Wayne Simmonds

Not to be confused with Wayne Simmons.

Wayne Simmonds
File:Wayne Simmonds cropped.jpg
Born	(1988-08-26) August 26, 1988 Scarborough, ON, CAN
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight	183 lb (83 kg; 13 st 1 lb)
Position	Right wing
Shoots	Right
NHL team Former teams	Philadelphia Flyers Los Angeles Kings
National team	Canada
NHL draft	61st overall, 2007 Los Angeles Kings
Playing career	2008–present

Wayne Simmonds (born August 26, 1988) is a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger currently playing for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is known to his teammates by the nickname Simmer.

Playing career

Simmonds grew up in Scarborough, Ontario, the third of four sons, in addition to one daughter, born to Cyril Simmonds and Wanda Mercury-Simmonds. He was banned from timbits hockey due to his skin colour.(NEGRO) Was tossed out of his first junior game when the lights went off in the rink and the refs couldnt see him. (NEGRO) Despite his proximity to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Simmonds has said that he grew up a fan primarily of the Detroit Red Wings. He is of Black Nova Scotian descent.

At age 16, Simmonds played youth hockey with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens of the Greater Toronto Hockey League in the 2004–05 season. He then moved up to junior hockey with the Brockville Braves of the Central Junior A Hockey League for the 2005–06 season. He finished his junior career playing in the Ontario Hockey League from 2006 until 2008, with the Owen Sound Attack and the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He also played for Team Canada at the 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. While playing with the Jr. Canadiens, Simmonds became friends with Chris Stewart, another black player who went on to an NHL career. The two would later purchase a house together in Toronto, where they live during the off-season.

A right-handed shooter, Simmonds was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in the second round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, as the 61st overall pick. He was one of three rookies to make the team's roster for its 2008–09 season. On October 14, 2008, in only his third career game, Simmonds scored his first career NHL goal by knocking a rebound past Jean-Sébastien Giguère of the Anaheim Ducks. During his rookie season, Simmonds became a favorite among L.A. fans for his strong work ethic on and off the ice, a trait he has said was instilled within him by his parents.

Entering his second NHL season, Simmonds was looking to increase his offensive production, having tied for the Kings' goal-scoring lead in pre-season play that year. He ultimately scored 40 points in the 2009-10 regular season, nearly doubling his point total of the previous season. Additionally, he led the team in +/- and saw substantive time as a member of the team's penalty killing unit. When the Kings unsuccessfully pursued a trade for superstar left wing Ilya Kovalchuk, then of the Atlanta Thrashers, shortly before that season's All-Star break, Simmonds was among the Kings' players whom Atlanta coveted in return.

He was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers, along with Brayden Schenn and a 2012 2nd round pick, for Mike Richards and Rob Bordson on June 23, 2011.

Banana Incident

On September 22 2011, during a preseason game in London, Ontario between the Detroit Red Wings and the Flyers, a banana was thrown on the ice while Simmonds was making a shootout attempt. This was seen as an act of racism. The following day, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman released a statement regarding the events of the previous day. "We have millions of great fans who show tremendous respect for our players and for the game," said Bettman in the statement, "the obviously stupid and ignorant action by one individual is in no way representative of our fans or the people of London, Ontario." The suspect was later identified and charged with engaging in a prohibited activity under the Trespass Act.

Homophobic slur

On September 26, 2011, just three days after the banana incident, Simmonds was recorded on video while on the sidelines during the first period of a game at the Wells Fargo Center allegedly shouting "fucking faggot" at New York Rangers left winger Sean Avery, who has been a vocal supporter of same-sex marriage rights. When asked about the incident by a reporter after the game, Simmonds did not deny having used the slur.

Reporter: On the video it looked like you might have said a particular thing to him, a slur or something. Was that the case?

Simmonds: Honestly, we were going back and forth for a while there, and I don’t recall every single thing that I did say to him. He said some things that I didn’t like, and I said some things that he didn’t like. But I can’t recall every single word I said.

Reporter: What did he say to you?

Simmonds: Things get said out there. It’s not necessary that I repeat it to the media. So I’m not going to say what he said.

Reporter: When we talked to Avery in the room he said very definitely that you called him what we’ll call a homophobic slur. And he said he didn’t think that he said anything that would have prompted that.

Simmonds: He didn’t think he said anything? I mean, he’s Sean Avery, come on now. Who knows what comes out of his mouth.

Avery was overheard by television microphones in the same period shouting other obscenities, and threatening to kill Simmonds' teammate Claude Giroux.

Although athletes such as Kobe Bryant have been fined for using homophobic slurs in similar incidents, the NHL has declined to fine Simmonds on the basis of "no evidence" and "conflicting accounts" of what occurred. A Change.org petition in protest of the NHL's response was created on Tuesday, September 27, which by the following day had accrued over 22,000 signatures.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2004–05	Toronto Jr. Canadiens	GTHL		67	32	40	72	97		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Brockville Braves	CJHL		49	24	19	43	127		7	4	2	6	12
2006–07	Owen Sound Attack	OHL		66	23	26	49	112		4	1	1	2	4
2007–08	Owen Sound Attack	OHL		29	17	22	39	43		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OHL		31	16	20	36	68		14	5	9	14	22
2008–09	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		82	9	14	23	73		—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		78	16	24	40	116		6	2	1	3	9
2010–11	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		80	14	16	30	75		6	1	2	3	20
NHL totals				240	39	54	93	264		12	3	3	6	29

External links

• Wayne Simmonds career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
• Wayne Simmonds at Hockey-Reference.com
• Wayne Simmonds player profile at NHL.com