Al MacInnis
Hardest shot in the league; Conn Smythe winner in 1989; Norris Trophy winner in 1999; Hall of Fame inductee in 2007.
Allan MacInnis (born July 11, 1963) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who was a defenceman for 23 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Calgary Flames (1981–1994) and St. Louis Blues (1994–2004). A first round selection of the Flames in the 1981 NHL entry draft, he went on to become a twelve-time All-Star. He was named the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the most valuable player of the playoffs in 1989 after leading the Flames to the Stanley Cup championship. He was voted the winner of the James Norris Memorial Trophy in 1999 as the top defenceman in the league while a member of the Blues. In 2017, MacInnis was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.
- Position
- Defenseman
- Stanley Cup
- 1989 Champion
- Playoff MVP
- Conn Smythe Trophy Winner
- Hall of Fame
- Inducted 2007
- Draft Year
- 1981 by Flames
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
MacInnis was most famous for having the hardest shot in the league. He tied Bobby Orr's Ontario Hockey League (OHL) record for goals by a defenceman, and won one OHL championship (1981) and a Memorial Cup (1982) with the Kitchener Rangers as a junior. He famously split goaltender Mike Liut's mask with a shot, and became only the fifth defenceman in NHL history to score 100 points in a season. Internationally, he was an all-star on defence as Canada won the 1991 Canada Cup and participated once in the Winter Olympics, as a member of the 2002 team that won Canada's first gold medal in 50 years.
In Their Own Story
In the 1989 Stanley Cup Final, MacInnis delivered a masterclass performance. He had four goals and five assists in six games against the Montreal Canadiens, leading the Flames to the first Stanley Cup championship in their history. His 31 points led all playoff scorers, making him the first defenceman to lead the league in postseason scoring. He finished with a 17-game scoring streak, the longest by a defenceman in NHL history. For his efforts, he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs.
Reader's Guide
An eye injury suffered early in the 2003–04 NHL season forced MacInnis into retirement. He finished his career third all-time among defencemen in goals, assists and points and was named to seven postseason all-star teams. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007, and his jersey number 2 was retired by the Blues and is honoured by the Flames. MacInnis remains a member of the Blues organization, currently serving as the team's senior advisor to the general manager. When the Blues won the Stanley Cup in 2019, he got his name engraved on the Stanley Cup for a second time.
Did You Know?
- MacInnis was born in Inverness, Nova Scotia, and grew up in Port Hood.
- He is the seventh of eight children and one of six brothers.
- His father worked as a coal miner and later as assistant manager of the arena in Port Hood.
- MacInnis developed his powerful slapshot by shooting pucks against a sheet of plywood against the family barn.
- He left home in 1979 to join the Regina Pat Blues of the SJHL.
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