Geoff Courtnall
Courtnall c. 2022
Born (1962-08-18) August 18, 1962
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position Left wing
Shot Left
Played for Boston Bruins
Edmonton Oilers
Washington Capitals
St. Louis Blues
Vancouver Canucks
National team  Canada
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 1983–2000
Medal record
Representing  Canada
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 1991 Finland

Geoffrey Lawton Courtnall (born August 18, 1962) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1983 to 2000. He was the head coach of the Victoria Grizzlies of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) and for the Victoria Vikes of the British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League (BCIHL).

Playing career

Geoff Courtnall was signed by the Boston Bruins of the NHL as an undrafted free agent on July 6, 1983. He played for the Bruins from the 1983–84 season to March 8, 1988, when he was traded, along with Bill Ranford, to the Edmonton Oilers for Andy Moog. While in Edmonton, he helped the Oilers win the Stanley Cup in 1988, after facing his old team the Bruins in the finals. About four months later, the Oilers traded Courtnall to the Washington Capitals for Greg Adams. After two seasons in Washington, Courtnall requested a trade, which was granted in the 1990 off-season when he was sent to the St. Louis Blues for Mike Lalor and Peter Zezel.[1]

After less than a season in St. Louis and at the trade deadline, Courtnall, along with Robert Dirk, Sergio Momesso, Cliff Ronning, and future considerations, was traded to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Garth Butcher and Dan Quinn. This trade marked a major turning point for the Canucks as these players were among the core that would lead the Canucks on their run to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. Courtnall then played one more season in Vancouver after the Cup run of 1994 and went back to the St. Louis for the start of the 1995–96 season. Courtnall, in his second tenure with the Blues, scored almost 80 goals over five seasons, but only played 30 games over his final two seasons as the result of several concussions, but reached the 1,000 game mark during the 1997–98 season, in which he scored 31 goals in his last full season. After sitting out the last half of the 1998–99 season with a concussion he returned to the lineup the next season. A few games into the 1999–2000 season, he suffered another concussion, which forced his retirement as a result of post-concussion syndrome.[2]

Personal life

Courtnall was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada and raised in Duncan, British Columbia. His father, Archie, had played professional hockey, and worked in the forestry industry on Vancouver Island.[2] Archie had depression, and in 1978 killed himself.[3] He is the brother of another former NHL player, Russ Courtnall. Geoff's son, Justin, was drafted 210th overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning.[4]

After retiring Courtnall moved back to Victoria, though later moved to Vancouver. He estimated that during his playing career he had at least 20 concussions, and it had an effect on his post-playing career. He began to drink heavily, reaching a point where his former teammate Cam Neely discussed Courtnall's drinking while at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. This led Courtnall to quit drinking; to take his mind off that Courtnall would run. He also invested in a gold mining venture in Peru, as well as commercial real estate and construction.[5] Along with his brother, Russ, Courtnall established the Archie Courtnall Centre for emergency psychiatric care at the Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria.[2]

Sexual assault allegation

In May 1990, while playing for the Capitals, Courtnall was accused of raping a 17-year-old girl outside a bar, alongside teammates Dino Ciccarelli, Scott Stevens, and Neil Sheehy.[6] The court case fell apart, though a spokesperson for the Metropolitan police at the time stated that the police “have sufficient grounds to believe that a criminal offense did occur.”[7]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1980–81 Cowichan Valley Capitals BCJHL 4420567656 —————
1980–81 Victoria Cougars WHL 113586 152137
1981–82 Victoria Cougars WHL 72355792100 41012
1982–83 Victoria Cougars WHL 714173114186 12671342
1983–84 Boston Bruins NHL 50000 —————
1983–84 Hershey Bears AHL 7414122651 —————
1984–85 Hershey Bears AHL 984124 —————
1984–85 Boston Bruins NHL 6412162882 50227
1985–86 Boston Bruins NHL 6421163761 30002
1985–86 Moncton Golden Flames AHL 1288166 —————
1986–87 Boston Bruins NHL 65132336117 10000
1987–88 Boston Bruins NHL 62322658108 —————
1987–88 Edmonton Oilers NHL 1244815 1903323
1988–89 Washington Capitals NHL 79423880112 625712
1989–90 Washington Capitals NHL 80353974104 15491332
1990–91 St. Louis Blues NHL 6627305756 —————
1990–91 Vancouver Canucks NHL 116288 63584
1991–92 Vancouver Canucks NHL 70233457116 12681420
1992–93 Vancouver Canucks NHL 84314677167 124101412
1993–94 Vancouver Canucks NHL 82264470123 249101951
1994–95 Vancouver Canucks NHL 4516183481 1142634
1995–96 St. Louis Blues NHL 69241640101 1303314
1996–97 St. Louis Blues NHL 8217405786 631423
1997–98 St. Louis Blues NHL 7931316294 10281018
1998–99 St. Louis Blues NHL 24571228 1324610
1999–00 St. Louis Blues NHL 62246 —————
NHL totals 1,0483674327991,465 1563970109262

International

Year Team Event GPGAPtsPIM
1991 Canada WC 1051616
Senior totals 1051616

Awards and achievements

See also

References

  1. ↑ Boswell, Thomas (July 14, 1990). "Staying of Leaving Proves a Tough Call". Washington Post. Retrieved July 2, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 Kuzma, Ben (November 25, 2017). "Ex-NHLer Geoff Courtnall learns to stickhandle around life's adversity". The Province. Retrieved July 2, 2023.
  3. ↑ Robson, Dan (January 20, 2018). "Cowichan Valley 'where it all began' for ex-NHLer Geoff Courtnall". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  4. ↑ Breseman, Brian (2007). "Lightning Make 9 Selections At 2007 Nhl Entry Draft". Sports Features Communications. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved June 24, 2007.
  5. ↑ Dupont, Kevin Paul (July 12, 2019). "Former Bruin Geoff Courtnall was saved, and now he wants to save others, too". Boston Globe. Retrieved July 2, 2023.
  6. ↑ Horwitz, Sari; Davis, Patricia (May 16, 1990). "BOSS SAYS GIRL TRUSTED THE CAPITALS". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  7. ↑ McKenna, Dave (April 21, 2006). "Another Lose-Lose Situation". Washington City Paper. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
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