Chris Drury
Chris Drury | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Born |
Trumbull, Connecticut, U.S. | August 20, 1976|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Center | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shot | Right | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Played for |
Colorado Avalanche Calgary Flames Buffalo Sabres New York Rangers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
National team |
NHL Draft |
72nd overall, 1994 Quebec Nordiques | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing career | 1998–2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Christopher Ellis Drury (born August 20, 1976) is an American professional ice hockey executive and former player. He has served as the president and general manager for the New York Rangers since May 5, 2021. He previously served as the general manager of the Rangers American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack.[1][2]
Drury is a
Biography
Early life
Drury excelled at a variety of sports as a child, including hockey and baseball. Playing for his hometown baseball team from Trumbull, Drury pitched a complete game, five-hitter and drove in two runs to win the 1989 Little League World Series championship game against Chinese Taipei.[3] Two months later, Drury threw out the ceremonial first pitch in Game 2 of the 1989 World Series. He also met President George H. W. Bush and appeared on Good Morning America in New York City.[4] Drury played in the 1990 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Rye, New York.[5]
Drury played many sports simultaneously; before winning the Little League World Series with Trumbull, he won a national
Playing career
Boston University (1994–1998)
After graduating from
Colorado Avalanche (1998–2002)
The Nordiques franchise was relocated to Denver, Colorado, in 1995, and renamed the Colorado Avalanche. Drury began his NHL career there in 1998–99. Recording 44 points in his first season, Drury was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's top rookie. In so doing, he became the first player in history to have won both the Hobey Baker Award and the Calder Trophy.[11]
After a 65-point season in 2000–01, Drury won the Stanley Cup with the Avalanche, adding 16 points in the playoffs. Drury became a fan favorite with the Avalanche crowd primarily due to his clutch play during playoffs. He had a total of 11 game-winning goals in four straight playoff seasons in Colorado. Avalanche captain Joe Sakic once said of Drury, "You want a goal, you're in overtime – you want him."[3][12] Because of his penchant for game-winning goals, Drury was often referred to as one of the best clutch players in the NHL.
Although Drury's production dipped to 46 points in 2001–02, he was named to the U.S. roster for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Though he did not record any points in the tournament, the Americans surprised many by making it all the way to the final where they lost to Canada. This was the best finish for the United States at the tournament since the 1980 "Miracle on Ice".[13]
Calgary Flames (2002–2003)
Before the start of the next season, on October 1, 2002, Drury and Stéphane Yelle were traded to the Calgary Flames in exchange for Derek Morris, Dean McAmmond and Jeff Shantz. Drury recorded 53 points for the Flames during the year, finishing third in team scoring.
Buffalo Sabres (2003–2007)
Drury spent just one season with the Flames before he was traded on July 3, 2003, along with Steve Bégin, to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for former Avalanche teammate Steven Reinprecht and Rhett Warrener.[14] Traded twice in two seasons, Drury was admittedly frustrated.[15] However, Drury regained his form and excelled in Buffalo, serving as co-captain with Daniel Brière from 2005 to his departure via free agency in 2007. With his previous numbers (37 with Colorado and 18 with Calgary) both taken in Buffalo, Drury switched to 23 in honor of his childhood hero, New York Yankees first baseman Don Mattingly.[16]
Drury again represented the United States at the 2006 Winter Olympics, where the Americans finished eighth overall.[17]
After a career-high 37-goal, 69-point campaign in 2006–07, the Sabres made a second consecutive run to the Eastern Conference Finals this time as the Presidents' Trophy-winning first seed, where they faced the Ottawa Senators. Proving he could still be a clutch performer, Drury scored two game-winning goals in the first round against the New York Islanders,[3] then scored the game-tying goal in game five of the second round against the New York Rangers with 7.7 seconds left in regulation time.[18] The Sabres won 2–1 in overtime and closed out the series against the Rangers, four games to two. In Game 4 of the Conference Finals against the Senators, Drury recorded another game-winner to stave off elimination,[19] though the Sabres were eventually defeated four games to one.
New York Rangers (2007–2011)
In the off-season, Drury and co-captain Daniel Brière both became unrestricted free agents. While Brière signed with the Philadelphia Flyers, on July 1, 2007, Drury signed a five-year, $35.25 million contract with the New York Rangers.[20] He made his Rangers debut against the Florida Panthers, scoring a goal in a 5–2 win.[21] On February 1, 2008, in a game against the New Jersey Devils, Drury scored an empty net goal on the power play for his 500th career point.[22] He finished his first season with the Rangers with 58 points – third in team scoring. Matched up against New Jersey in the first round, Drury scored the game-winning and series-clinching goal to eliminate the Devils in five games.[23] On October 1, 2008, Drury and the Rangers won the Victoria Cup, defeating Metallurg Magnitogorsk by a score of 4–3.
After the departure of Jaromír Jágr from the Rangers to play in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), Drury was named the 25th captain in Rangers history on October 3, 2008. Drury was only the second American-born captain in team history (the first was Brian Leetch from 1997 to 2000).[24] This made Drury one of four active NHL players at the time to have captained two different NHL teams (the others were Chris Pronger, Joe Thornton and former teammate Adam Foote).
Drury was named to the United States roster for the
In June 2011, rumors began circulating that the Rangers were looking to negotiate a contract buyout with Drury. However, these rumors were silenced after it was announced Drury may have a degenerative condition in his left knee which would cause him to miss the entire 2011–12 season.[26]
On June 29, 2011, Drury accepted a buy-out of the final year of his contract to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, 2011. Drury would count approximately $3.716 million against the 2011–12 salary cap, and about $1.667 million against the 2012–13 salary cap.[27] On August 19, 2011, Drury retired as a player.[28]
Management career
In September 2015, the Rangers named Drury their director of player development.[29] In September 2016, Drury was promoted by the Rangers to assistant general manager.[30] The next season, he was also assigned to be the general manager of their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack.[2]
In March 2019, the Rangers signed Drury to a contract extension as assistant general manager.[31] On February 5, 2021, Drury was promoted to associate general manager.[32] On May 5, 2021, following the sudden dismissal of John Davidson and Jeff Gorton from the team's front office, Drury was promoted to President and General Manager of the New York Rangers.[33]
In Chris Drury's first offseason as general manager, he made several free agent signings and trades in response to the
Personal life
Drury and his wife Rory[37] have two daughters and a son.[38] The family resides in Greenwich, Connecticut.[39]
Drury's older brother, Ted, played professional hockey in the NHL for six different teams between 1989 and 2001. His nephew, Jack, currently plays professional hockey for the Carolina Hurricanes.
In the late 2000s, Drury, along with partners Ken Martin, Paul Coniglio, and Cody Lee, purchased Colony Grill in Stamford, Connecticut, a pizza tavern established in 1935. Since the purchase, the group has opened four more locations throughout southwestern Connecticut and New York, including Fairfield, Connecticut, near where Drury played high school hockey at Fairfield Prep. Locations have also been opened in the Tampa Bay area of Florida, Maryland, and Virginia.[40][41]
Records
- The first player in hockey history to win both the Hobey Baker Memorial Award and Calder Memorial Trophy.[11]
- Holds the record for most goals in Boston University men's ice hockey history with 113.[42]
- Only Boston University ice hockey player with at least 100 goals and 100 assists.[42]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Regular season
|
Playoffs | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
1991–92 | Fairfield Prep | HS-CT | 25 | 22 | 27 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1992–93 | Fairfield Prep | HS-CT | 24 | 25 | 32 | 57 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1993–94 | Fairfield Prep | HS-CT | 24 | 37 | 18 | 55 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1994–95 | Boston University | HE | 39 | 12 | 15 | 27 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1995–96 | Boston University | HE | 37 | 35 | 32 | 67 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1996–97 | Boston University | HE | 41 | 38 | 24 | 62 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1997–98 | Boston University | HE | 38 | 28 | 29 | 57 | 88 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1998–99 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 79 | 20 | 24 | 44 | 62 | 19 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 4 | ||
1999–2000 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 82 | 20 | 47 | 67 | 42 | 17 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 4 | ||
2000–01 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 71 | 24 | 41 | 65 | 47 | 23 | 11 | 5 | 16 | 4 | ||
2001–02 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 82 | 21 | 25 | 46 | 38 | 21 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 10 | ||
2002–03 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 80 | 23 | 30 | 53 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2003–04 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 76 | 18 | 35 | 53 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2005–06 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 81 | 30 | 37 | 67 | 32 | 18 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 10 | ||
2006–07 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 77 | 37 | 32 | 69 | 30 | 16 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 2 | ||
2007–08 | New York Rangers | NHL | 82 | 25 | 33 | 58 | 45 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 8 | ||
2008–09 | New York Rangers | NHL | 81 | 22 | 34 | 56 | 32 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
2009–10 | New York Rangers | NHL | 77 | 14 | 18 | 32 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2010–11 | New York Rangers | NHL | 24 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
NHL totals | 892 | 255 | 360 | 615 | 468 | 135 | 47 | 42 | 89 | 46 |
International
Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1996 | United States | WJC
|
5th | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | |
1997
|
United States | WC
|
6th | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
1998 | United States | WC | 12th | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | |
2002 | United States | OG | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
2004 | United States | WC | 9 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 27 | ||
2004 | United States | WCH | 4th | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
2006 | United States | OG | 8th | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
2010 | United States | OG | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
Junior totals | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | ||||
Senior totals | 46 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 43 |
Awards and honors
Award | Year | |
---|---|---|
College
| ||
NCAA Division I National Champion
|
1995
|
|
All-Hockey East All-Star | 1995–96 | |
AHCA East Second-Team All-American | 1995–96 | |
All-Hockey East All-Star | 1996–97 | |
AHCA East First-Team All-American | 1996–97 | |
All- All-Tournament Team
|
1997
|
[43] |
All-Hockey East First Team | 1997–98 | |
AHCA East First-Team All-American | 1997–98 | |
NHL | ||
All-Rookie Team | 1999 | |
Calder Memorial Trophy | 1999 | |
Stanley Cup champion | 2001 | [44] |
See also
- Notable families in the NHL
References
- ^ Power, Kevin (February 5, 2021). "Rangers Promote Chris Drury to Associate GM". Blueshirt Banter. SB Nation. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
- ^ a b "RANGERS ANNOUNCE PERSONNEL CHANGES IN HARTFORD". American Hockey League. May 16, 2017.
- ^ a b c d Traikos, Michael (April 20, 2007). "'Captain Clutch' walks softly with big stick". National Post. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
- ^ Looney, Douglas (August 3, 2015). "SI Vault: Wonderkid Chris Drury a Little League hero and hockey champ". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2019. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
- ^ "At the Little League World Series". Sports Illustrated. September 4, 1989. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- ^ "iwasallstate.com at Directnic". www.iwasallstate.com. Archived from the original on December 26, 2008.
- ^ "Fairfield Prep hockey legend Chris Drury retires from NHL". Connecticut Post. August 11, 2011.
- ^ "Official Site of the National Hockey League | NHL.com". www.nhl.com.
- ^ "BU'S Drury Named Hockey East's Top All-Time Defensive Forward". Hockey East. January 15, 2009. Archived from the original on January 8, 2010. Retrieved January 18, 2009.
- ^ a b Berkow, Ira (May 2, 2006). "For Drury, Winning Is Not The Only Thing". New York Times. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- SI.com. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
- ^ "Olympics/Paralympics". teamusa.usahockey.com.
- ^ "Buffalo-bound: Drury goes to Sabres in three-way deal". a.espncdn.com. ESPN. July 3, 2003. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- About.com. Archived from the originalon December 23, 2007. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
- ^ "Fans: Feel the power". ESPN. October 28, 2003. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- ^ "Men's Ice Hockey at the 2006 Torino Winter Games". Archived from the original on April 17, 2020.
- ^ Zinser, Lynn (May 5, 2007). "Sabres Steal Victory From Rangers". New York Times. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- ^ Allen, Kevin (May 16, 2007). "Sabres stay alive, edge Senators in Game 4". USA Today. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- ^ "Rangers ink Gomez and Drury". Associated Press. July 2, 2007. Archived from the original on December 25, 2007. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
- ^ "Drury, Briere have strong debuts". USA Today. October 5, 2007. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- ^ "Rangers 3, Devils 1". Associated Press. February 1, 2008. Retrieved August 22, 2011.
- ^ "Rangers ice Devils 5–3; advance to next round". USA Today. April 18, 2008. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- ^ Brooks, Larry (October 3, 2008). "Rangers name Drury captain". New York Post. Retrieved October 3, 2008.
- ^ "Roenick baffled that Drury named to Team USA". CTV. January 5, 2010. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Brooks, Larry (June 17, 2011). "Rangers can't buy out injured Drury". New York Post. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ "New York Rangers make Chris Drury buyout official, clear cap room – ESPN New York". Sports.espn.go.com. June 29, 2011. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ "Chris Drury retires after 12 NHL seasons". National Hockey League. August 19, 2011. Retrieved August 19, 2011.
- ^ "NY Rangers Tap Ex-NHL Player Chris Drury As Director Of Player Development". International Business Times. September 7, 2015. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ^ "Source: Rangers to promote Chris Drury to assistant general manager". September 2, 2016. Retrieved September 2, 2016.
- ^ "Sportsnet.ca: Rangers extend contracts for GM Jeff Gorton, assistant GM Chris Drury". March 7, 2020.
- ^ "Chris Drury Promoted to Associate General Manager where he made the terrible mistake of trading Pavel Buchnevich for a 4th line player, a 2022 second round pick". NHL.com. February 5, 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
- ^ Rosen, Dan (May 5, 2021). "Rangers fire president Davidson, GM Gorton". NHL.com. Retrieved May 8, 2021.
- ^ Luszczyszyn, Dom. "2021 NHL front office rankings: Fans weigh in on every team". The Athletic.
- ^ Carter, Ethan (June 26, 2023). "St. Louis Blues: Revisiting the Pavel Buchnevich Trade". The Hockey Writers.
- ^ "Lightning, Rangers, Avalanche GMs up for Jim Gregory Award". June 21, 2022.
- ^ Thomson, Josh. "The NHL's $35 Million Man | BU Today | Boston University". Bu.edu. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ Vogl, John (December 17, 2015). "Drury embraces limelight again on special night". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
- ^ "Drury: The life lessons of Little League". StamfordAdvocate. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
- ^ "Colony Grill Brings Famous "Hot Oil" Pizzas To Maryland". colony grill.com. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
- ^ Hartz, Brian (March 1, 2023). "Colony Grill brings taste of Connecticut to Tampa Bay". Business Observer. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
- ^ a b "Men's Ice Hockey Career Records". Archived from the original on January 2, 2011.
- ^ "NCAA Frozen Four Records" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved June 19, 2013.
- British Broadcasting Corporation. June 10, 2001. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- Chris Drury at the United States Olympic Team at the Wayback Machine (archived May 28, 2006)
- Chris Drury at Olympedia
- Chris Drury at Olympics.com