Rumun Ndur (born July 7, 1975) is a

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

n-born

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) 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 ...

former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

player. Ndur played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) for the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

, the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

, and the Atlanta Thrashers. Ndur was the first Nigerian-born player to play in the NHL. He was born in

but grew up in Hearst, Ontario.

Playing career

Ndur moved to Union, Ontario (near

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

) and played minor hockey for the St. Thomas Travelers. Ndur played for the Belmont Pests Jr.D. (1990–91) and Clearwater Steeplejacks Jr.C. (1991–92) clubs of the Ontario Hockey Association. Ndur was drafted in the ninth round (129th overall) by the

Guelph Storm The Guelph Storm are a major junior ice hockey team based in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. They have played in the OHL since the 1991–92 season. The team plays home games at the Sleeman Centre. History The franchise started as the Toronto Marl ...

in the 1992

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; french: Ligue de hockey de l'Ontario (LHO)) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 16–19. There are exceptions for overa ...

(OHL) Priority Selection. He was drafted by the Sabres in the

1994 NHL Entry Draft The 1994 NHL Entry Draft was the 32nd NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the Hartford Civic Center on June 28–29, 1994. The last active players in the NHL from this draft class were Patrik Elias and Eric Boulton, who both played their last NHL ...

in the third round, 69th overall. In 1996 he won the

Calder Cup The Calder Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the playoff champions of the American Hockey League. It was first presented in 1937 to the Syracuse Stars. The cup is made of sterling silver mounted on a base of Brazilian mahogany. In its cur ...

with the

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League; the team is an owned and operated affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, ...

. He made his NHL debut in 1996–97 with the Sabres. In 1998–99 he was traded to the New York Rangers and just a year later he was traded to Atlanta, and played 27 games with them during the 1999–2000 NHL season. Ndur played a total of 69 games in NHL, scoring 5 points (2 goals, 3 assists) with 137 penalty minutes. At the end of the 2005-06 season Ndur signed with HK Jesenice of the

Slovenian Ice Hockey League The Slovenian Hockey League is the highest level ice hockey league in Slovenia. The championship phase is contested after the regular season to determine the national champion. History The Slovenian Hockey League was firstly contested in the 1 ...

, thus becoming first African to play for a team in Slovenia. He played 14 games, scoring 2 goals and 3 assists and also amassing 79 penalty minutes. He had a memorable fight with Boštjan Groznik, a tough

enforcer Enforcer or enforcers may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Comics * Enforcer (comics), a Marvel Comics character * Enforcers (comics), a Marvel Comics team * New Enforcers, another Marvel Comics team Film and television * ''The Enforcer ...

. That season Ndur won the

Slovenian Championship The Slovenian Hockey League is the highest level ice hockey league in Slovenia. The championship phase is contested after the regular season to determine the national champion. History The Slovenian Hockey League was firstly contested in the 1 ...

. With the

Coventry Blaze Coventry Blaze are an ice hockey team based in Coventry, England. They currently compete in the British Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) and play their home games at SkyDome Arena. The club was founded in 1965 as the ''Solihull Barons'' and ren ...

Ndur played just two games of the 2007–08 season before suffering from a neck injury, ruling him out for the season. In May 2008, Ndur was released by Coventry. Ndur went on to sign with the

Nottingham Panthers The Nottingham Panthers are a British professional ice hockey club based in Nottingham, England. They are members of the Elite Ice Hockey League. Their main team sponsor is the Nottingham Building Society. The Nottingham Panthers have won four ...

of the EIHL for the 2008-09 season before returning to North America to sign with the

Muskegon Lumberjacks The Muskegon Lumberjacks are a Tier I junior ice hockey team in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League. They play in Muskegon, Michigan, at Mercy Health Arena. The Lumberjacks replaced the International Hockey League franchi ...

of the International Hockey League before retiring.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ndur, Rumun 1975 births Living people Atlanta Thrashers players Black Canadian ice hockey players Buffalo Sabres draft picks Buffalo Sabres players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Austria Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in England Canadian ice hockey defencemen Columbus Cottonmouths (ECHL) players Coventry Blaze players Danbury Trashers players Graz 99ers players Guelph Storm players Hartford Wolf Pack players HK Acroni Jesenice players Ice hockey people from Ontario Kalamazoo Wings (UHL) players Muskegon Lumberjacks players New York Rangers players Nigerian emigrants to Canada Norfolk Admirals players Nottingham Panthers players Orlando Solar Bears (IHL) players People from Hearst, Ontario Rochester Americans players