Al MacInnis
Al MacInnis | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Hockey Hall of Fame, 2007 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Born |
Inverness, Nova Scotia, Canada | July 11, 1963||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 204 lb (93 kg; 14 st 8 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Defence | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Shot | Right | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Played for |
Calgary Flames St. Louis Blues | ||||||||||||||||||||||
National team |
NHL Draft |
15th overall, 1981 Calgary Flames | |||||||||||||||||||||
Playing career | 1981–2004 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Allan MacInnis (born July 11, 1963) is a Canadian former professional
MacInnis was most famous for having the hardest shot in the league. He tied Bobby Orr's Ontario Hockey League (OHL) record for goals by a defenceman, and won two OHL championships and a Memorial Cup with the Kitchener Rangers as a junior. He famously split goaltender Mike Liut's mask with a shot, and became only the fourth defenceman in NHL history to score 100 points in a season. Internationally, he was an all-star on defence as Canada won the 1991 Canada Cup and twice participated in the Winter Olympics. He was a member of the 2002 team that won Canada's first gold medal in 50 years.
An eye injury suffered early in the 2003–04 NHL season forced MacInnis into retirement. He finished his career third all-time among defencemen in goals, assists and points and was named to seven postseason all-star teams. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007, and his jersey number 2 was retired by the Blues and is honoured by the Flames. MacInnis remains a member of the Blues organization, currently serving as the team's senior advisor to the general manager. When the Blues won the Stanley Cup in 2019, he got his name engraved on the Stanley Cup for a second time.
Early life
MacInnis was born in Inverness, Nova Scotia, and grew up in nearby Port Hood, a fishing village on Cape Breton Island.[2] He is the seventh of eight children born to Alex and Anna Mae MacInnis, and one of six brothers. His father worked as a coal miner and later as the assistant manager of the arena in Port Hood when the mine closed while his mother was a school teacher.[3] The brothers all played hockey in Port Hawkesbury during the winter.[3] MacInnis often assisted his father's work at the arena, collecting pucks that he used to shoot repeatedly against a sheet of plywood set against the family barn during the summer. It was through this practice, which occasionally left him with blistered fingers, that he developed his powerful slapshot.[4]
Playing career
Junior
MacInnis left home in 1979 to join the
Most of his season was spent with Kitchener where MacInnis was named to the OHL first All-Star team after scoring 75 points for the Rangers.[2] The team won its second consecutive OHL title, and captured the 1982 Memorial Cup.[8] He played a third season in Kitchener in 1982–83, and was again named a first-team All-Star after an 84-point season.[2][6] Additionally, MacInnis was voted the winner of the Max Kaminsky Trophy as the OHL's top defenceman.[9] He tied Bobby Orr's OHL record for goals by a defenceman in one season with 38 (subsequently broken by Bryan Fogarty's 47 in 1988–89),[10] and holds the Canadian Hockey League record of five goals in one game by a defenceman.[11]
Calgary Flames
MacInnis made his NHL debut with the Flames on December 30, 1981, against the Boston Bruins.[12] He appeared in two games that season, and an additional fourteen in 1982–83 in seasons spent primarily with Kitchener at the junior level.[6] He scored his first NHL point against the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 23, 1982.[12] MacInnis began the 1983–84 season with the Colorado Flames of the Central Hockey League, scoring 19 points in 19 games before joining Calgary full-time.[2] With the Flames, he scored 11 goals and 34 assists in 51 games and appeared in his first 11 postseason games during the 1984 Stanley Cup playoffs.[12]
A point-per-game pace in 1984–85 (66 points in 67 games) earned MacInnis his first All-Star Game appearance,[12] playing in front of his hometown fans at the 1985 game in Calgary.[13] He was voted a second-team All-Star for the 1986–87 NHL season,[14] and started his first All-Star Game in 1988.[12] He was a finalist for the James Norris Memorial Trophy as top defenceman in the league in three consecutive seasons, 1989, 1990 and 1991, but failed to win the award each time.[12]
Led by MacInnis' 31 points,[12] the Flames won the first Stanley Cup championship in their history in 1989.[15] He had four goals and five assists in six games in the final series against the Montreal Canadiens en route to winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs.[16] MacInnis became the first defenceman to lead the league in postseason scoring,[17] and he finished with a 17-game scoring streak, the longest by a defenceman in NHL history.[18]
MacInnis finished second amongst NHL defencemen in scoring in 1989–90 with 90 points and was named a First Team All-Star for the first time. He improved to a career high 103 points the following year, becoming the first Flames' defenceman and only the fourth in NHL history to record a 100-point season.[12] He scored his 563rd career point in a January 8, 1991, game against Toronto, to surpass Kent Nilsson as the franchise's all-time scoring leader.[19] MacInnis missed three months of the 1992–93 season when he suffered a dislocated hip during a game on November 11, 1992, against the Hartford Whalers. While chasing a puck at high speed, he lost control and crashed into the end boards after Hartford rookie Patrick Poulin shoved MacInnis with his stick.[20] Three weeks after his return to action, on February 23, 1993, MacInnis set a Flames franchise record when he appeared in his 706th career game.
Following five consecutive seasons where the Flames failed to advance past the first round of the playoffs, both MacInnis and the team were looking for a change in the summer of 1994.[21] Though the Flames made an offer of C$2.5 million per season for MacInnis, he instead signed an offer sheet with the St. Louis Blues for US$3.5 million a season for four years, making him the fourth highest-paid player in the NHL.[22] As MacInnis was a restricted free agent, the Blues sent defenceman Phil Housley and two second round draft picks to the Flames in compensation while also receiving a fourth round selection back.[23]
MacInnis said his decision to leave Calgary was not easy to make given his family was from the city. He claimed money was not the only reason he signed with the Blues, stating that he wanted a new challenge.[22] He left Calgary after 11 full NHL seasons as the franchise's all-time leader in scoring with 822 points,[24] and led in assists (603),[25] games played (803),[26] playoff assists (77) and playoff points (103).[27] He appeared in six All-Star Games with Calgary and was named a league all-star five times: twice on the first team and three times on the second.[14] The team honoured MacInnis as the first player inducted into their "Forever a Flame" program in 2012. His jersey number 2 was raised to the Saddledome rafters on February 27, 2012, but was not formally retired.[28]
St. Louis Blues
Pneumonia and a late-season shoulder injury limited MacInnis to 28 points in 32 games in
MacInnis scored a goal and an assist in a 5–3 loss to the
When Chris Pronger broke his arm early in the 2002–03 NHL season, MacInnis was named interim captain for the remainder of the season.[35] He completed the season as the league's leader in scoring amongst defencemen with 68 points.[36] Pronger insisted that MacInnis remain captain permanently when he returned for the 2003–04 season.[35] MacInnis played only three games that season as vision problems he suffered during an October 2003 game against the Nashville Predators were diagnosed as being the result of a detached retina in one eye – the same eye in which he suffered a serious injury after being struck by a high stick in 2001.[17] He missed the remainder of the season as a result, and after the 2004–05 NHL season was cancelled due to a labour dispute, MacInnis felt that he could not return to the game at a high enough level to compete.[37]
MacInnis announced his retirement as a player on September 9, 2005, but remained with the Blues organization as part of its marketing and hockey operations departments.
International
MacInnis was a member of the
Playing style
"There's hard and then there's Al MacInnis hard. I tried to get out of the way. If it happens too often, you have to sit down and re-evaluate what you're doing with your life."
MacInnis was best known for the power and accuracy of his slapshot. The Flames selected him in the 1981 Draft on the strength of his shot alone; his skating ability was so poor when he arrived for his first training camp in Calgary he earned the nickname "Chopper".[37] While some reporters expected he would be a bust as a result,[51] MacInnis said the patience the Flames showed him in his early days as a professional allowed him to develop into a more complete defenceman.[37]
The power of his shot grew into legend on January 17, 1984, in a game against St. Louis.
Used primarily as a power play specialist in his first years as a professional, MacInnis worked at improving his overall game such that he was named a Norris Trophy finalist three consecutive seasons between 1989 and 1991,
Off the ice
MacInnis married his wife Jackie shortly after winning the Stanley Cup in 1989,
Though his career took him away from Nova Scotia, MacInnis remains involved with his hometown. In 2001, he committed C$100,000 towards a major renovation of the Port Hood Arena.[63] The arena was renamed the Al MacInnis Sports Centre in his honour, and he hosts an annual golf tournament to help raise funds for the arena commission.[64] On the day he was inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame, he donated $100,000 to the Inverness County Memorial Hospital in the memory of his parents.[65]
In 2018, he finished third to hockey superstar Sidney Crosby and curler Colleen Jones in a listing of the greatest 15 athletes in Nova Scotia's history.[66]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Regular season
|
Playoffs | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
1979–80 | Regina Pat Blues | SJHL | 59 | 20 | 28 | 48 | 110 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1979–80 | Regina Pats | WHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1980–81 | Kitchener Rangers | OHL | 47 | 11 | 28 | 39 | 59 | 18 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 20 | ||
1981–82 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1981–82 | Kitchener Rangers | OHL | 59 | 25 | 50 | 75 | 145 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 44 | ||
1982–83 | Kitchener Rangers | OHL | 51 | 38 | 46 | 84 | 67 | 8 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 9 | ||
1982–83 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 14 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1983–84 | Colorado Flames | CHL | 19 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1983–84 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 51 | 11 | 34 | 45 | 42 | 11 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 13 | ||
1984–85 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 67 | 14 | 52 | 66 | 75 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | ||
1985–86 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 77 | 11 | 57 | 68 | 76 | 21 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 30 | ||
1986–87 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 79 | 20 | 56 | 76 | 97 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
1987–88 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 80 | 25 | 58 | 83 | 114 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 18 | ||
1988–89 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 79 | 16 | 58 | 74 | 126 | 22 | 7 | 24 | 31 | 46 | ||
1989–90 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 79 | 28 | 62 | 90 | 82 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | ||
1990–91 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 78 | 28 | 75 | 103 | 90 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | ||
1991–92 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 72 | 20 | 57 | 77 | 83 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1992–93 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 50 | 11 | 43 | 54 | 61 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 10 | ||
1993–94 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 75 | 28 | 54 | 82 | 95 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 12 | ||
1994–95 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 32 | 8 | 20 | 28 | 43 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 10 | ||
1995–96 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 82 | 17 | 44 | 61 | 88 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 20 | ||
1996–97 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 72 | 13 | 30 | 43 | 65 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ||
1997–98 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 71 | 19 | 30 | 49 | 80 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 12 | ||
1998–99 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 82 | 20 | 42 | 62 | 70 | 13 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 20 | ||
1999–00
|
St. Louis Blues | NHL | 61 | 11 | 28 | 39 | 34 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 14 | ||
2000–01 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 59 | 12 | 42 | 54 | 52 | 15 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 18 | ||
2001–02 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 71 | 11 | 35 | 46 | 52 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 4 | ||
2002–03 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 80 | 16 | 52 | 68 | 61 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
2003–04 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
NHL totals | 1,416 | 340 | 934 | 1,274 | 1,501 | 177 | 39 | 121 | 160 | 255 |
International
Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1990 | Canada | WC | 9 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 | |
1991 | Canada | CC
|
8 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 23 | |
1998 | Canada | OLY
|
6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
2002 | Canada | OLY | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
Senior totals | 29 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 43 |
Awards and honours
Award | Year | Ref. |
---|---|---|
Max Kaminsky Trophy | 1982–83 | [9] |
OHL first-team All-Star | 1981–82 1982–83 |
[67] |
Award | Year | Ref. |
---|---|---|
First team All-Star | 1989–90 1990–91 1998–99 2002–03 |
[6] |
Second team All-Star | 1986–87 1988–89 1993–94 |
[6] |
Conn Smythe Trophy | 1989 | [18] |
Stanley Cup champion | 1989 (as player), 2019 (as executive) | [18] |
Ralph T. Scurfield Humanitarian Award CGY – Support of humanitarian and charitable causes |
1993–94 | [14] |
James Norris Memorial Trophy | 1998–99 | [6] |
Award | Year | Ref. |
---|---|---|
Canada Cup All-Star team | 1991 | [6] |
See also
References
- ^ "100 Greatest NHL Players". National Hockey League. January 27, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f "Al MacInnis biography". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
- ^ a b c Montville, Leigh (March 9, 1992). "Slap happy". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
- ^ Pinkert, Chris (November 12, 2007). "MacInnis inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame". St. Louis Blues Hockey Club. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
- ^ Harder, Greg (November 14, 2007). "MacInnis got his start in Regina". Regina Leader-Post. Archived from the original on November 10, 2012. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Al MacInnis statistics". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
- ^ a b Duhatschek, Eric (June 10, 1981). "Flames look to the future in NHL draft". Calgary Herald. p. C1.
- ISBN 1-55017-170-4.
- ^ a b Bell, Aaron (ed.). 2009–10 OHL Media Guide. Ontario Hockey League. p. 131.
- ^ Bell, Aaron (ed.). 2009–10 OHL Media Guide. Ontario Hockey League. p. 130.
- ^ "Most goals by a defenceman". Canadian Hockey League. Archived from the original on September 22, 2010. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Halls, Pat (1992). 1992–93 Calgary Flames Media Guide. Calgary Flames Hockey Club. p. 30.
- ISBN 0-919591-48-5
- ^ a b c Hanlon, Peter; Kelso, Sean (2009). 2009–10 Calgary Flames Media Guide. Calgary: Calgary Flames Hockey Club. p. 30.
- ^ Duhatschek, Eric (May 26, 1989). "Stanley Cup: Ours at last". Calgary Herald. p. A1.
- ^ Murphy, Austin (June 5, 1989). "Montreal goes up in Flames". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
- ^ a b c d e Shea, Kevin (April 10, 2009). "One on one with Al MacInnis". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
- ^ a b c Duhatschek, Eric (June 26, 1989). "Selection not Mickey Mouse". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
- ^ Duhatschek, Eric (January 9, 1991). "Big Mac blasts to record". Calgary Herald. p. C1.
- ^ Bernstein, Viv (November 25, 1992). "No disciplinary action for MacInnis incident". Hartford Courant. p. F3.
- ^ Maki, Al (July 5, 1994). "No beefs from Big Mac". Calgary Herald. p. D1.
- ^ a b Duhatschek, Eric; Maki, Al (July 5, 1994). "MacInnis strikes it rich with St. Louis". Calgary Herald. p. A1.
- ^ Duhatschek, Eric (July 5, 1994). "Birth of the Blues". Calgary Herald. p. D1.
- ^ Board, Mike (February 20, 1999). "Fleury shoots to top of Flames' record book". Calgary Herald. p. C1.
- ^ Hanlon, Peter; Kelso, Sean (2009). 2009–10 Calgary Flames Media Guide. Calgary: Calgary Flames Hockey Club. p. 251.
- ^ "Iginla trade blasted at the time". Calgary Herald. November 29, 2007. Archived from the original on November 9, 2012. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
- ^ Hanlon, Peter; Kelso, Sean (2009). 2009–10 Calgary Flames Media Guide. Calgary: Calgary Flames Hockey Club. p. 259.
- ^ Vickers, Aaron (February 28, 2012). "'Forever a Flame', MacInnis savours special moment". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
- ^ Luecking, Dave (June 11, 1995). "NHL clubs hope chamber will offer a breath of fresh air to the injured". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 3F.
- ^ Wheatley, Tom (October 24, 1997). "MacInnis hits career mark with 1,000th game in NHL". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 5D.
- ^ Luecking, Dave (December 16, 1997). "Shoulder rehabilitation is familiar to MacInnis". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. C5.
- ^ "Detroit's Draper Lowers Curtains On Top of Blues". Los Angeles Times. April 8, 1998. p. C5.
- ^ "N.H.L.: ROUNDUP; Capitals' Kolzig Shuts Out Boston". The New York Times. December 3, 2000. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ Luecking, Dave (December 3, 2000). "MacInnis, Blues pelt the Panthers in 5–2 win". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. F1.
- ^ a b Wheatley, Tom (September 17, 2003). "Pronger's new season begins with new role". ESPN. Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ^ "2002–03 scoring leaders – Defencemen". National Hockey League. Retrieved November 5, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ a b c Down, John (September 10, 2005). "Big Mac shoots straight from heart". Calgary Herald. p. F1.
- ^ "MacInnis hangs it up". Sports Illustrated. September 9, 2005. Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ^ "All-Star scoring". St. Louis Blues Hockey Club. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ "Blues retire MacInnis' No. 2 in pregame ceremony". ESPN. April 9, 2006. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ "MacInnis statue unveiled in St. Louis". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. October 8, 2009. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ Pinkert, Chris. "For MacInnis, honors keep piling up". St. Louis Blues Hockey Club. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ Bonanno, Rocky (September 28, 2009). "Nova Scotia's bond with hockey runs long and deep". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ "Class of 2010". St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame. May 27, 2010. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ISBN 3-8334-4189-5.
- ISBN 978-1-55168-323-2.
- ISBN 978-1-55168-323-2.
- ISBN 978-1-55168-323-2.
- ISBN 978-1-55168-323-2.
- ^ Hornby, Lance (September 9, 2005). "MacInnis ready to end his career". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ a b Simmons, Steve (September 9, 2005). "The complete package". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved October 2, 2010.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "MacInnis earns spot in Hall of Fame". Calgary Flames Hockey Club. June 28, 2007. Retrieved May 19, 2011.
- ^ "Induction Showcase – Al MacInnis". Hockey Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 16, 2011. Retrieved May 19, 2011.
- ^ Finn, Robin (May 16, 1989). "Flames rely on MacInnis's slap shot". The New York Times. Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ^ Diamos, Jason (February 6, 2000). "NOTEBOOK; MacInnis Is the Fastest Shot". The New York Times. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
- ^ Hicks, Jeff (November 22, 2008). "'Killer' was scared". Waterloo Region Record.
- ^ Bachursky, John (July 9, 1989). "Flames backing Al". Calgary Sun. p. 5.
- ^ Bill Dunphy (October 28, 2008). "The Inverness Oran - Al MacInnis inducted into Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame". Oran.ca. Archived from the original on March 16, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
- ^ a b Miklasz, Bernie (February 28, 2009). "MacInnis leads the Junior Blues to prestigious title". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
- ^ "Al MacInnis hired by Blues". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. November 7, 2006. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ Macdonald, Casey (August 14, 2013). "Kitchener Rangers Sign Ryan MacInnis". 570 News. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
- ^ "MacInnis Commits to Northeastern University". St.Louis Blues AAA. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
- ^ "Major Expansion and Renovations for Port Hood Arena". Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations. September 27, 2001. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ Dunphy, Bill. "Inverness County's greatest sports figures link up at Classic". Inverness Oran. Archived from the original on March 2, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ Dunphy, Bill. "Al MacInnis inducted into Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame". Inverness Oran. Archived from the original on March 2, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ^ Tattrie, Jon (April 30, 2018). "Sidney Crosby to headline 'greatest sports dinner' in Nova Scotia". CBC Sports. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
- ^ Bell, Aaron (ed.). 2009–10 OHL Media Guide. Ontario Hockey League. pp. 145–146.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or Legends of Hockey, or The Internet Hockey Database
*NOTE: MacInnis also served as captain for nearly the entire 2002–03 NHL season, while Chris Pronger was injured and out of the line-up. MacInnis was then named the captain for the 2003–04 season, but MacInnis suffered a career-ending injury.