Ryan Getzlaf member of sports team Cincinnati Mighty Ducks
Playing career
Junior
While a member of the Regina Bantam AAA Rangers in 2000, Getzlaf was drafted into the Western Hockey League (WHL) by the Calgary Hitmen with the 54th pick in the 2000 WHL Bantam Draft. He stood 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) at the time of the draft, but grew 6 inches (0.15 m) by the time he joined the team as a 16-year-old. Getzlaf made his junior debut in 2001–02 and recorded 18 points in 63 games. He nearly quadrupled his offensive production as a 17-year-old in 2002–03 by scoring 29 goals and 68 points. His performance made him a top prospect for the 2003 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft; the NHL Central Scouting Bureau ranked Getzlaf as the fifth best North American skater in the draft and he was taken in the first round, 19th overall, by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.The Mighty Ducks returned Getzlaf to the Hitmen for the 2003–04 season. He recorded 75 points in just 49 games and was named to the WHL's first all-star team. Due to the 2004–05 NHL lock-out, Getzlaf was again returned to Calgary for his fourth season of junior hockey. He was named team captain, but was briefly stripped of the title by the coaches after earning several misconduct penalties for arguing with the officials. The captaincy was restored after a couple weeks, and Getzlaf moderated his interactions with referees. He also missed time during the season after suffering a concussion as a result of a hit by Dion Phaneuf of the Red Deer Rebels. Getzlaf finished the regular season with 54 points in 51 games, and after the Hitmen were eliminated from the WHL playoffs, was assigned to the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks of the American Hockey League (AHL) for their own playoff run. Getzlaf appeared in 10 post-season games for Cincinnati in his professional debut. He recorded one goal and four assists.
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