Kevin Weekes facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kevin Weekes |
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Weekes in 2012
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| Born | April 4, 1975 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
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| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 235 lb (107 kg; 16 st 11 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Caught | Left | ||
| Played for | Florida Panthers Vancouver Canucks New York Islanders Tampa Bay Lightning Carolina Hurricanes New York Rangers New Jersey Devils |
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| NHL Draft | 41st overall, 1993 Florida Panthers |
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| Playing career | 1995–2009 | ||
Kevin Weekes (born April 4, 1975) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played 348 games in the National Hockey League (NHL), which is the highest level of ice hockey in North America. After his playing career, he became a studio analyst for NHL Network and ESPN. He appears on shows like On the Fly and NHL Tonight, sharing his knowledge of the game.
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Playing Career Highlights
Kevin Weekes started playing ice hockey when he was young. He even played in the 1989 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Toronto Red Wings.
Junior Hockey Journey
Weekes began his junior hockey career with the Owen Sound Platers in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). The OHL is a major junior ice hockey league in Canada. He also played briefly for the Ottawa 67's.
Joining the NHL Teams
The Florida Panthers chose Weekes as the 41st overall pick in the 1993 NHL entry draft. This meant they picked him to join their team. In 1996, while playing for the Carolina Monarchs, an AHL team linked to the Panthers, he was named MVP of the 1996 Spengler Cup tournament.
Weekes made his NHL debut with the Panthers on October 16, 1997. He later played for several other NHL teams. These included the Vancouver Canucks, New York Islanders, and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Key Moments with the Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes traded for Weekes on March 5, 2002. He became a backup goaltender for the team. During the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals playoffs, Weekes played a very important role. He stepped in during tough games and helped the Hurricanes win their first-round series.
He even recorded two shutouts in a row during the playoffs. A shutout means the goaltender stops every shot and doesn't let the other team score any goals. Weekes was the main goaltender for the Hurricanes in the 2002–03 and 2003–04 seasons.
Time with the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils
Weekes signed with the New York Rangers as a free agent before the 2004–05 NHL lockout. A free agent is a player who can sign with any team. He started strong with the Rangers but then got injured. This allowed Henrik Lundqvist to become the team's main goaltender.
On July 5, 2007, Weekes signed with the New Jersey Devils. He served as a backup to the famous goaltender Martin Brodeur. In the 2008–09 season, Brodeur was injured, and Weekes shared the main goaltending duties. Weekes announced his retirement from playing hockey on September 27, 2009.
Broadcasting Career
After retiring from playing, Kevin Weekes made history in 2009. He became the first black analyst in ice hockey. He provides commentary for NHL games on the NHL Network and Hockey Night in Canada.
In 2021, Weekes also started working as an analyst for the NHL on ESPN. He appeared during ESPN's coverage of the 2021 NHL expansion draft and the 2021 NHL draft.
Viral Trade Deadline Videos
During the 2022 NHL trade deadline, Weekes became very popular on social media. He started reporting on trades from unusual places in short videos. He would report from a barber's chair or with the New York City skyline in the background. Fans loved these videos and even created funny pictures (memes) of him reporting from crazy locations. Weekes continued to have fun with it, even reporting a trade with a small trash bin on his head!
Personal Life
Kevin Weekes was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His parents moved to Canada from Barbados. He went to Dr. Norman Bethune Collegiate Institute.
Weekes sometimes wore jersey number 80 because he wanted to wear 00. However, the NHL does not allow players to wear single or double zero jerseys. So, he picked the number that looked most like 00. When he joined the New Jersey Devils, he wore number 1. He had worn 00 in junior hockey.
Weekes also made cameo appearances on the soap operas All My Children and One Life to Live. In 2008, he appeared in an episode of Everybody Hates Chris with Willie O'Ree. In February 2023, Weekes became an American citizen.
Career Statistics
Here are Kevin Weekes' career statistics from his time playing ice hockey:
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | T | OTL | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | ||
| 1990–91 | Toronto Red Wings | MTHL | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990–91 | St. Michael's Buzzers | MetJHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 41 | 1 | 0 | 1.46 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | Toronto Red Wings | MTHL | 35 | — | — | — | — | 1575 | 68 | 4 | 1.94 | — | 4 | 1 | 2 | 214 | 15 | 1 | 4.21 | — | ||
| 1991–92 | St. Michael's Buzzers | MetJHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 127 | 11 | 0 | 5.20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1992–93 | Owen Sound Platers | OHL | 29 | 9 | 12 | 5 | — | 1645 | 143 | 0 | 5.22 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 5 | 0 | 11.50 | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Owen Sound Platers | OHL | 34 | 13 | 19 | 1 | — | 1974 | 158 | 0 | 4.80 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1994–95 | Ottawa 67's | OHL | 41 | 13 | 23 | 4 | — | 2266 | 153 | 1 | 4.05 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1995–96 | Carolina Monarchs | AHL | 60 | 24 | 25 | 8 | — | 3404 | 229 | 2 | 4.04 | .876 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Carolina Monarchs | AHL | 51 | 17 | 28 | 4 | — | 2899 | 172 | 1 | 3.56 | .895 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 11 | 0 | 5 | 1 | — | 485 | 32 | 0 | 3.96 | .870 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | Fort Wayne Komets | IHL | 12 | 9 | 2 | 1 | — | 719 | 34 | 1 | 2.84 | .918 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Detroit Vipers | IHL | 33 | 19 | 5 | 7 | — | 1857 | 64 | 4 | 2.07 | .919 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 11 | 0 | 8 | 1 | — | 532 | 34 | 0 | 3.83 | .868 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–2000 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 20 | 6 | 7 | 4 | — | 986 | 47 | 1 | 2.86 | .898 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–2000 | New York Islanders | NHL | 36 | 10 | 20 | 4 | — | 2025 | 115 | 1 | 3.41 | .902 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Tampa Bay Lightning | NHL | 61 | 20 | 33 | 3 | — | 3377 | 177 | 4 | 3.14 | .898 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Tampa Bay Lightning | NHL | 19 | 3 | 9 | 0 | — | 829 | 40 | 2 | 2.89 | .915 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 119 | 3 | 0 | 1.50 | .927 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 408 | 11 | 2 | 1.62 | .939 | ||
| 2002–03 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 51 | 14 | 24 | 9 | — | 2965 | 126 | 5 | 2.55 | .912 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 66 | 23 | 30 | 11 | — | 3764 | 146 | 6 | 2.33 | .912 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | New York Rangers | NHL | 32 | 14 | 14 | — | 3 | 1850 | 91 | 0 | 2.95 | .895 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 60 | 4 | 0 | 4.00 | .840 | ||
| 2006–07 | New York Rangers | NHL | 14 | 4 | 6 | — | 2 | 761 | 43 | 0 | 3.39 | .879 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 9 | 2 | 2 | — | 1 | 343 | 17 | 0 | 2.97 | .894 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 16 | 7 | 5 | — | 0 | 795 | 32 | 0 | 2.42 | .920 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 348 | 105 | 163 | 33 | 6 | 18,837 | 903 | 19 | 2.88 | .903 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 467 | 15 | 2 | 1.93 | .927 | ||||
See also
