Garry Valk (born November 27, 1967) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

broadcaster and former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

player. After finishing his playing career, Valk became a television analyst.

Playing career

He was selected 108th overall in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft. Valk had a ten-year NHL career, debuting with the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. The Canucks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conferenc ...

in the 1990–91 season, scoring ten goals and eleven assists for twenty-one points, while recording sixty-seven penalty minutes. Valk's strongest career year came in 1993–94, when he recorded forty-five points in seventy-eight games for the

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Mighty may refer to: Businesses *Mighty Audio, an American company known for its product ''Mighty'', a portable audio player *Mighty Animation, an animation studio based in Guadalajara, Mexico Films *''The Mighty'', a 1998 comedy–drama * ''The ...

, after being selected in the NHL's

expansion draft An expansion draft, in professional sports, occurs when a sports league decides to create one or more new expansion teams or sports franchising, franchises. This occurs mainly in Sports in North America, North American sports and closed leagues. O ...

. Arguably his best work came in the late 1990s, when he was signed as a free agent by the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

. Valk became a player-coach that Pat Quinn depended on, fighting off opponents in crucial situations while also being an offensive threat. Career highlights for Valk include the 1998–1999 playoffs, when he scored a key overtime goal to lift the Toronto Maple Leafs over the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round of the NHL playoffs. Valk finished his career with a brief stint in 2003 with the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (N ...

Post-playing career

Valk retired to pursue an interest in

broadcasting Broadcasting is the data distribution, distribution of sound, audio audiovisual content to dispersed audiences via a electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), ...

, and to spend time with his family. Today, Garry coaches his son's junior hockey team in North Vancouver,

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, and was featured in a '' Canadian Business Magazine'' article on athletes who have gone on to be successful after their careers. He is also a Vancouver Canucks analyst on the sports news show Sportsnet Connected In 2010, developers of a

downtown Toronto Downtown Toronto is the main city centre of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located entirely within the district of Old Toronto, it is approximately 16.6 square kilometres in area, bounded by Bloor Street to the northeast and Dupont Street to the nor ...

condominium project enlisted the public's assistance in picking a name for the structure. Among the names submitted in the Internet poll, "Garry Valk Plaza" proved to be amongst the most popular entries.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Valk, Garry 1967 births Living people Canadian ice hockey left wingers Chicago Blackhawks players Mighty Ducks of Anaheim players Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) players Norfolk Admirals players North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Pittsburgh Penguins players Toronto Maple Leafs players Ice hockey people from Edmonton Vancouver Canucks draft picks Vancouver Canucks players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen