} During that time, high school hockey was not considered to be competitive enough in the Detroit, Michigan area.^{[ citation needed ]} Weight followed in the footsteps of several other Detroit-area players by playing in the NAJHL, including Pat Lafontaine and Mike Modano.^{[ citation needed ]} Weight led the NAJHL in scoring^{[ citation needed ]}, and was recruited by Lake Superior State University. ^[2]

Weight played two years in the NCAA with LSSU from 1989 to 1991. ^[3] He was drafted by the New York Rangers in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft with their second pick, 34th overall. ^[4] After completing his second year with his college team, he played a single playoff game with the Rangers in 1991, then split time between the Rangers and their AHL affiliate the Binghamton Rangers. He played 65 games with the Rangers in his first full NHL season, 1992–93, before being traded to the Edmonton Oilers for forward Esa Tikkanen. ^[5]

Weight played eight and a half seasons with the Oilers, secluding a stint with SB Rosenheim of the German Elite League (DEL) during the shortened 1994–95 NHL season, serving as their captain from 1999 to 2001. It was as an Oiler that he earned his reputation as a premier playmaker, leading Edmonton to five consecutive playoff appearances and scoring a personal-best 104 points during the troubled 1995–96 season. Due to Edmonton's precarious financial situation, Weight was traded on July 1, 2001, to the St. Louis Blues, along with Michel Riesen, for forwards Marty Reasoner and Jochen Hecht and defenseman Jan Horáček. ^[6] In 2023, he was inducted into the Edmonton Oilers Hall of Fame. ^{[7] [8]}

Weight with the St. Louis Blues in 2006

Weight spent the next three seasons with the Blues before returning to the DEL, due to the 2004 NHL Lockout, to play in the final stages of the 2004–05 season with the Frankfurt Lions. Upon the resumption of the NHL in the 2005–06 season, Weight returned to the weakened Blues before he was traded after waiving a no-trade clause, along with the rights to Erkki Rajamaki, to the Carolina Hurricanes for Jesse Boulerice, Mike Zigomanis, the rights to Magnus Kahnberg and draft picks on January 30, 2006. ^[9]

In the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals against his former team, the Oilers, Weight and the Hurricanes suffered a huge blow during Game 5, when he was sandwiched heavily along the boards by Raffi Torres and Chris Pronger in the second period of the game, which the Oilers won 4–3 in overtime on June 14, 2006. Weight missed the remainder of the Finals with a shoulder injury. His place in the roster went to Erik Cole. The Carolina Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup in 7 games.^{[ citation needed ]}

Weight then returned to the Blues as a free agent, signing a two-year contract on July 2, 2006. During the 2006–07 season, Weight played his 1,000th game against the Edmonton Oilers on November 17, 2006. ^[10] With the Blues out of contention for the playoffs for the third season in a row, Weight was again traded to the Anaheim Ducks for center Andy McDonald on December 14, 2007.^{[ citation needed ]}

Doug Weight with the New York Islanders

On July 2, 2008, Weight was given a one-year contract by the rebuilding New York Islanders. On January 2, 2009, Weight registered his 1,000th point while playing for the Islanders, with an assist on a goal scored by Richard Park. ^[11] Weight re-signed with the Islanders for the 2009–10 season. For his contributions to the community during the Islanders 2009-10 training camp held in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, the baseball diamond at Wallace Park in Saskatoon was named in Weight's honor. ^{[12] [13]} He succeeded former longtime Oiler teammate, Bill Guerin, as captain of the Islanders on October 2, 2009. ^[14] Despite missing a large portion of the season to various injures and scoring 1 goal in 36 games, Weight was signed to a one-year extension with the Islanders on August 31, 2010. ^[15]

After enduring a second consecutive year decimated by a lingering back injury, ^[16] Weight announced his retirement following the 2010–11 season on May 26, 2011. With his retirement as a player from the game of hockey after 19 seasons in the NHL, it was immediately announced by the Islanders' general manager, Garth Snow, that Weight would continue with the organization as an assistant coach and special assistant to the GM. ^[17] Weight is ranked number 7 out of all American players in points. ^[18]

Coaching career

Weight became an assistant coach under then-head coach Jack Capuano in the 2011–12 season. On January 17, 2017, the Islanders fired Capuano and promoted Weight to interim coach. ^[19] On April 12, 2017, Weight was officially named head coach after he led the team to a 24–12–4 record after taking the coaching duties in the middle of the season. ^{[20] [21]}

On June 5, 2018, Weight was fired as head coach of the Islanders. ^[22]

International play

Weight has played several times internationally for his country. He made 3 World Championship appearances for the United States in 1993, 1994 and 2005. He was a part of the silver medal winning team at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, and also played with Team USA at the 1996 and 2004 World Cup of Hockey, and the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano. ^[23]

In his only junior tournament in the 1991 World Junior Championships, he led the entire tournament in scoring with 5 goals and 14 assists in 7 games for Team USA.^{[ citation needed ]}

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1988–89	Bloomfield Jets	NAHL		34	26	53	79	105		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	Lake Superior State	CCHA		46	21	48	69	44		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	Lake Superior State	CCHA		42	29	46	75	86		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	New York Rangers	NHL		—	—	—	—	—		1	0	0	0	0
1991–92	Binghamton Rangers	AHL		9	3	14	17	2		4	1	4	5	6
1991–92	New York Rangers	NHL		53	8	22	30	23		7	2	2	4	0
1992–93	New York Rangers	NHL		65	15	25	40	55		—	—	—	—	—
1992–93	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		13	2	6	8	10		—	—	—	—	—
1993–94	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		84	24	50	74	47		—	—	—	—	—
1994–95	Star Bulls Rosenheim	DEL		8	2	3	5	18		—	—	—	—	—
1994–95	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		48	7	33	40	69		—	—	—	—	—
1995–96	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		82	25	79	104	95		—	—	—	—	—
1996–97	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		80	21	61	82	80		12	3	8	11	8
1997–98	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		79	26	44	70	69		12	2	7	9	14
1998–99	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		43	6	31	37	12		4	1	1	2	15
1999–2000	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		77	21	51	72	54		5	3	2	5	4
2000–01	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		82	25	65	90	91		6	1	5	6	17
2001–02	St. Louis Blues	NHL		61	15	34	49	40		10	1	1	2	4
2002–03	St. Louis Blues	NHL		70	15	52	67	52		7	5	8	13	2
2003–04	St. Louis Blues	NHL		75	14	51	65	37		5	2	1	3	6
2004–05	Frankfurt Lions	DEL		7	6	9	15	26		11	2	10	12	8
2005–06	St. Louis Blues	NHL		47	11	33	44	50		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		23	4	9	13	25		23	3	13	16	20
2006–07	St. Louis Blues	NHL		82	16	43	59	56		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	St. Louis Blues	NHL		29	4	7	11	12		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Anaheim Ducks	NHL		38	6	8	14	20		5	0	1	1	4
2008–09	New York Islanders	NHL		53	10	28	38	55		—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	New York Islanders	NHL		36	1	16	17	8		—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	New York Islanders	NHL		18	2	7	9	10		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				1,238	278	755	1,033	970		97	23	49	72	94

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1991	United States	WJC		7	5	14	19	4
1993	United States	WC		6	0	6	6	12
1994	United States	WC		8	0	4	4	16
1996	United States	WCH		7	3	4	7	12
1998	United States	OG		4	0	2	2	2
2002	United States	OG		6	0	3	3	4
2004	United States	WCH		5	1	0	1	4
2005	United States	WC		7	1	5	6	0
2006	United States	OG		6	0	3	3	4
Senior totals				49	5	27	32	54

NHL coaching record

Team	Year	Regular season						Postseason
		Games	Won	Lost	OTL	Points	Finish	Result
NYI	2016–17	40	24	12	4	(52)	5th in Metropolitan	Missed playoffs
NYI	2017–18	82	35	37	10	80	7th in Metropolitan	Missed playoffs
Total		122	59	49	14	132

Awards and honors

Award	Year
College
All-CCHA Rookie Team	1989-90
All-CCHA First Team	1990-91	[24]
AHCA West Second-Team All-American	1990–91
CCHA All-Tournament Team	1991	[25]
NHL
All-Star Game	1996, 1998, 2001, 2003
Stanley Cup champion	2006
King Clancy Memorial Trophy	2011
United States Hockey Hall of Fame	2013

References

1. "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 19, 2019.
2. "1986-96 Laker Hockey All-Decade Team Announced". Lake Superior State University. September 12, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
3. "Hockey great Doug Weight announces retirement". Lake Superior State University. May 26, 2011. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
4. "hockeydb". hockeydb.com. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
5. "Biggest Trades in New York Rangers History".
6. "Oilers' Doug Weight Trade Revisited - the Hockey Writers Oilers History Latest News, Analysis & More". July 26, 2020.
7. "RELEASE: Huddy, Weight to be added to Oilers Hall of Fame". NHL.com. September 20, 2023. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
8. "RELEASE: Weight, Huddy to be added to Oilers HOF this Thursday". NHL.com. October 23, 2023. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
9. Diamos, Jason (February 5, 2006). "INSIDE THE N.H.L.; Hurricanes Get Jump On Trading Deadline". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 30, 2020.
10. "Oilers feel at home with win over Blues". CBS Sports . November 17, 2006. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
11. "Weight gets 1,000th point". New York Islanders. January 2, 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
12. "Wallace Park". May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
13. "Q&A with Doug Weight of NY Islanders". The Sheaf. September 23, 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
14. "Weight named captain". New York Islanders. October 2, 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
15. "The Captain returns". New York Islanders. August 31, 2010. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
16. "Islanders captain Doug Weight done for season". New York Islanders. March 29, 2011. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
17. "Islanders captain Weight retires after 19 NHL seasons". The Sports Network. May 26, 2011. Archived from the original on May 29, 2011. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
18. "NHL Players Born in United States ‑ All-Time Stats Leaders". QuantHockey. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
19. "Jack Capuano Relieved of Coaching Duties". NHL.com. January 17, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
20. "Weight Named Head Coach". NHL.com. April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
21. Wright, Cory (April 12, 2017). "Islanders Endorse Weight as Coach". NHL.com. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
22. "Islanders relieve GM Garth Snow, head coach Doug Weight of duties". Newsday.com. June 5, 2018. Retrieved June 5, 2018.
23. "Weight was front and center in great USA Hockey generation". Tucson Citizen. May 26, 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2011.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
24. "All-CCHA Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved July 27, 2013.
25. "2012-13 CCHA Media Guide". ISSUU.com. Retrieved April 23, 2014.

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
• Doug Weight-Stars and Stripes In The Great White North
• Doug Weight's U.S. Olympic Team bio
• Doug Weight's Day With the Stanley Cup

Sporting positions
Preceded by Kelly Buchberger	Edmonton Oilers captain 1999–2001	Succeeded by Jason Smith
Preceded by Bill Guerin	New York Islanders captain 2009–11	Succeeded by Mark Streit
Preceded by Jack Capuano	Head coach of the New York Islanders 2017–18	Succeeded by Barry Trotz
Awards and achievements
Preceded by Shane Doan	King Clancy Memorial Trophy 2011	Succeeded by Daniel Alfredsson