Basil Paul McRae (born January 5, 1961) 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 ...

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. He is a part owner and alternate governor of the

London Knights The London Knights are a junior ice hockey team from London, Ontario, Canada, playing in the Ontario Hockey League, one of the leagues of the Canadian Hockey League. The Knights started out in 1965 as the London Nationals but changed to their ...

in the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...

and he is the director of pro scouting for the

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. The Blue Jackets compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern C ...

. McRae was known as an enforcer with over 2,000 penalty minutes in his career.

Playing career

McRae played his major junior hockey with the London Knights of the

Ontario Hockey Association The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) is the governing body for the majority of junior and senior level ice hockey teams in the province of Ontario. Founded in 1890, the OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern ...

(OHA). In the 1980 NHL Entry Draft, the

Quebec Nordiques The Quebec Nordiques (, pronounced in Quebec French, in Canadian English; translated "Northmen" or "Northerners") were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City. The Nordiques played in the World Hockey Association (1972–1979) an ...

drafted McRae in the third round, 87th overall. He played twenty regular season games and nine playoff matches with the big club in 1981, later spending some time with the Fredericton Express of the American Hockey League (AHL). He was traded to 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 ...

for Richard Turmel and spent a couple of years toiling in the minors with the St. Catharines Saints of the AHL. In 1985 McRae signed as a free agent with the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

but was traded back to his original team, the Nordiques along with John Ogrodnick and Doug Shedden for Brent Ashton, Gilbert Delorme and Mark Kumpel. At the start of the 1987 season, McRae signed with the

Minnesota North Stars The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, and the team's colors for ...

, the team he would have the most success with. The 1987–88 season saw McRae play the whole 80 game season with the North Stars, the first time he played a full season in the NHL. He formed a tough enforcer duo along with Shane Churla, leading the league in penalty minutes with 351 in 1990. The

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. The Lightning compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the ...

claimed him in the 1992 NHL Expansion Draft and traded him to the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. Th ...

in 1993. After a couple of seasons in the Blues organization, McRae signed 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 ...

in 1996 and only managed to play in eight games before retiring from professional hockey. McRae made a cameo appearance in the movie '' The Mighty Ducks'' along with then-teammate

Mike Modano Michael Thomas Modano Jr. (; born June 7, 1970) is an American former professional ice hockey player. He played as a Centre (ice hockey), center and spent most of his career with the Minnesota North Stars/Dallas Stars franchise. He spent the fina ...

Post-NHL

McRae is a part-owner of the London Knights with Dale Hunter and Mark Hunter. On October 21, 2014, the Knights announced that he would become the general manager and alternate governor of the team, replacing Mark Hunter, who had vacated the general manager position to become the director of player personnel for the Toronto Maple Leafs. McRae previously worked as a pro scout for the Columbus Blue Jackets and St. Louis Blues. On July 6, 2016, McRae stepped down as general manager of the London Knights to become the director of player personnel for the Columbus Blue Jackets. He was replaced by former assistant general manager and former assistant coach of the London Knights, Rob Simpson.

Personal life

McRae is the older brother of Chris McRae and is the father of Philip McRae.

Career statistics

Bold indicates led league

References

External links