Paul Coffey

Paul Coffey was born on June 1, 1961 in Weston, Ontario, Canada. He played in the Toronto minor hockey system and moved up to the Sault St. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL. Coffey was drafted in the 1st round, 6th overall in 1980 by the Edmonton Oilers. He began his NHL career with the Oilers in 1980 and by his second season had emerged as one of the premier offensive defenseman in the NHL. He was a fast and graceful skater with an amazing knack for scoring points. He scored over 100 points five times in his career, including two 40+ goal seasons in Edmonton. Coffey's stay in Edmonton was short-lived as he was unable to re-negotiate his contract in 1987. He was traded along with Dave Hunter and Wayne Van Dorp to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Craig Simpson, Dave Hannan, Moe Mantha and Chris Joseph.

Coffey didn't miss a beat as he moved to the Penguins, playing on an emerging offensive powerhouse featuring Mario Lemieux. He led the Pens to their first every Stanley Cup championship in 1991 but was dealt to the Los Angeles Kings the following season. Paul Coffey would play in LA for one more season before being dealt to the Detroit Red Wings. In the twilight of his career, Coffey was no stranger to trades and signings as he made his way around the league playing with the Hartford Whalers, Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks, Carolina Hurricanes, and the Boston Bruins. Even though he played more games with teams other than the Edmonton Oilers, Paul Coffey is still associated with the high scoring Oiler teams of the early 1980s. Coffey is currently the highest scoring defenseman in NHL history and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004. The Edmonton Oilers retired Coffey's number 7 during a ceremony held at the Rexall Centre on October 18, 2005.

Here is a summary of Paul Coffey's NHL accomplishments;

Year    Team                 GP   G   A   Pts   Pim
1980-81 Edmonton Oilers      74   9  23    32   130  
1981-82 Edmonton Oilers      80  29  60    89   106
1982-83 Edmonton Oilers      80  29  67    96    87 
1983-84 Edmonton Oilers      80  40  86   126   104
1984-85 Edmonton Oilers      80  37  84   121    97 
1985-86 Edmonton Oilers      79  48  90   138   120
1986-87 Edmonton Oilers      59  17  50    67    49 
1987-88 Pittsburgh Penguins  46  15  52    67    93
1988-89 Pittsburgh Penguins  75  30  83   113   193
1989-90 Pittsburgh Penguins  80  29  74   103    95 
1990-91 Pittsburgh Penguins  76  24  69    93   128 
1991-92 Pittsburgh Penguins  54  10  54    64    62
1991-92 Los Angeles Kings    10   1   4     5    25 
1992-93 Los Angeles Kings    50   8  49    57    50 
1992-93 Detroit Red Wings    30   4  26    30    27
1993-94 Detroit Red Wings    80  14  63    77   106 
1994-95 Detroit Red Wings    45  14  44    58    72
1995-96 Detroit Red Wings    76  14  60    74    90 
1996-97 Hartford Whalers     20   3   5     8    18 
1996-97 Philadelphia Flyers  37   6  20    26    20 
1997-98 Philadelphia Flyers  57   2  27    29    30 
1998-99 Chicago Blackhawks   10   0   4     4     0 
1998-99 Carolina Hurricanes  44   2   8    10    28 
1999-00 Carolina Hurricanes  69  11  29    40    40 
2000-01 Boston Bruins        18   0   4     4    30 
NHL Totals                 1409 396 1135 1531  1800  



Trophies
James Norris Trophy - 3 (1985, 1986, 1995)


Championships
Stanley Cup - 4 (1984, 1985, 1987, 1991)

Team Pages:
Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins

Other Resources

The NHL and Heartland America:
Hockey's Heartland State by State