| Craig Simpson | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Simpson in 2016 | |||
| Born | (1967-02-15)February 15, 1967 (age 58) | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb) | ||
| Position | Left Wing | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for | Pittsburgh Penguins Edmonton Oilers Buffalo Sabres | ||
| NHL draft | 2nd overall,1985 Pittsburgh Penguins | ||
| Playing career | 1985–1996 | ||
Craig Andrew Simpson (born February 15, 1967) is aCanadian former professionalice hockeywinger who played 10 seasons in theNational Hockey League for thePittsburgh Penguins,Edmonton Oilers and theBuffalo Sabres. He is currently the lead colour commentator withSportsnet forHockey Night in Canada andToronto Maple Leafs' Sportsnet regional broadcasts.
As a youth, Simpson played in the 1979Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with aminor ice hockey team fromOakridge Acres.[1]
Simpson played collegiate hockey for theMichigan State Spartans of theNCAA from 1983–84 to 1984–85.[2][3] Simpson skipped the third grade, then took his grade 11 and 12 course load simultaneously allowing him to start college at age 16.[4] He became the first 16-year old to play Varsity hockey in the United States[5] and led the team in scoring as a freshman. Then in his second year, his draft-eligible season, he exploded for 31 goals and 84 points in just 42 games. This performance made him the number one ranked prospect heading into the 1985 NHL Entry Draft according to Central Scouting.[6]
The Toronto Maple Leafs held the first overall draft pick in the draft, but their pre-draft meeting with Simpson and his family did not go well.The Globe and Mail quoted Simpson discussing the meeting: "I had a lot of negative feelings about that first meeting and people told me a lot of negative things about Toronto so it was tough going."[7] Ultimately the Leafs passed on Simpson and selectedWendel Clark with the first overall selection leaving Simpson available for the Penguins at number two.
Simpson was drafted in the first round, second overall, by thePittsburgh Penguins in the1985 NHL Entry Draft. As an 18-year-old rookie, he scored 11 goals playing right wing (shifting from his natural centre ice position) with veteransDoug Shedden andTerry Ruskowski.[8] then more than doubled that total in his second year with 26 goals. His third season saw him slotted on a line with superstarMario Lemieux and Simpson began to fill the net 13 goals and 26 points in his first 21 games to start the 1987–88 season before a blockbuster trade would take him off the wing of one of hockey's superstars and land on the wing with another. On November 24, 1987, Simpson, along withDave Hannan,Chris Joseph andMoe Mantha were shipped to Edmonton in exchange forPaul Coffey,Wayne Van Dorp andDave Hunter.
Simpson continued to blossom in Edmonton, shifting to the left wing and playing on a line with futureHall of FamersMark Messier andGlenn Anderson. He scored a career-high 56 regular season goals (becoming the first player in NHL history to score 50 goals in a season split between two teams; Pittsburgh and Edmonton)[9] during the1987–88 season, and 13 more in the playoffs. His 13th and final goal of that postseason was set up byWayne Gretzky and would prove to be the final point recorded by The Great One in an Oiler sweater.[10] He won twoStanley Cups with the Oilers, in 1988 and 1990. In the spring of 1990, he led the playoffs with 16 goals (including the Cup-winning goal) in 22 games and tied with teammate Mark Messier for the points lead with 31. The Oilers had another playoff run in 1992, advancing to the Conference Finals, but Simpson was sidelined in game one of the playoffs after aLarry Robinson check separated his shoulder.[11] In 1992–93, he missed games with a strained back which was the beginning of back issues that would plague him the rest of his career. He was in and out of the Oilers lineup that year as the back issues would flare up and force him to the sidelines on multiple occasions before a protruding disc in his back ended his season.[12]
That summer, Simpson became a free agent and turned down the Oilers offer of the same salary he had previously made. On July 16, 1993, theSan Jose Sharks presented Simpson with an offer sheet which he accepted, joining the club as a free agent. However, the Oilers protested the deal that would see Simpson earn just $130,000 per season (the NHL minimum) while receiving a sizeable $1,790,000 "reporting bonus" for merely showing up at Sharks training camp. The unique structure of the deal would see the Oilers receive no compensation for losing Simpson.[13] Upon further review, the league found that the Sharks offer was illegally structured and invalidated the contract.[14] When rumours began to swirl that the Buffalo Sabres were also preparing an offer sheet for Simpson, the Oilers instead traded him there.
Simpson was traded to the Sabres in exchange forJozef Cierny. In Buffalo, Simpson was slotted onto a line with Sabres starsPat LaFontaine andAlexander Mogilny, and he found the back of the net in his first game with them,[15] but it didn't take long for his back issues to flare up again. Simpson suffered a serious back injury in a game against theTampa Bay Lightning on December 1, 1993. He returned on March 8 but re-aggravated the injury and missed the rest of the season and the playoffs. He was limited to just 22 games that year and the following year suited up for just 24 more before it became clear that the issues with his back would make playing at the NHL level impossible. "The last three years in the National Hockey League for me were probably as painful a hell as I've lived."[16] At just age 28, he retired as a player with Buffalo buying out the final year of his contract. He finished with 497 career NHL points.
Arguably one of the most proficient snipers in NHL history, he holds the record for best career shooting percentage (minimum 800 shots) with 23.66%. He also holds the record for best career playoff shooting percentage (minimum 80 shots) with 33.65%, well ahead of second placeJake Guentzel. In his outstanding 1987–88 season, he posted a 32.26% shooting percentage to go along with his career-high 56 goals;Charlie Simmer is the only other player in NHL history to top 50 goals and a 30% shooting percentage in a single season.[citation needed]
After retiring as a player, Simpson joinedFox television as a colour commentator. In 1998, Simpson joinedCTV Sportsnet as a colour commentator forEdmonton Oilers regional games, as well as the network's weekly national broadcasts. He left in 2003 to become an assistant coach with the Oilers. After the2006–07 season, he resigned from his position with the club to take a job as a colour commentator forCBC Television, alongside former Sportsnet partnerJim Hughson.[17][18] Beginning in the 2008–09 season, the duo are the leadHockey Night in Canada broadcast team and called theNHL All-Star Game, theWinter Classic, the top Conference Final, and theStanley Cup Finals.[19][20] WhenRogers Media gained the NHL rights in 2014, the pair shifted to and re-joiningSportsnet, until Hughson retired from hockey broadcasting.[21] Simpson is currently partnered withChris Cuthbert, starting with the2021–22 NHL season.[22]
Simpson is also the former colour commentator for the EA Sports NHL franchise, along withplay-by-play partner Hughson. He also appears in TV commercials and print ads for Carpet Superstores in Edmonton.
On March 22, 2008, Hughson and Simpson called the NHL game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Colorado Avalanche at 1 p.m. MDT. They boarded a chartered plane to Calgary, where the pair announced the third game of theHockey Night in Canada triple-header between the Calgary Flames and the Minnesota Wild at 8 p.m. MDT. This is believed to be a first in the National Hockey League.[23][24]
Simpson joined his former team, the Edmonton Oilers, in 2005 and served as an assistant coach of the team. He helped lead the team to theStanley Cup Finals in the2005–06 season.
In 2009, Simpson participated in the first season of CBC'sBattle of the Blades, a made-for-TVfigure-skating competition that paired eight former NHL stars with female figure skaters. Simpson and his partner,Jamie Salé, won the competition[25] on November 16, 2009. On November 7, 2013, Simpson was inducted into the London (Ontario) Sports Hall of Fame.
Simpson is the son of CanadianOlympic athlete Marion Simpson. He is also the younger brother of formerCHL Player of the YearDave Simpson and younger brother of Rogers Sportsnet reporterChristine Simpson.
On June 21, 2012, Simpson married Canadian figure skaterJamie Salé, whom he had "known for years from theEdmonton skating scene".[26] They had been paired as partners in late 2009 for thefirst season of theCBC showBattle of the Blades, which they won.[27] Simpson and Salé have one daughter, born on July 7, 2013.[28] Through this marriage, Simpson is also astepfather to Salé's son Jesse Pelletier (born September 30, 2007), from her first marriage to skating partnerDavid Pelletier.[25][29] He also has three children from a previous marriage,[30] including sonDillon, who was drafted by theEdmonton Oilers in the 4th round of the2011 NHL Entry Draft[31][32] and spent the majority of his professional career in theAmerican Hockey League.[31][33]
By July 2021, Simpson and Salé were no longer living together, and Salé filed for divorce in 2022.[34][35]
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| All-CCHAFirst Team | 1984–85 | [36] |
| AHCAWest First-Team All-American | 1984–85 | [37] |
| CCHAAll-Tournament Team | 1985 | [38] |
| Stanley Cup champion | 1988,1990 |
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1981–82 | London Diamonds | WOHL | 41 | 23 | 22 | 45 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | London Diamonds | WOHL | 42 | 47 | 64 | 111 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1983–84 | Michigan State University | CCHA | 43 | 14 | 43 | 57 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Michigan State University | CCHA | 42 | 31 | 53 | 84 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 76 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1986–87 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 72 | 26 | 25 | 51 | 57 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1987–88 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 21 | 13 | 13 | 26 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1987–88 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 59 | 43 | 21 | 64 | 43 | 19 | 13 | 6 | 19 | 26 | ||
| 1988–89 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 66 | 35 | 41 | 76 | 80 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 1989–90 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 80 | 29 | 32 | 61 | 180 | 22 | 16 | 15 | 31 | 8 | ||
| 1990–91 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 75 | 30 | 27 | 57 | 66 | 18 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 12 | ||
| 1991–92 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 79 | 24 | 37 | 61 | 80 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1992–93 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 60 | 24 | 22 | 46 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 22 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 24 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 634 | 247 | 250 | 497 | 659 | 67 | 36 | 32 | 68 | 56 | ||||
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Pittsburgh Penguins first-round draft pick 1985 | Succeeded by |
