About Mark Messier
Mark John Douglas Messier is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward. His playing career in the National Hockey League (NHL) lasted 25 seasons (1979–2004) with the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, and Vancouver Canucks. He also played professionally with the World Hockey Association (WHA)'s Indianapolis Racers and Cincinnati Stingers. He also played a short four-game stint in the original Central Hockey League (CHL) with the Houston Apollos in 1979. He was the last WHA player to be active in professional ice hockey, and the last active player in any of the major North American professional sports leagues to have played in the 1970s. After his playing career, he was special assistant to the president and general manager of the Rangers. During his first year in the NHL, Messier had several discipline issues, and at the end of October, he missed a team flight and was subsequently reassigned to their CHL affiliate, the Houston Apollos, for four games. He twice won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player, in 1990 and 1992, and in 1984 won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player during the playoffs.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.