Ex-NHL goalie Ray Emery drowns in Hamilton
Canadian Press
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Published:
July 16, 2018
Updated:
July 16, 2018 12:07 AM EDT
HAMILTON — Ray Emery, the former NHL goaltender whose career spanned more than a decade and included stops in Ottawa, Chicago and Philadelphia, drowned in Hamilton Harbour on Sunday, police said.
Insp. Marty Schulenberg said Emery’s death does not appear to be suspicious, calling it a “case of misadventure.”
Schulenberg said Emery jumped off of a boat into the water near the Leander Boat Club to go swimming, and his friends called emergency services at about 6 a.m. Sunday when he didn’t resurface.
Emery, 35, played for several teams throughout his 11-year career, winning the William M. Jennings trophy — and the Stanley Cup — with the Blackhawks in 2013.
The rare goalie who didn’t hesitate to drop his gloves, Emery was involved in multiple altercations on the ice, including one in 2007 in which he scuffled with Buffalo Sabres goalie Martin Biron.
Biron was among those mourning Emery online Sunday.
“So sad. Thoughts and prayers to his family and friends,” he wrote on Twitter.
Schulenberg said Emery’s body was found at about 2:50 p.m. Sunday, about 20 metres from where he went into the water. He said a post mortem will be completed on Monday.
“Mr. Emery was taking a swim this morning and the circumstances around that are a part of the investigation,” said Schulenberg.
“Those details remain to be uncovered by our investigators.”
Schulenberg said first responders were not able to locate Emery right away, and so they called in the dive unit. He said the search took longer than anticipated because they had to ensure the safety of the dive team.
“It’s a lengthy process and safety is paramount to our divers,” he said. “We need to take the time do it safely and that’s what the delay was.”
Several members of the NHL community, including former teammates, coaches and executives who played and worked with Emery expressed their condolences for the Hamilton native.
Current Flyers captain Claude Giroux posted on Twitter: “Ray was a great teammate and an even better friend. Rest in peace Razor. I’ll miss you man.”
Emery played junior hockey for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, where Toronto Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas began his career. Dubas posted about Emery’s death on Twitter Sunday afternoon.
“Ray’s smile and intelligence made him a magnetic personality,” Dubas wrote. “You always rooted for him to reach his vast potential, even as he went through the many ups and downs of his playing career.”
Former Leafs forward James van Riemsdyk, who played with Emery in Philadelphia, said on Twitter: “So sad to hear the tragic news about Ray Emery — was a great teammate and person.”
Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk also released a statement expressing condolences.
“Ray was instrumental in our run to the 2007 Stanley Cup Final, and at his best he brought a competitive edge and combative mentality to the game. On behalf of our entire organization, I wish to extend my deepest sympathies to Ray’s family, friends and loved ones,” said Melnyk.
Emery battled avascular necrosis, the same serious hip ailment that ended two-sport star Bo Jackson’s career, and came back to play. He and fellow Blackhawks netminder Corey Crawford combined to win the Jennings Trophy for allowing the league’s fewest goals during the lockout-shortened 2013 season.
Throughout his career, Emery dealt with off-ice problems, including an incident of road rage, assault of a trainer in Russia and behaviour that led to him being sent home from Ottawa’s training camp.
http://torontosun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/ex-nhl-goalie-ray-emery-drowns-in-hamilton
Tragic end for Ray Emery
Don Brennan
Published:
July 16, 2018
Updated:
July 16, 2018 7:33 AM EDT
It was the 2006-07 season and Ottawa Senators goalie Ray Emery was off to a great start.
As the National Hockey League All-Star Game approached, I asked him what he had planned for the break.
“I’m going bungee jumping in Whistler,” Emery said.
Great story, I thought. A key member of the Senators is going to throw himself from a cliff during his time off.
“Do me a favour?” his teammate and good friend Jason Spezza asked me in the Canadian Tire Centre parking lot about a half hour later. “Don’t write it?”
What? Why?
“Things are finally going Razor’s way,” Spezza said. “That’s going to get him in trouble.
Canadian Gladiator: More than any other NHL goalie, Ray Emery loves a fight
Stunned hockey world mourns the death of Ray Emery
From the Archives (2005): The apprenticeship of Ray Emery
“Do you want to talk to Marty Gerber every day instead?”
Gerber, the Senators other goalie, was a well-liked nice man, but also quiet and never really had much of interest to say to the media.
Emery was different. He was a rebel. He was colourful. He was entertaining.
And he also made some bad decisions.
Sadly, one of those ill-advised choices was the death of him Sunday morning.
Authorities have confirmed the 35-year old Emery drowned while swimming in Hamilton Harbour shortly after sunrise. Whether he had just woken up or had not been to bed from Saturday night is unknown, as Emery did like to have a good time.
Either way, he would have been better off in bed.
“They went out for a swim and unfortunately he did not emerge after diving in,” police Inspector Marty Schulenberg told The Hamilton Spectator. “We responded along with Hamilton Fire and EMS. Unfortunately, our efforts on the water and in the area around the piers were met with negative results.”
Hamilton police recovered the body of former NHL player Ray Emery, 35, on Sunday afternoon. The former goaltender with the Ottawa Senators was reported missing just after 6 a.m. and his body was recovered close to where he was last seen at Harbour West Marina on the Hamilton Bayfront. Andrew Collins photo @ACollinsPhoto / OttSunWP
The Senators fourth round pick (99th overall) of the 2001 draft, Emery fought his way into the NHL, both figuratively and literally.
Setting aside his abilities as a puck stopper for a moment, the website dropyourgloves.com lists him having a total of five scraps over his three-year stint with the the Ontario Hockey League’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and seven over three seasons with the American Hockey League’s Binghamton Senators.
In the NHL, he fought three times, including twice during a game against the Buffalo Sabres in which he battled goalie Martin Biron and then, moments later, went toe-to-toe with enforcer Andrew Peters.
He had a big smile on his face while exchanging punches with the latter.
Canadian Gladiator: More than any other NHL goalie, Ray Emery loves a fight
Stunned hockey world mourns the death of Ray Emery
From the Archives (2005): The apprenticeship of Ray Emery
“It’s my favourite part of the game,” Emery later told reporters. “But my mom was there. She got mad at me. So I can’t do it again for a while or my mom will be really mad.”
Emery spent a total of seven seasons in the Senators organization. With Ottawa, he sometimes found himself in hot water, including the day he missed a team flight. Another time he fought his pal, Brian McGrattan, during practice.
He drove a white Hummer and once said police pulled him over 30 times in two years. Another time a senior citizen said Emery threatened to kill him in a road-rage incident.
Emery also had some shining moments in the Ottawa net.
As a rookie in 2005-06, he took over when Dominik Hasek suffered a season-ending adductor strain and was the backbone of a division winning team that eliminated the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the playoffs, but lost to the Sabres in the conference semifinals.
In the spring of 2007, he became the only goalie to ever lead the Senators to an Eastern Conference championship and the Stanley Cup final. During that playoff run, Emery had a 2.26 goals-against average, .907 save percentage and three shutouts.
However, he lost the starting job to Gerber the following season and did not handle the demotion to backup very well. Trying to change the culture of the dressing room, the Senators finally waived him in September 2009.
When no other NHL team claimed him, Emery headed to Russia and the KHL. He put up some good numbers with Atlant Mytishchi.
He was also became a YouTube hit after he chased a team trainer who had tried to put a hat on Emery’s head after he was yanked from a game.
Hamilton police recovered the body of former NHL player Ray Emery, 35, on Sunday afternoon. The former goaltender with the Ottawa Senators was reported missing just after 6 a.m. and his body was recovered close to where he was last seen at Harbour West Marina on the Hamilton Bayfront. Andrew Collins photo OttSunWP
Emery returned to the NHL with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2009-10. In between minor-league stops, he also played with the Anaheim Ducks and Chicago Blackhawks, then returned to the Flyers for two more seasons.
His NHL career ended at 287 games in 2015-16, after he tried to make another comeback with two teams in the AHL and one in Germany.
Emery made headlines again in the fall of 2017, when he was arrested for allegedly assaulting his former fiancée, Keshia Chante.
That was the last we heard about the tattooed and ill-tempered Emery, who may have been a polarizing figure with the Senators, but also had a certain charm and an easy smile.
Personally, I always liked talking to the guy, and not just because he was a good story.
dbrennan@postmedia.com
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