Jason Wayne Blake (born September 2, 1973) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former professional

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 hock ...

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

who played in the

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

(NHL).

Playing career

Junior career

He played for the

Waterloo Black Hawks The Waterloo Black Hawks are a Tier I junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL) under president and general manager P.K. O'Handley. The Black Hawks' home ice is the Young Arena in Waterl ...

of the

United States Hockey League The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the midwestern United States, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. The USHL is strictly ...

(USHL). Collegiately, he played one year at

Ferris State University Ferris State University (FSU or Ferris) is a public university with its main campus in Big Rapids, Michigan. It was founded in 1884 and became a public institution in 1950. Ferris is the ninth-largest institutions of higher education by enroll ...

before transferring the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (also known as UND or North Dakota) is a public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of ...

(UND). He had to sit out one season due to

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

rules. He played three season for UND winning league titles all three years. Blake starred on their 1996–1997 National Championship team.

Kings and Islanders

Blake went undrafted and was signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

with the

Orlando Solar Bears The Orlando Solar Bears are a professional ice hockey team that plays their home games at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. They play in the South Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference and are affiliated with the Tampa Bay Lightning of t ...

before being signed to an NHL contract by the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

. He played in 64 games in 1999–00, his first season with the Kings, scoring 5 goals and played in 3 playoff games. In 2000, Blake joined

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

at the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

. In the 2000–01 season, Blake played in only 17 games with the Kings before he was acquired by the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

in a January trade, who sent a conditional pick in the

2002 NHL Entry Draft __NOTOC__ The 2002 NHL Entry Draft was the 40th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 22 and 23, 2002 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario. Two hundred and ninety-one players were drafted in total: 35 from the Ontario Hockey League (OHL); ...

in return. During the

2004–05 NHL lockout The 2004–05 NHL lockout was a labor lockout that resulted in the cancellation of the National Hockey League (NHL) season, which would have been its 88th season of play. The main dispute was the league's desire to implement a salary cap to ...

, Blake signed a brief contract with the Swiss team

HC Lugano Hockey Club Lugano, often abbreviated to HC Lugano or HCL, is a professional ice hockey club based in Lugano, Switzerland. The team competes in the National League (NL) and has won seven Swiss championships. History The founding of HC Lugano took ...

. While with the Islanders Blake played the wing on a line with

Alexei Yashin Alexei Valeryevich Yashin (russian: Алексей Валерьевич Яшин; born 5 November 1973) is a Russian former professional ice hockey centre who played 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Ottawa Senators and New ...

. In 2004, Blake was selected as part of Team USA for the

World Cup of Hockey The World Cup of Hockey is an international ice hockey tournament. Inaugurated in 1996, it is the successor to the Canada Cup, which was held every 3 to 5 years from 1976 to 1991 and was the first international hockey championship to allow nati ...

. Blake set career highs in goals and points during the 2005–06 season with 28 and 57, respectively. The following season he topped both totals, scoring 40 goals and 69 points. The 40th goal was scored against 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 ...

on April 5, 2007. Along with Islanders teammates

Rick DiPietro Richard W. DiPietro Jr. (born September 19, 1981) is an American former professional ice hockey goaltender and current co-host of ESPN 98.7 FM's "DiPietro and Rothenberg" with Dave Rothenberg. He is also an analyst on National Hockey League (NH ...

and

Mark Parrish Mark Daniel Parrish (born February 2, 1977) is an American former professional ice hockey right winger. Parrish has played 11 seasons and over 700 games in the NHL with the Florida Panthers, New York Islanders, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, ...

, Blake was part of Team USA at the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

held in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

in February 2006. Team USA was led by

Peter Laviolette Peter Philip Laviolette Jr. (born December 7, 1964) is an American professional ice hockey coach, and former player, currently serving as head coach for the Washington Capitals. He was previously the head coach of the New York Islanders, Carolina ...

, his former coach with the Islanders. Team USA finished eighth in the tournament. Blake scored his 100th career NHL goal against the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division i ...

at the

Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (or simply the Nassau Coliseum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, east of New York City. The Long Island venue is approximately east of the eastern limits of the New York City Borough of ...

on October 31, 2006. The milestone 100th goal came on the power play late in the 3rd period. Blake was named an all-star for the first time in his career during the 2006–07 NHL season. He recorded two assists in the

2007 NHL All-Star Game The 2007 National Hockey League All-Star Game was held in Dallas, on January 24, 2007. The Western Conference was victorious, defeating the Eastern Conference 12–9. On January 23, 2006, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced that the event ...

. At the end of the 2006–07 season, Blake became an

unrestricted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

. He was quoted in ''

Newsday ''Newsday'' is an American daily newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI", and f ...

'' in February 2007 saying he would probably test the free agent market if not re-signed by the Islanders prior to the NHL trading deadline.

Maple Leafs

Blake was neither traded nor re-signed before the deadline and on July 1, 2007, Blake signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs to a five-year contract worth US$20 million. Before the

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

began on October 8, 2007, Blake announced that he had been diagnosed with

chronic myelogenous leukemia Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), also known as chronic myeloid leukemia, is a cancer of the white blood cells. It is a form of leukemia characterized by the increased and unregulated growth of myeloid cells in the bone marrow and the accumulat ...

, a rare but highly treatable form of cancer. He continued to play for the Maple Leafs for the rest of the season. In Blake's first season with Toronto, he played in all 82 regular season games while scoring 15 goals and 52 points. While he managed a considerable number of points, he struggled to score goals all season, having over 300 shots on goal, easily a career high. He was awarded the

Bill Masterton Trophy The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the National Hockey League player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey. It is named after Bill Masterton, the only player in NHL h ...

at the end of the season for perseverance and dedication to hockey through the difficult times he faced after being diagnosed with cancer. However, his 2008–09 season was up and down, with a fight during practice with teammate

Mikhail Grabovski Michail Jurjevič Hraboŭski ( Belarusian: Міхаіл Юр'евiч Грабоўскі; born 31 January 1984), better known as Mikhail Grabovski (Russian: Михаил Грабовский), is a German-born Belarusian professional ice hockey ...

making headlines and being taken out of the gameday lineup for poor play. He finished the season with 25 goals and 63 points. In the 2009–10 season, Blake struggled for the Maple Leafs, posting 10 goals and 26 points in 55 games. In 2009, Blake was selected by Team USA for his second

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

. He was traded to the

Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division, and play their home games at Honda Center. ...

, along with

Vesa Toskala Vesa Tapani Toskala (born May 20, 1977) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey goaltender. After initially playing for his hometown team Ilves of the SM-liiga, Toskala played the majority of his professional career in the National Hockey Le ...

, for

Jean-Sébastien Giguère Jean-Sébastien Giguère (; born May 16, 1977) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey goaltender. He played with the Halifax Mooseheads in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), where he was drafted 13th overall by the Hartford Wh ...

on January 31, 2010.

Ducks and retirement

Blake played the entire 2010–11 season with the Ducks compiling 16 goals and 32 points in 72 games. He began the 2011–12 season playing on a line with

Teemu Selanne Teemu is a Finnish male given name. Notable people with the name include: *Teemu Aalto (born 1978), Finnish professional ice hockey player * Teemu Eronen (born 1990), professional ice hockey defenceman *Teemu Hartikainen (born 1990), Finnish profe ...

and

Saku Koivu Saku Antero Koivu (; born November 23, 1974) is a Finns, Finnish former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). He began his NHL career with the Montreal Canadiens in 1995–96 NHL season, 1995–96 after th ...

. On October 15, 2011, Blake and the Ducks were playing the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...

when Sharks' defenceman

Brent Burns Brent Burns (born March 9, 1985) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). Drafted as a right wing (20th overall) at the 2003 NHL Entry Draft by the Minnesota Wild, he wa ...

accidentally cut Blake's left arm/wrist after Blake fell down during a faceoff attempt. The cut required surgery to repair and kept Blake out of the lineup for three months. He returned to play for the Ducks in January 2012 scoring three goals in his first two games back. He finished the season with 45 games played, having scored 7 goals and 12 points. Following the season, Blake was again an unrestricted free agent. However, the season was delayed due to a

lockout Lockout may refer to: * Lockout (industry), a type of work stoppage **Dublin Lockout, a major industrial dispute between approximately 20,000 workers and 300 employers 1913 - 1914 * Lockout (sports), lockout in sports leagues **MLB lockout, lock ...

and Blake never signed with a team.

Personal life

Blake's son Jackson was drafted in the fourth round, 109th overall, by the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, ...

in the

2021 NHL Entry Draft The 2021 NHL Entry Draft was the 59th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on July 23–24, 2021, delayed by one month from its normally scheduled time of June due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the later-than-normal finish of the 2020–21 NHL se ...

. He plays

college ice hockey College ice hockey is played principally in the United States and Canada, though leagues exist outside North America. In the United States, competitive "college hockey" refers to ice hockey played between colleges and universities within the g ...

for

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Jason 1973 births American men's ice hockey left wingers Anaheim Ducks players Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy winners Ferris State Bulldogs men's ice hockey players HC Lugano players Ice hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics Ice hockey players from Minnesota Living people Long Beach Ice Dogs (IHL) players Los Angeles Kings players Lowell Lock Monsters players National Hockey League All-Stars New York Islanders players Olympic ice hockey players of the United States Orlando Solar Bears (IHL) players People from Moorhead, Minnesota Toronto Maple Leafs players Undrafted National Hockey League players North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey players Waterloo Black Hawks players NCAA men's ice hockey national champions AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans