After spending most of my day away from modern conveniences such as internet access, radio or TV, I decided to sit down late tonight and check in on Lord Stanley's Blog to see what was what. Maybe I missed another signing, or some news from the organizational meetings taking place over in Raleigh-wood. Boy Howdy!
After 20 years in the NHL, and 13 with the Carolina Hurricanes, Glen Wesley has decided to call it a career. I cannot say that this announcement was completely unexpected, but it was still bittersweet. Wesley was/is a classy guy. A quiet warrior and leader on the ice and a gentleman off it. He will be missed, but I certainly do not begrudge him his the right to end his career on his own terms.
Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford announced that though his playing days may be over, Wesley will be staying with the team in a new front office position created just for him - Director Of Defensive Development. This is both a classy and SMART move by the organization. Classy in that they are keeping one of their long tenured and most respected players involved with the team after their playing days are over (see Ron Francis as well), and smart in that not many folks could claim better expertise on how to get the most out of your talents as a defenseman in the NHL than Glen Wesley. He already has the respect and admiration of the youngsters on the Cane's blueline, especially Tim Gleason who has always been quick to point out the influence of Wesley's leadership and counsel in his development over the last two seasons.
Rutherford also announced that Wesley's number 2 will be the second Canes' jersey to be raised Up To The Rafters next season. A well deserved and hard earned honor. As a fan, you could always count on one thing when it came to Glen Wesley - that he was going to give you everything he had every time he stepped onto the ice. It may sound cliched, but that's really all you can ask of any player.
Congratulations to Glen Wesley on a stellar career. UTTR wishes you and your family nothing but the best for the future. We will miss seeing you on the ice, but are looking forward to having you as a "neighbor" for hopefully a long long time.
NOTES:
-Wesley finished his career in 6th place on the all time games played (1497) list amongst NHL defensemen.
-Wesley was the last remaining player who was on the Canes' roster from their inaugural season in North Carolina.
-Wesley played in 4 Stanley Cup Finals, 2 with the Hurricanes and 2 with the Boston Bruins.
-Drafted third overall in the 1987 NHL Draft by the Boston Bruins, Wesley made the NHL straight out of juniors and was named to the All-Rookie team in 1987 with 37 points (7g, 30 assists)and a +/- rating of +21. He was also named to the the All Star game in 1989 and was considered one of the up and coming offensive defensemen in the league.
-Wesley was traded from the Bruins to the Hartford Whalers in 1994 in exchange for 3 draft picks, one of which ironically turned out to be Sergei Samsonov (1997).
-Once with the Whalers, Wesley was asked to be a number one, shut-down defenseman, and in the selfless way that would come to signify his career, he gave up his personal offensive numbers (which had been quite impressive up to that point) for the good of the team.
-Wesley's 913 games played for the Whalers/Hurricanes franchise is second only to Ron Francis in team history, and his 728 games in a Hurricanes jersey are the most by any player.
There are a couple of nice stories up on the Canes' website regarding Wesley's retirement (which is where I culled a lot of this notes/statistics). You can check them out HERE and HERE.
-m
(photo: schultzimages.com)
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