| Ray Whitney | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 8, 1972 Fort Saskatchewan, AB, CAN |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
| Weight | 180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb) |
| Position | Left wing |
| Shoots | Right |
| NHL team Former teams |
Phoenix Coyotes San Jose Sharks Edmonton Oilers Florida Panthers Columbus Blue Jackets Detroit Red Wings Carolina Hurricanes |
| National team | Canada |
| NHL Draft | 23rd overall, 1991 San Jose Sharks |
| Playing career | 1991–present |
Ray Whitney (born May 8, 1972) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player currently with the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League.
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Long before Whitney played in the NHL, he and his brother Dean were stick boys for the NHL's Wayne Gretzky era Edmonton Oilers. The third stick boy with the Whitney brothers was another future Edmonton Oiler, Ryan Smyth.
During his junior career, Whitney spent three years with the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League (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.
Whitney was the second player ever drafted by the San Jose Sharks, picked in the second round (23rd overall) in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft. He started his professional career in the 1991-92 season, playing with teams in the German Deutsche Eishockey Liga 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 17 year career, including the San Jose Sharks (1991–92 to 1996–97), Edmonton Oilers (1997–98), Florida Panthers (1997–98 to 2000–01), Columbus Blue Jackets (2000–01 to 2002–03), and Detroit Red Wings (2003–04).
Whitney may be one of the most underrated players currently in the NHL, as his name is not often mentioned amongst hockey fans and hockey writers despite his consistently high point-production, which has maintained through his entire 17 year career.[1] As of the 1/3 mark of the 2011–12 NHL season, Whitney has scored 952 points in his career, placing him just short of joining the elite list of only 78 players in the 93 year history of the NHL who have scored a minimum of 1,000 points in their career. He has played in
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 with fellow Fort Saskatchewan native Mike Commodore.[2]
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 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 commentator Jeff Rimer.
Whitney is one of only 31 players in NHL history to record an overtime game-winner in a seventh game in the playoffs, which he accomplished in 1995 against the Calgary Flames while with San Jose.[3] Whitney is the only remaining member of the San Jose Sharks inaugural team (1991–92) still active in the NHL.[4]
Ray and wife Brijet married in 2000 and have 3 children; daughters Hanna (born April 2002)[5] and Harper (born April 5, 2008)[6] and son Hudson.
Whitney debuted with Team Canada at the 1998 World Championships. He recorded six points in seven games as Canada finished in sixth place. The following year, he notched seven points in 10 games at the 1999 World Championships. Canada finished out of the medals once more, losing in the semifinal to the Czech Republic. He made his next appearance at the 2003 World Championships with Canada finishing in first. Seven years later, he was named Canada's captain for the 2010 World Championship, replacing Ryan Smyth who broke his foot early in the tournament.[7]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1987–88 | Fort Saskatchewan | AMBHL | 71 | 80 | 155 | 235 | 119 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Spokane Chiefs | WHL | 71 | 17 | 33 | 50 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Spokane Chiefs | WHL | 71 | 57 | 56 | 113 | 50 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 6 | ||
| 1990–91 | Spokane Chiefs | WHL | 72 | 67 | 118 | 185 | 36 | 15 | 13 | 18 | 31 | 12 | ||
| 1991–92 | Cologne Sharks | DEL | 10 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | San Diego Gulls | IHL | 63 | 36 | 54 | 90 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1991–92 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | Kansas City Blades | IHL | 46 | 20 | 33 | 53 | 14 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 2 | ||
| 1992–93 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 26 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 61 | 14 | 26 | 40 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 8 | ||
| 1994–95 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 39 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 14 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 2 | ||
| 1995–96 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 60 | 17 | 24 | 41 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 12 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Kentucky Thoroughblades | AHL | 9 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Utah Grizzlies | IHL | 43 | 13 | 35 | 48 | 34 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | ||
| 1997–98 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 9 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 68 | 32 | 29 | 61 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 81 | 26 | 38 | 64 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 81 | 29 | 42 | 71 | 35 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2000–01 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 43 | 10 | 21 | 31 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 67 | 21 | 40 | 61 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 81 | 24 | 52 | 76 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 67 | 14 | 29 | 43 | 22 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | ||
| 2005–06 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 63 | 17 | 38 | 55 | 42 | 24 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 14 | ||
| 2006–07 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 81 | 32 | 51 | 83 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 66 | 25 | 36 | 61 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 82 | 24 | 53 | 77 | 32 | 18 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 80 | 21 | 37 | 58 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 75 | 17 | 40 | 57 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | ||
| WHL totals | 214 | 141 | 207 | 348 | 102 | 21 | 16 | 22 | 38 | 18 | ||||
| NHL totals | 1147 | 341 | 585 | 926 | 419 | 87 | 19 | 27 | 46 | 38 | ||||
| Preceded by Lyle Odelein |
Columbus Blue Jackets captain 2002–03 |
Succeeded by Luke Richardson |