Ray Whitney (ice Hockey)
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Raymond D. Whitney (born May 8, 1972) 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 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 ...
(NHL). He was given the nickname "The Wizard" for his passing and playmaking skills. 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, 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 The Spokane Chiefs are an American major junior ice hockey team based in Spokane, Washington. The Chiefs play in the U.S. Division of the Western Hockey League's Western Conference, playing home games at Spokane Arena. The Chiefs are two-time M ...
player to have their number retired (#14). He won the
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 ...
with the
Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Con ...
in
2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...
.


Playing career

Long before Whitney played in the NHL, he and his brother Dean were stick boys for the NHL's
Wayne Gretzky Wayne Douglas Gretzky ( ; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "the Great One ...
era
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 ...
. The third stick boy with the Whitney brothers was another future NHL player, Ryan Smyth. During his junior career, Whitney spent three years with the
Spokane Chiefs The Spokane Chiefs are an American major junior ice hockey team based in Spokane, Washington. The Chiefs play in the U.S. Division of the Western Hockey League's Western Conference, playing home games at Spokane Arena. The Chiefs are two-time M ...
of the
Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...
(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 The Canadian Hockey League (CHL; , LCH) is an umbrella organization that represents the three Canada-based major junior ice hockey leagues. The CHL was founded in 1975 as the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League, and is composed of its three me ...
. Whitney was the second player ever drafted by the
San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. The Sharks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Con ...
, 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. 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 The Deutsche Eishockey Liga (for sponsorship reasons called Penny (supermarket), PENNY Deutsche Eishockey Liga) (; English: ''German Ice Hockey League'') or DEL, is a professional ice hockey league in Germany and the highest division in German i ...
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 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 ...
( 1997–98),
Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Panthers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team initially played it ...
(1997–98 to 2000–01),
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 ...
(2000–01 to 2002–03),
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 ...
( 2003–04),
Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Con ...
,
Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...
, and
Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The 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 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 ...
with fellow Fort Saskatchewan native Mike Commodore. On February 8, 2007, Whitney scored a natural hat trick in just 1 minute and 40 seconds. On April 13, 2007, Whitney re-signed with the Hurricanes, agreeing to a three-year contract that pays him $3.5 million per year. On July 1, 2010, Whitney signed a 2-year deal with the
Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...
for $3 million per year. 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 In Broadcasting of sports events, sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as a sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real time (media), real-time live commentary of a game or event, traditionally delivered in the present t ...
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. 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 The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Confere ...
. 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. 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. He is known by his nickname "The Wizard".


International play

Whitney has been a member of Team Canada at four different
Ice Hockey World Championships The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual international men's ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), first officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The IIHF was created in 1908 while the I ...
. 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 The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
. 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. Canada did not win a medal in that year's world championship.


Career statistics


Regular season and playoffs


International


Awards and honours


See also

*
List of NHL players with 1000 points As of completion of the the List of NHL seasons#Current era, 107th regular season of play of the National Hockey League (NHL)100 different ice hockey players have scored at least 1,000 regular season Point (ice hockey), points in their NHL career ...
*
List of NHL players with 1000 games played The National Hockey League (NHL) is the major professional ice hockey league which operates in Canada and the United States. Since its inception in , 408 players have played at least 1,000 regular season games, varying in amounts between Patri ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Whitney, Ray 1972 births Living people Canadian ice hockey left wingers Carolina Hurricanes players Carolina Hurricanes scouts Columbus Blue Jackets players Dallas Stars players Detroit Red Wings players Edmonton Oilers players Florida Panthers players Ice hockey people from Alberta Kansas City Blades players Kentucky Thoroughblades players National Hockey League All-Stars Phoenix Coyotes players San Diego Gulls (IHL) players San Jose Sharks draft picks San Jose Sharks players Spokane Chiefs players People from Fort Saskatchewan Stanley Cup champions Utah Grizzlies (IHL) players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States