Randall John Gregg (born February 19, 1956) 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 ...

physician 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 ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the l ...

who spent 10 seasons in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

. He is best known for his time with the

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

, where he spent most of his career and won five

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...

s, in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988 and 1990.

Early life

Gregg was born in

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

. He attended the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta (also known as U of A or UAlberta, ) is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta, and Henry Marshall Tory, t ...

to work toward a medical degree, and playing hockey was a secondary priority. However, he became one of the top players in Canadian university hockey, leading the Golden Bears to two Canadian Interuniversity Athletics Union (CIAU) championships, and was CIAU Player of the Year in 1979.

Career

Gregg received a contract offer from the

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

but rejected it to spend the year with David Bauer and the Canadian national team, and captained Canada's entry at the

1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

in Lake Placid. Following the 1980 Olympics, Gregg signed in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

as a player-coach and spent two full seasons playing there. He was at last convinced to accept an NHL offer by his hometown

, and joined the team for the 1982 playoffs, appearing in four games. In 1982–83, Gregg emerged as a regular on the Oilers' blueline, appearing in all 80 games and registering 6 goals and 28 points. Receiving as much notoriety from the fact that he had a medical degree as he did for his solid play on the blueline, he helped the Oilers reach the

finals in 1983. In 1983–84, he would have his finest NHL season, as he recorded career highs of 12 goals and 40 points, and then contributed 10 points in 19 playoff games to help Edmonton win their first Stanley Cup. Following the season, he was selected to represent Canada at the

1984 Canada Cup The 1984 Labatt Canada Cup was a professional international ice hockey tournament played during the first three weeks of September 1984. The best-of-three final took place between Canada and Sweden, with Canada winning a two game sweep. Canadia ...

tournament. Gregg retired after the Oilers' disappointing loss in the 1986 playoffs but returned to the team six weeks into the season and helped Edmonton win their third championship in 1986–87. He retired from professional hockey again after the 1987–88 campaign to enter a residency program in orthopedic surgery and to represent Canada at the

1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Calgary 1988 were a multi-sport event held from February 13 to 28, 1988, with Calgary, Calgary, Alberta as the main host city. This marks the m ...

, but re-joined Edmonton for the playoffs to win another Stanley Cup. Gregg spent two more years with the Oilers as a depth defender, helping the team win their fifth Stanley Cup in seven years in 1990. He was one of seven players to play for all five championship teams. Exposed in the 1990 NHL Waiver Draft, he was claimed by 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 ...

but decided again to retire. However, after a year away from the sport, he signed with the Canucks for the 1991–92 campaign, appearing in 21 games, before retiring for good following the season. Gregg appeared in 474 NHL games, recording 41 goals and 152 assists for 193 points along with 333 penalty minutes. He also appeared in 137 playoff games, totaling 13 goals and 40 assists for 53 points. Following his retirement, Gregg completed his residency training program at the University of Alberta Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry. He is a family physician, operating a successful sports medicine practice in Edmonton. He briefly worked at TSN as the third string color commentator for NHL games in 1994–95.

Personal life

Gregg married American-born Canadian Olympic speed-skater Kathy Vogt on June 9, 1984, in Edmonton. They have four children, including speed-skaters Jessica Gregg and Jamie Gregg. Gregg and his family reside in Edmonton, Alberta. His brother, Gary, is a former member of the Edmonton Investors Group (EIG), the limited partnership that owned the

. In 2024 he was awarded an honorary doctor of science degree from the

"as a physician, philanthropist and role model".

Legacy

The Dr. Randy Gregg Award is presented annually by

Canadian Interuniversity Sport U Sports (stylized as U SPORTS) is the national sport governing body for universities in Canada, comprising the majority of degree-granting universities in the country and four regional conferences: Ontario University Athletics (OUA), Résea ...

(CIS) to reward excellence in the student-athlete. The Canadian University ice hockey player who receives this award has exhibited outstanding achievement in

, academics, and community involvement.

Awards and achievements

* 1983–84 -

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(

) * 1984–85 - NHL - Stanley Cup (Edmonton) * 1986–87 - NHL - Stanley Cup (Edmonton) * 1987–88 - NHL - Stanley Cup (Edmonton) * 1989–90 - NHL - Stanley Cup (Edmonton)

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

*
Oilers Heritage profile of Gregg
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gregg, Randy 1956 births Alberta Golden Bears ice hockey players Canadian ice hockey defencemen Canadian general practitioners Edmonton Oilers players Ice hockey people from Edmonton Ice hockey players at the 1980 Winter Olympics Ice hockey players at the 1988 Winter Olympics Kokudo Keikaku players Living people Olympic ice hockey players for Canada Stanley Cup champions Undrafted National Hockey League players University of Calgary Vancouver Canucks players Canadian physicians Physicians from Alberta Family physicians Competitors at the 1981 Winter Universiade Winter World University Games medalists in ice hockey FISU World University Games gold medalists for Canada 20th-century Canadian sportsmen Delta Upsilon members Canada West ice hockey players