Wayne Simmonds

**Wayne Simmonds** (born on August 26, 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who currently plays in the NHL for the Buffalo Sabres.

Simmonds was drafted 61st overall by the Los Angeles Kings in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

## Playing Career

### Early Playing Career

Wayne spent the majority of his minor hockey career playing A and AA hockey in the east end of Toronto, including the Minor Midget Toronto Aces in 2003–04 season of the Greater Toronto Hockey League.

After several GTHL AAA players graduated the following summer to junior hockey, he moved up to the AAA level for the first time with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens midgets of the GTHL in 2004–05.

### Junior

After Simmonds was scouted at the Telus Cup Regional Midget tournament in the spring of 2005, Mike McCourt noticed Wayne and signed him for the following season with the Brockville Braves of the Central Junior A Hockey League for the 2005–06 season. McCourt was general manager and coach of the Braves and added him to his club.

Two years after being passed over in the Ontario Hockey League Draft, he was selected as an 18-year-old by the Owen Sound Attack in the sixth round, 114th overall, in the 2006 OHL Priority Selection.

He spent his major junior career playing two seasons in the OHL from 2006 until 2008 with the Owen Sound Attack and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He also played for Canada at the 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

While playing with the Jr. Canadiens, Wayne became friends with Chris Stewart. They would later purchase a house together in Toronto, where they live during the off-season.

### Professional

A right-handed shooter, Wayne was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in the second round, 61st overall, of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. He was one of three rookies to make the team's roster for its 2008–09 season.

On October 14, 2008, in his third career game, he scored his first career NHL goal by knocking a rebound past Jean-Sebastien Giguere of the Anaheim Ducks.

During his rookie season, Wayne became a favourite among L.A. fans for his strong work ethic on and off the ice, a trait he has said was instilled within him by his parents.

Entering his second NHL season, he was looking to increase his offensive production, having tied for the Kings' goal-scoring lead in pre-season play that year. He ultimately scored 40 points in the 2009–10 regular season, nearly doubling his point total of the previous season.

Additionally, he led the team in plus-minus and saw substantive time as a member of the team's penalty killing unit.

When the Kings unsuccessfully pursued a trade for superstar left wing Ilya Kovalchuk, then of the Atlanta Thrashers, shortly before that season's All-Star break, Wayne was among the Kings' players whom Atlanta wanted in return.

On June 23, 2011, he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers (along with Brayden Schenn and a second-round pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft) in exchange for Mike Richards and Rob Bordson. As a restricted free agent, he signed a two-year contract with an average salary of $1.75 million..

On September 22, 2011, during a pre-season game in London, Ontario, Canada between the Detroit Red Wings and the Flyers, a banana was thrown onto the ice while Wayne was making a shootout attempt; this was seen as an act of racism.

The following day, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman released a statement regarding the events of the previous day, stating: "We have millions of great fans who show tremendous respect for our players and for the game. The obviously stupid and ignorant action by one individual is in no way representative of our fans or the people of London, Ontario."

Chris Moorhouse later pleaded guilty to engaging in a prohibited activity under the Ontario Trespass to Property Act and was fined $200, but didn't need to appear in court.

Wayne achieved a Gordie Howe hat-trick in a 5–2 loss to the New York Rangers at the Wells Fargo Center on February 11, 2012. On March 30, 2012, against the Ottawa Senators, Flyers centre Brayden Schenn shot a puck which glanced off of Wayne's forehead and into the net. He was credited with the goal.

On August 15, 2012, the Flyers signed him to a six-year extension worth an annual average value of approximately $4 million.

During the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Wayne was playing with ETC Crimmitschau of the 2nd Bundesliga and HC Bílí Tygři Liberec of the Czech Extraliga. In a game between Liberec and Piráti Chomutov in the Czech Extraliga, fans began a chant of "opice" (a term which roughly translates to "monkey") towards him, after his involvement in a fight.

Shortly after the game, Chomutov issued an apology to Wayne and also announced the intent to identify the people involved and ban them from the venue. Eight of the offending fans were later identified and tried before a court. As a punishment, they were banned from visiting any sports matches for a year.

On February 20, 2013, he recorded another Gordie Howe hat-trick in a 6–5 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Consol Energy Cente when he scored a goal and an assist and fought Tanner Glass.

Later that same week, on February 23, Wayne recorded another Gordie Howe hat-trick in a 5–3 home win against the Winnipeg Jets, fighting Chris Thorburn, assisting on the Flyers' first goal and scoring the game-winning goal.

Wayne recorded 29 goals to go with 31 assists for a career high 60 points during the 2013–14 season. He later matched this career-high during the 2015–16 season. He has also gained a reputation for his physical play, leading the Flyers in penalty minutes in 2015–16 with 147.

During a February 6 game against the New York Rangers, Wayne received a game misconduct for punching Rangers' captain Ryan McDonagh with a gloved hand, but was not suspended by the league. He represented Philadelphia in the 2017 NHL All-Star Game and was named the Game's MVP after scoring three goals, including the game-winner of the final game.

During the entire 2017–18 season, Wayne played with a tear in his pelvis area, torn groin, fractured ankle, torn thumb ligament and a busted jaw. Despite this long list of injuries, he was still able to break the 40-point mark on the season. He was nominated for the Mark Messier Leadership Award at the end of the season.

In the 2018–19 season (his eighth with the Flyers), Wayne's production dipped in producing 16 goals and 27 points through 62 games.

While in the final year of his six-year contract with the Flyers, he was dealt at the trade deadline to the Nashville Predators in exchange for Ryan Hartman and a conditional fourth-round pick in 2020 on February 25, 2019.

Wayne was awarded the Mark Messier Leadership Award at the end of the season, and is the first and only player to switch teams during their award-winning season.

On July 1, 2019, the New Jersey Devils signed him as a free agent on a one-year, $5 million contract. He faced his former team, the Philadelphia Flyers for the first time on October 9, 2019 where he was given a tribute video and an ovation by Flyers fans.

However, soon after, he was booed each time he touched the puck during the game due to a viral video of him stating he would expect nothing else from Philadelphia. The Flyers defeated the Devils 4-0 in the end.

Through 61 games with the Devils, Wayne contributed with 8 goals and 24 points. With the Devils out of playoff contention, he was traded at the NHL trade deadline to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for an conditional fifth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft on February 24, 2020.

## Career Statistics

### Regular season and playoffs

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## Personal Life

Wayne is the son onf Cyril Simmonds and Wanda Mercury-Simmonds; he has three brothers and a sister. His family is originally from North Preston, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Despite growing up in what was then a suburb of Toronto, he has said he grew up a fan primarily of the Detroit Red Wings. His favorite player growing up was Sergei Fedorov.

Wayne and his wife, Crystal have a daughter, Kori.