Craig Adams (ice hockey) explained

Craig Adams
Position:Right Wing
Shoots:Right
Height Ft:6
Height In:0
Weight Lb:200
Played For:Carolina Hurricanes
Chicago Blackhawks
Pittsburgh Penguins
Birth Date:26 April 1977
Birth Place:Seria, Brunei
Career Start:1999
Career End:2015
Draft:223rd overall
Draft Year:1996
Draft Team:Hartford Whalers[1]

Craig D. Adams (born April 26, 1977) is a Bruneian-born Canadian former professional ice hockey player, who most recently played with the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League. Adams was born in Seria, Brunei, but was raised in Calgary, Alberta, residing and playing hockey in the community of Lake Bonavista. Adams won the Stanley Cup with both the Carolina Hurricanes (in 2006) and the Pittsburgh Penguins (in 2009).[2]

Playing career

Adams was selected in the 9th round, 223rd overall, in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft by the Hartford Whalers where he gained the distinction of being their last draft pick. Adams was drafted after his freshman season at Harvard University. He suffered a season-ending shoulder injury on December 27, 1997 in a game against the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Adams made his NHL debut in the 2000–01 season with the Hurricanes, who had relocated from Hartford, and had been a regular in the NHL since the 2002–03 season.

In the 2004-05 he signed for the Italian team Milano Vipers during the NHL lock-out. There he won the Italian League.

On August 25, 2005 he signed a contract with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, but was traded back to the Hurricanes on October 3, a few days before the 2005–06 NHL season began. Adams was a member of the Hurricanes 2006 Stanley Cup-winning team, becoming the first Bruneian-born player to have his name engraved on the trophy.

On January 17, 2008 Adams was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks for a conditional pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.[3]

During the 2008-09 season, Adams was claimed by the Pittsburgh Penguins off waivers from the Blackhawks on March 4, 2009.[4] Adams found a role on the fourth line and would go on to win his second Stanley Cup championship. On June 29, 2009, Adams was re-signed by the Penguins to a two-year contract.[5]

On June 9, 2011, Adams was re-signed by the Penguins to another two-year contract.[6]

On July 5, 2013, Adams was re-signed again to a two-year contract.[7] At the beginning of the 2013–14 season, on October 3, 2013, Adams scored the 50th goal of his career against Cory Schneider of the New Jersey Devils.

On April 29, 2015, after seven seasons within the organization, Adams was informed by the Pittsburgh Penguins that he would not be re-signed to another contract.[8] On January 26, 2016, after a 14-year career, Adams announced his retirement.[9]

Personal

Adams was the first NHL player to be born in Brunei. He was born in the country, as his father was an employee of Shell Oil at the time of his birth. The family settled in Calgary, Alberta shortly afterwards.[10] He attended Strathcona Tweedsmuir School for high school.

Adams is married since 2003 to his wife Anne Cellucci, a daughter of the late Paul Cellucci, former Governor of Massachusetts and US Ambassador to Canada.[11] They have three children.[9]

Adams now works as a financial advisor for hockey players at Merrill Lynch in Boston. He has pledged his brain to research on the effects of CTE.[12]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular seasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamLeagueGP PIMGP G A Pts PIM
1993–94Calgary Buffaloes AAAAMHL
1994–95Calgary CanucksAJHL40 14 24 38 82
1995–96Harvard UniversityECAC34 8 9 17 56
1996–97Harvard UniversityECAC32 6 4 10 36
1997–98Harvard UniversityECAC12 6 6 12 12
1998–99Harvard UniversityECAC31 9 14 23 53
1999–00Cincinnati CyclonesIHL73 12 12 24 1248 0 1 1 14
2000–01Cincinnati CyclonesIHL4 0 1 1 91 0 0 0 2
2000–01Carolina HurricanesNHL44 1 0 1 203 0 0 0 0
2001–02Lowell Lock MonstersAHL22 5 4 9 51
2001–02Carolina HurricanesNHL33 0 1 1 381 0 0 0 0
2002–03Carolina HurricanesNHL81 6 12 18 71
2003–04Carolina HurricanesNHL80 7 10 17 69
2004–05Milano VipersITA30 15 14 29 5715 4 7 11 26
2005–06Lowell Lock MonstersAHL13 4 3 7 20
2005–06Carolina HurricanesNHL67 10 11 21 5125 0 0 0 10
2006–07Carolina HurricanesNHL82 7 7 14 54
2007–08Carolina HurricanesNHL40 2 3 5 34
2007–08Chicago BlackhawksNHL35 2 4 6 24
2008–09Chicago BlackhawksNHL36 2 4 6 22
2008–09Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL9 0 1 1 024 3 2 5 16
2009–10Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL82 0 10 10 7213 2 1 3 15
2010–11Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL80 4 11 15 767 1 0 1 2
2011–12Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL82 5 13 18 345 0 0 0 19
2012–13Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL48 3 6 9 2815 0 1 1 10
2013–14Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL82 5 6 11 4613 1 1 2 2
2014–15Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL70 1 6 7 44
NHL totals951 55 105 160 683106 7 5 12 74
AHL totals35971671

Awards and honours

AwardYear
College
All-ECAC Hockey Rookie Team1995–96
NHL
Stanley Cup champion2005–06, 2008–09

Transactions

Notes and References

  1. Web site: NHL Entry Draft Year by Year Results. National Hockey League.
  2. Book: Fleury, Theo . Theoren Fleury . Kirstie McLellan Day . Kirstie McLellan Day . . . 2009 . 117 . 978-1-55468-239-3 .
  3. Web site: Adams traded to the Chicago Blackhawks . TSN.ca . 2008-01-17 . 2008-11-22.
  4. Web site: Pens claim Craig Adams off waivers from Chicago. penguins.nhl.com. 2009-03-04. 2009-03-04. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20090309003354/http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=412187. 2009-03-09.
  5. Web site: Penguins sign Craig Adams to two-year contract. penguins.nhl.com. 2009-06-29. 2009-06-29. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20090701002951/http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=432148&page=NewsPage&service=page. 2009-07-01.
  6. Web site: Pens Re-Sign Forward Craig Adams . penguins.nhl.com . 2011-06-09 . 2011-06-09.
  7. Web site: Penguins Re-Sign Forward Craig Adams. penguins.nhl.com. 2013-07-05. 2013-07-05.
  8. Web site: Pens tell long-serving Adams he won't be back next year. NBC Sports. 29 April 2015 . 29 April 2015.
  9. Web site: Adams Retires with 2 Stanley Cups and Endless Memories. The Official Site of the Pittsburgh Penguins. 26 January 2016.
  10. Web site: NHLers with bizarre birthplaces. thehockeynews.com. 2011-09-14. 2017-07-31.
  11. Web site: It's a Great Day for Hockey - May 6. penguins.nhl.com. 2009-05-06. 2009-05-06. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20090509082942/http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=421668. 2009-05-09.
  12. Web site: Westhead . Rick . Former NHLer Craig Adams pledges brain to science . www.tsn.ca . 16 November 2017 . TSN . 9 March 2021.