Mark Messier

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Image:SI1996 West Side Story.jpg Mark Douglas John Messier (born January 18, 1961, in Edmonton, Alberta) is a retired ice hockey center in the National Hockey League, who spent over a quarter of a century (including the lock out '04-05 season) in the NHL (1979-2005) with the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, and Vancouver Canucks, and also played professionally with the World Hockey Association's Indianapolis Racers and Cincinnati Stingers. Nicknamed "Moose", "The Captain", and "The Messiah", Messier was renowned as a fierce, tough competitor whose intense leadership in the locker room was as important as the goals he scored on the ice; many consider him to have been the greatest captain in hockey history. He holds the distinction of being the only man ever to captain two different franchises to Stanley Cup championships, winning six championships in total. His #11 has been retired by the New York Rangers on January 12, 2006. He was just the 4th Ranger to have his number retired.

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NHL career

Though Messier ranks 2nd in all-time scoring with 1,887 points (694 goals and 1,193 assists) in the regular season, his greatness will always be measured in terms of playoff achievements. In Game 3 of the 1984 Finals, for example, with his Edmonton Oilers trailing the four-time champion New York Islanders by a goal, it was Messier's goal that began a comeback by Oilers. By series' end, it was he and not Wayne Gretzky who won Conn Smythe Trophy honors.

Messier was already known as a hockey superstar, but the birth of the Messier legend came in the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals against the rival New Jersey Devils. A game away from elimination, Messier confronted the New York media and publicly guaranteed a Game 6 victory. Knowing full well the implications of his remarks, he backed up his promise by scoring a natural hat trick (three consecutive goals) in the third period, which helped the Rangers erase a two-goal deficit. The Rangers went on to win the series and the Stanley Cup (with Messier scoring the Cup winning goal in game 7)--their first in 54 years--and effectively put New Yorkers in a frenzy in the process. From that moment on, Messier was indelibly etched in sports history.

The 1994 Stanley Cup would mark the high water mark of the second half of Messier's career. Despite the lockout in the 1994-95 season, Messier notched a solid 64 points in 53 games. In 1995-96, Messier came as close as he had since 1991-92 to breaking the 100-point plateau when, at the age of 35, he recorded a 99-point season. An 84-point year the next season made it clear that the Moose was far from washed up, and encouraged the Vancouver Canucks to sign the 36-year old to a high-priced free agent contract. It was a high-profile move, with Messier returning to Canada after six years with the Rangers, but the honeymoon did not last. Sixty points in 1997-98 was his worst mark in a full year since his first NHL season; his next two seasons were shortened by injury. His demand that the #11 the team unofficially retired in honor of Wayne Maki be given to him hurt his image as well. He finished with 162 points over three years, and, having become unpopular with Canucks fans, left at the end of the 1999-2000 season.

After his tenure with the Canucks, he returned to New York to try and lead the under-achieving and overpaid Rangers back to glory. The Rangers held a press conference where they symbolically buried a hatchet, and Messier made an ill-fated "guarantee" of a play off birth.

Messier's 67-point season as a 40-year old in 2000-01 was a mark better than any he established in his Vancouver years, showing that he could still be a valuable presence, but the Rangers missed the playoffs. After missing half of 2001-02, Messier recorded only 23 points, and finished up next year with a mediocre 40-point campaign.

The 2003-04 season had been widely expected to be Messier's last. On November 11, 2003 against the Dallas Stars, Messier scored a pair of goals to vault past Gordie Howe into second on the all-time scoring list. Eleven days later, Messier was the only active player to play in the legends game at Edmonton's Heritage Classic, suiting up with the Oiler alumni and causing many light-hearted comments about being Edmonton's "ringer". During his last game at Madison Square Garden, Messier received applause every time he touched the puck and, after the game, received a standing ovation while he skated around the Garden and bowed to every section of the stands. At the age of 43, most media outlets believed Messier had decided to quit. The NHL lockout that eliminated the next season only drove a nail into the coffin. All speculation would end on September 12, 2005, when he announced his retirement.

Messier retired eleven games back of Gordie Howe's NHL record 1,767 regular season games played, a record many consider unbreakable. Messier holds the record for most NHL regular season and playoff season games played at 1,992; Gordie Howe played in 1,924 including the WHA. Messier is one of a handful of players to have played 25 NHL seasons, doing so over four decades.

Hockey flowed in Messier's blood. Father Doug, who never made the NHL himself, was his coach and mentor in the early years, including his years of junior hockey with the Spruce Grove Mets, later the St. Albert Saints. Mark's brother Paul was a center for the now-defunct Colorado Rockies; cousins Mitch and Joby also skated for NHL clubs.

He has a son, Lyon, born August 16, 1987 by ex-girlfriend and former model Leslie Young, who is developing into a solid young hockey player and is currently a defenseman for the Texas Tornado of the North American Hockey League. His current girlfriend and soon to-be wife, Kim Clark, gave Mark his second son, Douglas Paul, on July 15, 2003 and daughter Jacqueline Jean in August, 2005.

Said former defenseman Ric Nattress, "Big. Strong. Fast. Great shot. Physical. Mean. Durable. Great leader. What else could you possibly ask for in any individual? Twenty years ago when he broke into this league, Mark Messier was the prototype for a franchise player. And he'll continue to be the prototype. Today, tomorrow and a hundred years from now."

Almost thirty years after having played with the Saints, Messier remains a minor legend in the city of St. Albert, Alberta. One of the rinks in the local Campbell Arena bears Messier's name.

On January 12, 2006 during a very emotional ceremony that featured most of the 1994 Stanley Cup team, the New York Rangers retired his number (11) in a game against the Edmonton Oilers. Fans unable to attend the game put their tickets back on the market, with front row seats being resold up to the price of $30,000. The ceremony lasted 75 minutes, making it the longest of its kind in the history of professional sports. His is the 4th number retired by the Rangers, after Rod Gilbert, Ed Giacomin, and Mike Richter. (Wayne Gretzky has had his number retired league-wide.)

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Achievements

  • Won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1984.
  • Won the Lester B. Pearson Award in 1990 and 1992.
  • Won the Hart Trophy in 1990 and 1992.
  • Named a First Team All-Star in 1982 (at left wing), 1983 (at left wing), 1990 and 1992 (both at center).
  • Named a Second Team All-Star in 1984 (at left wing).
  • One of the few NHL players named a season ending All-Star at more than one position.
  • Played in fifteen NHL All-Star Games in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2004, exceeded only by Gordie Howe, Ray Bourque and Wayne Gretzky.
  • On the Stanley Cup Champions six times, in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990, and 1994.
  • The last active World Hockey Association player.
  • The last active player to have played during the 1970s.
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Career statistics

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1976-77 Spruce Grove Mets AJHL 57 27 39 66 91 -- -- -- -- --
1977-78 St. Albert Saints AJHL 54 25 49 74 194 -- -- -- -- --
1977-78 Portland Winterhawks WHL -- -- -- -- -- 7 4 1 5 2
1978-79 St. Albert Saints AJHL 17 15 18 33 64 -- -- -- -- --
1978-79 Indianapolis Racers WHA 5 0 0 0 0 -- -- -- -- --
1978-79 Cincinnati Stingers WHA 47 1 10 11 58 -- -- -- -- --
1979-80 Houston Apollos CHL 4 0 3 3 4 -- -- -- -- --
1979-80 Edmonton Oilers NHL 75 12 21 33 120 3 1 2 3 2
1980-81 Edmonton Oilers NHL 72 23 40 63 102 9 2 5 7 13
1981-82 Edmonton Oilers NHL 78 50 38 88 119 5 1 2 3 8
1982-83 Edmonton Oilers NHL 77 48 58 106 72 15 15 6 21 14
1983-84 Edmonton Oilers NHL 73 37 64 101 165 19 8 18 26 19
1984-85 Edmonton Oilers NHL 55 23 31 54 57 18 12 13 25 12
1985-86 Edmonton Oilers NHL 63 35 49 84 68 10 4 6 10 18
1986-87 Edmonton Oilers NHL 77 37 70 107 73 21 12 16 28 16
1987-88 Edmonton Oilers NHL 77 37 74 111 103 19 11 23 34 29
1988-89 Edmonton Oilers NHL 72 33 61 94 130 7 1 11 12 8
1989-90 Edmonton Oilers NHL 79 45 84 129 79 22 9 22 31 20
1990-91 Edmonton Oilers NHL 53 12 52 64 34 18 4 11 15 16
1991-92 New York Rangers NHL 79 35 72 107 76 11 7 7 14 6
1992-93 New York Rangers NHL 75 25 66 91 72 -- -- -- -- --
1993-94 New York Rangers NHL 76 26 58 84 76 23 12 18 30 33
1994-95 New York Rangers NHL 46 14 39 53 40 10 3 10 13 8
1995-96 New York Rangers NHL 74 47 52 99 122 11 4 7 11 16
1996-97 New York Rangers NHL 71 36 48 84 88 15 3 9 12 6
1997-98 Vancouver Canucks NHL 82 22 38 60 58 -- -- -- -- --
1998-99 Vancouver Canucks NHL 59 13 35 48 33 -- -- -- -- --
1999-00 Vancouver Canucks NHL 66 17 37 54 30 -- -- -- -- --
2000-01 New York Rangers NHL 82 24 43 67 89 -- -- -- -- --
2001-02 New York Rangers NHL 41 7 16 23 32 -- -- -- -- --
2002-03 New York Rangers NHL 78 18 22 40 30 -- -- -- -- --
2003-04 New York Rangers NHL 76 18 25 43 42 -- -- -- -- --
NHL Totals 1756 694 1193 1887 1910 236 109 186 295 244
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See also

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References

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