Mark Messier Professional hockey player, forward Date of Birth: 18.01.1961 Country: Canada

Biography of Mark Messier

Mark Messier is a professional ice hockey player who is best known as a forward and has won six Stanley Cups throughout his career. He began playing in the National Hockey League (NHL) in 1979 and retired after the 2003/2004 season. However, he fell just 12 games short of surpassing Gordie Howe's record for the most games played in the NHL.

Despite starting his illustrious career in Edmonton, Messier left the team at the age of 44 due to a 1.5-year lockout and was unable to regain his form. He was heavily sought after by the Edmonton team.

In January 2006, before a match between the New York Rangers and the Edmonton Oilers, Messier's jersey number 11 was retired and raised to the rafters of Madison Square Garden. He spent 10 out of his 25-year career as a player with the Rangers and led the team to victory in the Stanley Cup in 1994.

Messier participated in the NHL All-Star Game 15 times throughout his career, in the years 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, and 2004. He also reached the finals of the World Cup in 1996.

As a highly decorated player, Messier won several individual awards including the Hart Trophy in 1990 and 1992, the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1984, and the Lester B. Pearson Award in 1990 and 1992. He was a three-time winner of the Stanley Cup with the Edmonton Oilers in 1984, 1985, and 1987, as well as a two-time winner with the Rangers in 1990 and 1994.

Messier was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto in 2007, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.