Ray Whitney (ice hockey)

Last updated
Ray Whitney
Ray Whitney.jpg
Whitney with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006
Born (1972-05-08) May 8, 1972 (age 52)
Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb)
Position Left Wing
Shot Right
Played for San Jose Sharks
Edmonton Oilers
Florida Panthers
Columbus Blue Jackets
Detroit Red Wings
Carolina Hurricanes
Phoenix Coyotes
Dallas Stars
National teamFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
NHL draft 23rd overall, 1991
San Jose Sharks
Playing career 19912014

Raymond D. Whitney (born May 8, 1972) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player in the National Hockey League (NHL). [1] He was given the nickname "The Wizard" for his passing and playmaking skills.

Contents

Whitney is considered to have been one of the most underrated players in the NHL, as his name has rarely been mentioned amongst hockey fans and writers despite his consistently high point-production throughout his entire 22-year career, [2] making him one of the top 65 point producers in the history of the NHL. On January 29, 2016, Whitney became the first Spokane Chiefs player to have their number retired (#14). [3] He won the Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006.

Playing career

Long before Whitney played in the NHL, he and his brother Dean were stick boys for the NHL's Wayne Gretzky era Edmonton Oilers. The third stick boy with the Whitney brothers was another future NHL player, Ryan Smyth. [4]

During his junior career, Whitney spent three years with the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League (WHL), leading the entire league with 185 points during the 1990-91 season. Whitney and the Chiefs won the 1991 Memorial Cup as champions of the Canadian Hockey League. [5]

Whitney was the second player ever drafted by the San Jose Sharks, picked in the second round (23rd overall) in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft. Pat Falloon, his teammate with the WHL's Spokane Chiefs, was the Sharks' first pick. [6] The Sharks had thought the pair would be a natural scoring combination, but that didn't pan out. Whitney started his professional career in the 1991-92 season, playing with teams in the German Deutsche Eishockey Liga and the International Hockey League, as well as two games with the San Jose Sharks. He developed into a regular with San Jose over the next two seasons.

Whitney has played for several different NHL teams during his 24-year career, including the San Jose Sharks (1991–92 to 1996–97), Edmonton Oilers (1997–98), Florida Panthers (1997–98 to 2000–01), Columbus Blue Jackets (2000–01 to 2002–03), Detroit Red Wings (2003–04), Carolina Hurricanes, Phoenix Coyotes, and Dallas Stars (details below).

On August 6, 2005, Whitney signed a two-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes paying him $1.5 million per year. In his first season with the Hurricanes in 2005–06, Whitney helped Carolina win their first Stanley Cup with fellow Fort Saskatchewan native Mike Commodore. [7]

On February 8, 2007, Whitney scored a natural hat trick in just 1 minute and 40 seconds. [8]

On April 13, 2007, Whitney re-signed with the Hurricanes, agreeing to a three-year contract that pays him $3.5 million per year. [9]

On July 1, 2010, Whitney signed a 2-year deal with the Phoenix Coyotes for $3 million per year. [10]

Whitney is known for his comedic tendencies for doing such things as making sure he's visible in pre-game on-screen interviews behind the interviewee, leading to the Hurricanes fans' favorite game of "Where's Whitney"? His commonly used nickname is "Wizard," which was originally given to him by former Florida Panthers play-by-play commentator Jeff Rimer.

Whitney was the last remaining member of the San Jose Sharks inaugural team (1991–92) active in the NHL until his retirement on January 21, 2015. [11] He was also the last remaining active player to get his start in the NHL as a member of the expansion San Jose Sharks.

On March 31, 2012, Whitney became only the 79th player in the history of the NHL to score 1,000 regular-season points, when he registered an assist in a game against the Anaheim Ducks. As of the end of the 2013-14 season, he is number 62 all time for regular-season points in the NHL.

On July 1, 2012, Whitney signed a 2-year, $9 million contract with the Dallas Stars.

On January 21, 2015, he announced his retirement as an NHL player, ending a career after producing 1,064 points (385-679) in 1,330 regular-season games. [12] At the time of his retirement, he was the leader in points, assists and games played for the entire 1991 NHL draft class.

Personal life

Ray and wife Brijet married in 2000 and have three children; two daughters and a son. [13] [14] He is known by his nickname "The Wizard".[ citation needed ]

International play

Whitney has been a member of Team Canada at four different Ice Hockey World Championships. He made his debut at the 1998 World Championship, recording six points in seven games while Canada finished out of the medals. Whitney notched seven points in 10 games at the 1999 World Championship, again missing a medal when Canada lost in the semifinals to the Czech Republic. He joined Team Canada at the 2002 World Championship with Canada again failing to medal. At the 2010 World Championship, Whitney replaced Ryan Smyth as Canada's captain, when Smyth broke his foot early in the tournament. [15] Canada did not win a medal in that year's world championship.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
1987–88Fort Saskatchewan Pop Shop Selects AMBHL 7180155235119
1988–89 Spokane Chiefs WHL 7117335016
1989–90 Spokane ChiefsWHL7157561135063476
1990–91 Spokane ChiefsWHL7267118185361513183112
1991–92 Kölner Haie 1.GBun 103694
1991–92 San Diego Gulls IHL 633654901240000
1991–92 San Jose Sharks NHL 20330
1992–93 Kansas City Blades IHL46203353141257122
1992–93 San Jose SharksNHL2646104
1993–94 San Jose SharksNHL6114264014140448
1994–95 San Jose SharksNHL3913122514114482
1995–96 San Jose SharksNHL6017244116
1996–97 San Jose SharksNHL120224
1997–98 Edmonton Oilers NHL91340
1997–98 Florida Panthers NHL6832296128
1998–99 Florida PanthersNHL8126386418
1999–00 Florida PanthersNHL812942713541014
2000–01 Florida PanthersNHL4310213128
2000–01 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL30332
2001–02 Columbus Blue JacketsNHL6721406112
2002–03 Columbus Blue JacketsNHL8124527622
2003–04 Detroit Red Wings NHL6714294322121344
2005–06 Carolina Hurricanes NHL631738554224961514
2006–07 Carolina HurricanesNHL8132518346
2007–08 Carolina HurricanesNHL6625366130
2008–09 Carolina HurricanesNHL82245377321838114
2009–10 Carolina HurricanesNHL8021375826
2010–11 Phoenix Coyotes NHL751740572441232
2011–12 Phoenix CoyotesNHL82245377281625710
2012–13 Dallas Stars NHL321118294
2013–14 Dallas StarsNHL69923321450000
NHL totals1,3303856791,06446510821325348

International

YearTeamEventResultGPGAPtsPIM
1998 Canada WC 6th64264
1999 CanadaWC4th1016722
2002 CanadaWC6th71342
2010 CanadaWC7th72680
Senior totals308172528

Awards and honours

AwardYear
WHL
West first All-Star team 1991
Bob Clarke Trophy 1991
Four Broncos Memorial Trophy 1991
WHL Champion1991
Memorial Cup All-Star team1991
Memorial Cup Most Sportsmanlike Player1991
Memorial Cup Champion 1991
NHL
All-Star Games 2000, 2003
Stanley Cup champion 2006
Second All-Star team 2012

See also

References

  1. "Numbers Game: Stars Sign Veteran Scorer Ray Whitney". TSN. 2012-07-01. Retrieved 2012-07-01.
  2. "Overlooked and Underrated: Ray Whitney". The Hockey Writers. 2009-07-27. Retrieved 2010-01-26.
  3. "Spokane Chiefs Officially Retire Ray Whitney's number 14" . Retrieved January 30, 2016.
  4. Cam Cole (2006-06-05). "Cup Dreams Collide". The Vancouver Sun . CanWest MediaWorks Publications Inc. Retrieved 2015-11-12.
  5. "Trip down Memorial Lane: 'Scouts were high' on 1990-91 Spokane Chiefs team loaded with talent | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
  6. "Curious Case of Ray Whitney". gretzky.com. Archived from the original on 2011-06-30. Retrieved 2012-03-26.
  7. "'The Wizard' enjoying magical run with 'Canes". Associated Press. 2006-05-16. Archived from the original on 2012-05-16. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
  8. Morgan, Craig (23 January 2015). "Ray Whitney's legacy: leadership, humor, underappreciated skill" . Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  9. "Hurricanes re-sign Whitney". cbc.ca. 2007-04-13. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
  10. "Vet Whitney signs 2-year deal with Coyotes". www.sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
  11. "San Jose Sharks 1991–92 roster". San Jose Sharks . 2009-07-07. Retrieved 2009-07-07.[ permanent dead link ]
  12. "Ray Whitney retires after 22 NHL seasons". 21 January 2015.
  13. "Carolina Hurricanes 2009-10 Media Guide" (PDF). Carolina Hurricanes . January 2, 2013. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
  14. "Carolina Hurricanes 2008-09 Media Guide" (PDF). Carolina Hurricanes . January 2, 2013. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
  15. "Ray Whitney to Replace Ryan Smyth as Canada's Captain at 2010 IIHF World Championship in Germany; Beauchemin, Perry and Stamkos to Continue as Alternate Captains". Hockey Canada. 2010-05-12. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
Sporting positions
Preceded by Columbus Blue Jackets captain
2002–03
Succeeded by