Rob Ray

Rob Ray was born on June 8, 1968 in Stirling, Ontario. He played his junior hockey with the Cornwall Royals of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). The Buffalo Sabres drafted Ray in the 5th round, 97th overall in the 1988 amateur entry draft. He played two full seasons with the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League (AHL), cementing his reputation as a hockey fighter with over 700 penalty minutes in 125 games. He made his NHL debut with the Sabres during the 1989-90 season and by the next year, he was a regular on the team. Standing at 6'0", Rob Ray was one of the toughest NHL hockey players through the 1990s. He combined an overall physical play with a lethal fighting ability.

Ray was well known for the several tricks he employed in getting an edge over his fellow combatants. He NHL even stepped in and began enforcing equipment rules to curb Rob's practice whereby he would manage to get rid of his jersey and equipment during a fight, thus giving the other player nothing to hold on to. After 14 very productive NHL season's as the Buffalo Sabres' main enforcer, Rob Ray was traded to the Ottawa Senators for future considerations in 2003. The Senators were in need of some grit and welcomed the veteran enforcer. Ray only managed to appear in 11 games over two seasons with the Sens, playing another 5 with their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Binghamton Senators. Rob Ray ended his NHL career with 3207 career penalty minutes, ranking him 6th overall in NHL history.

Rob Ray's Career Statistics

Year      Team            League  GP   G   A  Pts   Pim
1985-86 Cornwall Royals     OHL   53   6  13   19   253
1986-87 Cornwall Royals     OHL   46  17  20   37   158
1987-88 Cornwall Royals     OHL   61  11  41   52   179
1988-89 Rochester Americans AHL   74  11  18   29   446
1989-90 Rochester Americans AHL   43   2  13   15   335
1989-90 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   27   2   1    3    99
1990-91 Rochester Americans AHL    8   1   1    2    15
1990-91 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   66   8   8   16   350
1991-92 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   63   5   3    8   354
1992-93 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   68   3   2    5   211
1993-94 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   82   3   4    7   274
1994-95 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   47   0   3    3   173
1995-96 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   71   3   6    9   287
1996-97 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   82   7   3   10   286
1997-98 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   63   2   4    6   234
1998-99 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   76   0   4    4   261
1999-00 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   69   1   3    4   158
2000-01 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   63   4   6   10   210
2001-02 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   71   2   3    5   200
2002-03 Buffalo Sabres      NHL   41   0   0    0    92
2002-03 Ottawa Senators     NHL    5   0   0    0     4
2003-04 Ottawa Senators     NHL    6   1   0    1    14
2003-04 Binghamton Senators AHL    5   2   0    2    11
NHL Totals                       900  41  50   91  3207 
 
Rob Ray's Hockey Goon Stat - 2.84

Rob Ray Pictures