Dany Heatley

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Dany Heatley : biography

January 21, 1981 –

Daniel James Heatley (born January 21, 1981) is a Canadian professional ice hockey winger for the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL). Originally drafted by the Atlanta Thrashers second overall in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, he won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the top NHL rookie in 2002. However, after being responsible for a car accident in September 2003 that killed teammate and close friend Dan Snyder, he requested a trade and was subsequently dealt to the Ottawa Senators.

One of the Senators’ perennial leading scorers during his tenure with Ottawa, Heatley set franchise records for single-season goals (50), which he achieved in back to back seasons in 2005-2006 and 2006-2007, and points (105), during the 2006-2007 season. He played on the left wing with line mates Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson. The line was consistently among the highest scoring in the NHL after its formation in the 2005-2006 season, with the trio combining for a total of 296 points that season.

Heatley has represented Team Canada in six World Championships, two Olympics and one World Cup of Hockey, as well as two World Junior Championships. In 2008, he surpassed Marcel Dionne as Canada’s all-time leader in goals and Steve Yzerman as the all-time leader in points for the World Championships.

At the end of the 2008–09 season, Heatley demanded a trade from the Senators. A deal was in place to send Heatley to the Edmonton Oilers on June 30, but Heatley refused to waive his no-trade clause. On September 12, he was dealt to the San Jose Sharks in return for Milan Michálek, Jonathan Cheechoo and a second-round draft pick in 2010. After playing two seasons in San Jose, he was traded to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for forward Martin Havlat.

Playing career

Amateur career

Playing minor hockey in the Alberta Midget Hockey League (AMHL) for the Calgary Buffaloes, Heatley tallied 91 points in 36 games in 1997–98 to earn the Harry Allen Memorial Trophy as the league’s top scorer. He went on to lead the Buffaloes to the bronze medal at the 1998 Air Canada Cup, where he finished as both Top Scorer and Tournament MVP.

As Heatley chose to play college hockey in the United States, he joined the Junior A ranks in 1998–99 with the Calgary Canucks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) to maintain his NCAA-eligibility (as opposed to playing major junior). Recording 70 goals and 126 points in 60 games, he was named AJHL and Canadian Junior A Player of the Year.

The following season, he began his two-year tenure with the University of Wisconsin Badgers of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). As a freshman, he was named to the WCHA First All-Star Team and NCAA West Second All-American Team, in addition to earning WCHA Rookie of the Year honours. In the off-season, he was drafted second overall by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, behind goaltender Rick DiPietro. After his sophomore year, in which he was named to the 2001 WCHA Second All-Star and NCAA West First All-American Teams, Heatley chose to forgo his final two years of college eligibility to turn pro with the Thrashers.

Atlanta Thrashers (2001–2005)

Heatley made his NHL debut with the Thrashers in 2001–02, leading all rookies in points (67) and assists (41) and was second in goal-scoring (26) behind teammate Ilya Kovalchuk. He won the Calder Memorial Trophy for rookie of the year, for which Kovalchuk was also nominated.

In the 2002–03 season, Heatley emerged as an NHL superstar. Finishing ninth in overall league scoring, Heatley tallied 41 goals and 89 points in 77 games, his best statistical season with the Thrashers.

On September 29, 2003, Heatley was seriously injured after he lost control of the Ferrari 360 Modena he was driving. The car struck a wall, splitting the car in half and ejecting him and his passenger, teammate Dan Snyder. Heatley suffered a broken jaw, a minor concussion, a bruised lung, and a bruised kidney, and he tore three ligaments in his right knee; Snyder was critically injured, with a skull fracture, and died six days later, on October 5, of sepsis. Heatley was charged with vehicular homicide; he pleaded guilty to second-degree vehicular homicide, driving too fast for conditions, failure to maintain a lane, and speeding. He admitted to drinking prior to the incident, but his blood-alcohol content was below the legal limit. He was sentenced to three years probation, and the judge, Rowland W. Barnes, required the court to approve Heatley’s vehicle, which could not have more than six cylinders and would not surpass 70 mph (112 km/h). Heatley avoided having to go to trial as part of a plea deal that dropped the first-degree charge of vehicular homicide.