Donald Allan Ashby (March 8, 1955 – May 30, 1981) was a Canadian

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and sk ...

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

who played six seasons in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

from 1975–76 until 1980–81.

Early life and career

Ashby was born in

Kamloops Kamloops ( ) is a city in south-central British Columbia, Canada, at the confluence of the South flowing North Thompson River and the West flowing Thompson River, east of Kamloops Lake. It is located in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, w ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

, and played for the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fi ...

and

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

in his NHL career.

Personal life and career

Ashby played 188 career NHL games, scoring 40 goals, 56 assists and 96 points. He was drafted sixth overall by the Maple Leafs in the

1975 NHL Amateur Draft The 1975 NHL Amateur Draft was the 13th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the NHL office in Montreal, Quebec. The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Philadelphia Flyers made the most noise at the draft, trading Bill Clement, Don McLean, and t ...

. He was married to Terry until his death in 1981.

Death

On May 30, 1981, a few days after finishing the 1980–81 season which Ashby played with the CHL

Wichita Wind The Wichita Wind were a minor league ice hockey team based in Wichita, Kansas from 1980 to 1983. They were the feeder team of the Edmonton Oilers (1980–81 and 1981–82 seasons) and the New Jersey Devils (1982–83). The Wind played in the Centr ...

, he and his wife, Terry, were involved in an automobile accident in the

Okanagan Valley The Okanagan ( ), also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is p ...

. The vehicle that they were driving was hit head-on by a pick up truck. Ashby was critically injured in the accident and died afterwards from massive internal injuries in the hospital in

Kelowna Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna derives from the Okanagan word ' ...

. He was 26 years old at the time of his death in the accident. His wife, Terry, survived the accident and was treated in the hospital. His funeral was held four days later, on June 3.

Career statistics

References

External links