Marty McSorley's Kevo

Marty McSorley has always been an NHL tough guy. For most of his career his job was to protect Wayne Gretzky. It is a job that only two have held on a regular basis. McSorley did it in both Edmonton and Los Angeles. He is more then just a tough guy, as he can play both wing and defense, and although he has never put up the kind of numbers that Gretzky has, he can contribute offensively.



McSorley grew up one of ten children living on a family farm in Cayuga, Ontario. All the McSorley's were tough. The McSorley file at the local hockey league was the thickest due to the number of kids and the amount of trouble they got in on the ice. On the family farm, McSorley learned traditional values and labor-negotiating skills. He and his siblings had chores to do on the farm and watching television except for Hockey Night in Canada was pretty much prohibited. He learned his negotiating skills one summer when he and his brother needed new work boots. His father wanted the boys to buy the boots themselves, but McSorley argued that since his father wanted them to work on the farm and that they needed the boots to do so, the employer, his father, should buy the boots. McSorley won his first labor negotiation session which would help him later on when he would represent the Player's Association at the table against the owners.



McSorley was signed as a free agent by the Pittsburgh Penguins, but he was never able to fit in with the team. In 1986, the Penguins traded him to the Edmonton Oilers, a move that would give McSorely's career a new life. His first season in Edmonton he won the Stanley Cup, although he did not play much during the regular season. By the time he won his second Stanley Cup in1988, he was part of a close-knit team. Yet that summer the unexpected happened. The Oilers traded Wayne Gretzky to Los Angeles and Gretzky insisted McSorley was part of the deal. In Los Angeles, McSorley was able to continue his roll as Gretzky's protector. In 1993, the Kings advanced to the Stanley Cup finals, but McSorley was caught with an illegal stick and Montreal scored on the ensuing power play and took control of the series.



After the illegal stick, McSorley was traded back to the Pittsburgh Penguins, but a few months later the Kings realized that was a mistake and he was traded back to Los Angeles. After Gretzky was traded to St. Louis in 1996, McSorley was traded to the New York Rangers, where he played only nine games plus four playoff games before he was traded to San Jose in the offseason. After two seasons in San Jose, McSorley returned to Edmonton as a free agent. He played just one season before signing as a free agent by the Boston Bruins.
Climb to Fame
Tough-minded forward who was given the longest suspension in NHL history.
Work History
(02/21/2000) Is involved in a stick incident against Vancouver forward Donald Brashear in which McSorley hits Brashear over the head with his stick in the final seconds of game against Vancouver. Brashear is knocked unconscious. McSorley is suspended.

(2000) Signs as a free agent by the Boston Bruins.

(1999) Signs as a free agent by the Edmonton Oilers.

(1998) Scores 12 points and 140 PIMS.

(1997) Is traded from the New York Rangers to the San Jose Sharks. Scores 16 points with 186 PIMs.

(1996) Is traded in March to the New York Rangers from the Los Angeles Kings. Scores 33 points with 169 PIMs.

(1995) Scores 21 points. Is on the negotiating committee for the NHLPA during the lockout. Plays with the Gretzky All-Star team in Europe during the lockout.

(1994) Is traded in the 1993 offseason to the Pittsburgh Penguins, then in February traded back to Los Angeles. Scores 31 points with 194 PIMs.

(1993) Scores 41 points, leads the league with 399 PIMs. Helps the Kings to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the Finals, an illegal stick penalty on him cost the Kings the Stanley Cup.

(1992) Scores 29 poitns and 268 PIM's.

(1991) Scored 39 points and 221 PIM's.

(1990) Scores 36 points and 322 PIM's.

(1989) Scores 27 points and 350 PIMs.

(1988) Scores 26 points and 233 PIMs. Wins the Stanley Cup with the Edmonton Oilers. In the offseason traded to the Los Angeles Kings with Wayne Gretzky in one of the biggest deals in sports history.

(1987) Scores 6 points and 159 PIMs. Wins the Stanley Cup.

(1986) Is traded from the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Edmonton Oilers. Has 15 PIMs for Pittsburgh.

(1985) Has 234 PIM's.

(1982) Signs as a free agent by the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Affiliations
National Hockey League Players' Association
Awards
Marty McSorley has also won numerous Awards