Six championships, but two carried a distinction all their own. When Mark Messier lifted the Stanley Cup with the New York Rangers in 1994, he became the first-and remains the only-player to captain two different NHL franchises to the title. Four years earlier, he had led the Edmonton Oilers to the same finish.
The captaincy became his calling card, sometimes overshadowing the rest: the speed, the punishing physical game and the 1,887 regular-season points. His career stretched from the final season of the World Hockey Association to the NHL’s salary-cap era, although his last game came before the lockout that ushered it in.
Alberta beginnings and an early professional education
Born on January 18, 1961, in St. Albert, Alberta, Mark John Douglas Messier grew up in a hockey family. His father, Doug, played professionally and later coached; his older brother, Paul, also reached the professional ranks.
Messier’s route was less orderly than the familiar junior-to-draft progression. He played for the Spruce Grove Mets in 1976-77 and the St. Albert Saints the following season, competing in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. A brief appearance with the Portland Winterhawks during the 1978 Western Canada Hockey League playoffs added another stop.
By 17, he was playing against professionals. He joined the Indianapolis Racers in 1978, but the struggling WHA franchise folded during the season. He continued with the Cincinnati Stingers, recording 11 points in 47 games in 1978-79.
Those numbers did not announce a future scoring star. They did give a teenager an education in the pace and physical demands of professional hockey. Edmonton selected him 48th overall in the third round of the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, as the Oilers moved from the WHA into the NHL.
Finding his place in Edmonton
Messier did not arrive as a finished product. His first NHL season brought 33 points in 75 games, along with a four-game assignment to the Houston Apollos of the Central Hockey League.
The development came quickly after that. Playing primarily on the wing early in his career, he scored 50 goals in 1981-82 and earned his first NHL First All-Star Team selection. Two more consecutive selections followed.
Edmonton was assembling an unusually deep attacking team around Wayne Gretzky, with Messier offering something different from its chief playmaker. He could accelerate through open ice, drive through contact and make defenders pay for trying to stop him.
That aggression also crossed disciplinary lines. During the 1983-84 season, he received a six-game suspension for striking Vancouver’s Thomas Gradin over the helmet with his stick.
The season ended with a more lasting distinction. Edmonton defeated the New York Islanders to win its first Stanley Cup in 1984, and Messier received the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP after contributing 26 points in 19 games. Later that year, he helped Canada win the Canada Cup.
Further Oilers championships followed in 1985, 1987 and 1988. He also played on Canada’s victorious 1987 Canada Cup team. By then, he was no longer simply one of Edmonton’s supporting stars.
Taking the captaincy after Gretzky
Gretzky’s trade to Los Angeles in August 1988 changed the Oilers and placed greater responsibility on Messier, who succeeded him as captain.
The response took more than a season. Edmonton lost in the opening round of the 1989 playoffs, and Messier subsequently helped Canada win silver at the World Championship. In 1989-90, however, he produced 129 regular-season points, his career high, and won both the Hart Memorial Trophy as NHL MVP and the Lester B. Pearson Award, voted on by fellow players.
The playoffs tested Edmonton immediately. Down three games to one against Winnipeg in the first round, the Oilers recovered and eventually reached the final, where they defeated Boston in five games.
It was Messier’s fifth Stanley Cup and his first as captain. Across his Edmonton regular-season career, he accumulated 392 goals and 1,034 points in 851 games.
Another Canada Cup title followed in 1991. Then came the move that would define the second half of his NHL career.
New York, a guarantee and the end of a drought
On October 4, 1991, Edmonton traded Messier to the Rangers in a deal that brought Bernie Nicholls, Steven Rice and Louie DeBrusk to the Oilers.
New York had not won the Stanley Cup since 1940. Its new captain could not erase that history immediately, but his first season established his influence: 107 points, another Hart Trophy and another Pearson Award.
The breakthrough came in 1994, with a considerable scare along the way.
Trailing New Jersey three games to two in the Eastern Conference Final, Messier publicly guaranteed a Rangers victory in Game 6. New York then fell behind 2-0. Alex Kovalev began the comeback before the captain scored three third-period goals in a 4-2 win.
The guarantee became famous because he backed it up. The Rangers still needed Stéphane Matteau’s double-overtime winner in Game 7 to reach the final, then seven more games to beat Vancouver.
When Messier accepted the Cup, the Rangers’ 54-year wait was over. He had contributed 30 points in 23 playoff games, including New York’s third goal in the 3-2 championship-clinching victory.
Vancouver and a final return to the Rangers
After six seasons in New York, Messier signed with Vancouver as a free agent in 1997. The move brought a celebrated captain to another demanding market, but it did not produce another championship run.
The Canucks missed the playoffs in all three of his seasons there. He recorded 52 goals and 162 points in 207 games-respectable production, but far from the transformation the club had sought.
He returned to the Rangers in 2000. There were no further playoff appearances, although significant personal milestones remained. In November 2003, he passed Gordie Howe to move into second place on the NHL’s career points list, behind Gretzky.
His last NHL game came in March 2004. After the canceled 2004-05 season, he announced his retirement on September 12, 2005.
The final regular-season ledger read 1,756 games, 694 goals, 1,193 assists and 1,887 points. In the playoffs, he added 109 goals and 295 points across 236 games. At retirement, he stood second in career regular-season points and third in games played.
The Hockey Hall of Fame inducted him in 2007, his first year of eligibility.
More than a physical presence
At 6-foot-2 and approximately 211 pounds, the left-shooting forward had the build to make “The Moose” an appropriate nickname. His skating made that size more difficult to handle: he could carry the puck at speed rather than merely establish position and wait for it.
His 1,193 assists also complicate the familiar image of an intimidating captain. Messier was a creator as well as a finisher, capable of drawing defenders toward him and finding the space they had left.
He played both left wing and center during his career. The physical edge remained, but so did the offensive judgment that allowed him to contribute long after his highest-scoring seasons.
Family, broadcasting and life beyond the rink
Public biographies identify Messier and his wife, Kim, as the parents of a son, Douglas, and a daughter, Jacqueline. He also has an older son, Lyon, from a previous relationship. The family has made its home in Florida.
His business interests have taken him farther south. He has been an owner of the Runaway Hill Club on Harbour Island in the Bahamas, a setting considerably quieter than Madison Square Garden on a playoff night.
Hockey nevertheless remained central to his working life. He served as a special assistant in the Rangers’ front office and became an Oilers adviser in 2014. Broadcasting offered another way to stay involved, including analyst work for ESPN.
He also partnered with Cascade on the Messier Project and its M11 hockey helmet, an equipment-development venture focused on player protection. That should not be confused with a guarantee against concussion.
His charitable involvement includes Answer the Call, which supports the families of fallen New York City first responders. It is a connection to the city that endured beyond his playing years, alongside the championship for which Rangers supporters remember him.
FAQ
How many Stanley Cups did Mark Messier win?
He won six: with Edmonton in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988 and 1990, and with the Rangers in 1994.
Why is his captaincy record unique?
He is the only player to captain two different NHL franchises to Stanley Cup championships: Edmonton and New York.
Which NHL teams did he play for?
He played for the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks, including two separate stints with New York.
How many career points did he score?
He recorded 1,887 regular-season points and another 295 in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
When did he retire?
He announced his retirement on September 12, 2005. His final NHL game was played in March 2004.
Is he in the Hockey Hall of Fame?
Yes. He was inducted in 2007 after a career that included six Stanley Cups, two Hart Trophies and a Conn Smythe Trophy.
