Randy McKay

Randy McKay
Born	(1967-01-25) January 25, 1967 Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight	210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb)
Position	Right wing
Shot	Right
Played for	Detroit Red Wings New Jersey Devils Dallas Stars Montreal Canadiens
NHL draft	113th overall, 1985 Detroit Red Wings
Playing career	1988–2003

Hugh Randall McKay (born January 25, 1967) is a Canadian former professional hockey player. Playing the right wing position, he played in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1988 to 2003 with the Detroit Red Wings, New Jersey Devils, Dallas Stars and Montreal Canadiens. He was commonly referred to as Randy "The Rocket" Mckay" for not only his physical playstyle and consistent double digit goal seasons, but also most notably for his "head high screamers" or hard slapshots into the upper corner of the net.

Playing career

McKay was selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the sixth round, 113th overall, of the 1985 NHL Entry Draft. He split the 1987–88, 1988–89 and 1989–90 seasons between the Red Wings and their affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL), the Adirondack Red Wings. McKay stuck with the Wings in the NHL for the 1990–91 season, appearing in 47 games. While showing a scoring touch in the AHL, McKay only scored 4 goals in 83 total games with the Red Wings and was unable to find consistent playing time. Following the season, McKay and Dave Barr were sent by rule of an arbitrator to the New Jersey Devils as compensation for the Red Wings' signing of free agent Troy Crowder. The deal did not work out for the Wings as Crowder only played in seven games for the team before incurring a serious injury. McKay developed into a solid third and fourth line player that the Wings would later covet in the latter part of the decade. It was a move that Red Wings senior vice president Jim Devellano resisted at the time and regretted later.

Although a physical presence on the ice, McKay also contributed offensively, with double-digit goal totals and a positive plus/minus most seasons (including +30 in 1997–98, fourth in the NHL). He is perhaps best remembered among Devils fans for scoring the winning goal in Game 6 of the 1995 Eastern Conference Finals against the Philadelphia Flyers; the Devils won the game 4–2 and went on to win their first Stanley Cup by upsetting the heavily-favoured Detroit Red Wings in four games.

On October 28, 2000, in a regular season game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, McKay and teammate John Madden each scored four goals in a 9–0 win for the Devils. It was the first time since 1922 that two teammates each scored four goals.

McKay was also a member of the Devils when they won the Stanley Cup in 2000 against the Dallas Stars in six games.

On March 19, 2002, McKay was traded (alongside Jason Arnott and a first-round pick in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft) to the Dallas Stars in exchange for Joe Nieuwendyk and Jamie Langenbrunner.

McKay retired after the 2002–03 season, finishing his career in his hometown as a member of the Montreal Canadiens.

Crash line

For a period of time with the New Jersey Devils, McKay was a member of "The Crash Line" alongside Bobby Holík and Mike Peluso. Head coach Jacques Lemaire created the line to counter the larger skilled players of the Eastern Conference at the time, including Eric Lindros, Cam Neely and Jaromír Jágr. The average weight of the linemates was 215 pounds, and each skater played a physical and aggressive style of hockey. The trio were part of the Devils Stanley Cup championship in 1995. Following the departure of Peluso, Holík and McKay often remained on the same line, which sometimes included Sergei Brylin.

Other

McKay is a graduate of Michigan Technological University (1984–1988).

McKay splits time between Houghton, Michigan and Marquette, Michigan as has four children: Riley, Kaitlyn, Dawson and McKenna.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1983–84	Lac St-Louis Lions	QMAAA		38	18	28	46	62		11	6	10	16	8
1984–85	Michigan Tech University	WCHA		25	4	5	9	32		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Michigan Tech University	WCHA		40	12	22	34	46		—	—	—	—	—
1986–87	Michigan Tech University	WCHA		39	5	11	16	46		—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	Michigan Tech University	WCHA		41	17	24	41	70		—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		10	0	3	3	12		6	0	4	4	0
1988–89	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		3	0	0	0	0		2	0	0	0	2
1988–89	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		58	29	34	63	170		14	4	7	11	60
1989–90	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		33	3	6	9	51		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		36	16	23	39	99		6	3	0	3	35
1990–91	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		47	1	7	8	183		5	0	1	1	41
1991–92	New Jersey Devils	NHL		80	17	16	33	246		7	1	3	4	10
1992–93	New Jersey Devils	NHL		73	11	11	22	206		5	0	0	0	16
1993–94	New Jersey Devils	NHL		78	12	15	27	244		20	1	2	3	24
1994–95	New Jersey Devils	NHL		33	5	7	12	44		19	8	4	12	11
1995–96	New Jersey Devils	NHL		76	11	10	21	145		—	—	—	—	—
1996–97	New Jersey Devils	NHL		77	9	18	27	109		10	1	1	2	0
1997–98	New Jersey Devils	NHL		74	24	24	48	86		6	0	1	1	0
1998–99	New Jersey Devils	NHL		70	17	20	37	143		7	3	2	5	2
1999–2000	New Jersey Devils	NHL		67	16	23	39	80		23	0	6	6	9
2000–01	New Jersey Devils	NHL		77	23	20	43	50		19	6	3	9	8
2001–02	New Jersey Devils	NHL		55	6	7	13	65		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Dallas Stars	NHL		14	1	4	5	7		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		75	6	13	19	72		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				932	162	201	363	1731		123	20	23	43	123

External links

• Randy McKay career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
• McKay's OT winner in Game 4 of the 1995 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals
• Game 6 game winning goal in the 1995 Conference Finals