Jeffrey Lee Parker (September 7, 1964 – September 11, 2017) was an American 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 h ...

right wing Right-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that view certain social orders and Social stratification, hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this pos ...

. He was drafted in the sixth round, 111th overall, by the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

in the

1982 NHL Entry Draft The 1982 NHL Entry Draft was the 20th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. The National Hockey League (NHL) teams selected 252 players eligible for entry into professional ranks, in the reverse order of the 1981 ...

. He played 137 games 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 ...

with the Sabres and four with the

Hartford Whalers The Hartford Whalers were a professional ice hockey team based for most of its existence in Hartford, Connecticut. The club played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 until 1979, and in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to ...

Playing career

Parker was involved in two high-profile trades over the course of his career. Following his only complete NHL season, on the day of the 1990 entry draft the Sabres traded Parker to the

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, p ...

along with

Phil Housley Phillip Francis Housley (born March 9, 1964) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He most recently served an assistant coach for the Arizona Coyotes of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 2019 to 2022. Housley was th ...

and

Scott Arniel Scott William Arniel (born September 17, 1962) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and current associate coach of the National Hockey League's Winnipeg Jets. Previously, he was the head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets and assoc ...

for

Dale Hawerchuk Dale Martin Hawerchuk (April 4, 1963 – August 18, 2020) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and coach. Drafted first overall by the Winnipeg Jets in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft, Hawerchuk played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for ...

and an exchange of draft picks seemingly in Buffalo's favour (which became

Brad May Bradley Scott May (born November 29, 1971) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). In the 2006–07 season he won the Stanley Cup as a member of the Anaheim Ducks. He current ...

and

Keith Tkachuk Keith Matthew Tkachuk (; born March 28, 1972) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) in a 18-year career with the Winnipeg Jets, Phoenix Coyotes, St. Louis Blues and Atlanta Thrashers, ...

). In an interview shortly after the trade, Parker stated "I'm pretty happy with the trade, I'm looking forward to coming to Winnipeg because the Jets look like a team that's moving up the ladder." Parker reported to Winnipeg Jets training camp in

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Yellowhead Highway, and has served as th ...

on September 7, 1990 in poor physical condition and ranked low in the fitness tests taken on the first day of camp. He played 5 pre-season games with the Jets, scoring two goals and earning one assist. He and

Simon Wheeldon Simon Wheeldon (born August 30, 1966) is a former ice hockey player. He played for the New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League ...

were the last two players cut by the Jets that camp and on October 2, 1990 was assigned to the

Moncton Hawks The Moncton Hawks were a professional ice hockey team based in Moncton, New Brunswick. They played in the American Hockey League between 1987 and 1994, operating as a minor league affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets. Home games were played at the ...

, the Jets farm team in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

. Devastated about being assigned to the minors, Parker sat out most of the 1990–91 season until he was picked up by the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

as a free agent in February 1991, only to be traded to Hartford along with

John Cullen Barry John Cullen (born August 2, 1964) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Hartford Whalers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning. He was a stan ...

and

Zarley Zalapski Zarley Bennett Zalapski (April 22, 1968 – December 10, 2017) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played from 1987 to 2010. Playing career Zalapski's career started with the Fort Saskatchewan Traders of the Alberta Junior Hock ...

for Ron Francis,

Ulf Samuelsson Ulf Bo Samuelsson (born March 26, 1964) is a Swedish-American former professional ice hockey defenceman who formerly served as assistant coach of the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League. He played several seasons in the NHL with the Har ...

and

Grant Jennings Grant Curtis Jennings (born May 5, 1965) is a former National Hockey League defenceman. Career Jennings played Midget AAA for the Notre Dame Hounds of Wilcox, Saskatchewan and then moved onto play Junior A hockey in the Saskatchewan Junior Hock ...

on March 4, 1991. Parker only played four games for the Whalers before suffering from career-ending injuries. In his second game with the Whalers on March 12, 1991, against the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...

, he was checked into the boards and was knocked out for five minutes, resulting in a concussion. He returned to the Whalers two weeks later before sustaining a season-ending knee injury against his former team, the Sabres. In his 141-game NHL career, Parker scored 16 goals and 19 assists for a total of 35 points.

Death

Parker died in Minneapolis on September 11, 2017, from complications of heart and lung infections. He was 53 years old. His brain was donated to

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with ...

to aid in

chronic traumatic encephalopathy Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets worse ...

research. On May 3, 2018, it was reported that Parker had CTE when he died.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and honors

References

External links

Jeff Parker @ hockeydb.com

Jeff Parker @ legendsofhockey.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Jeff 1964 births 2017 deaths American men's ice hockey right wingers Buffalo Sabres draft picks Buffalo Sabres players Hartford Whalers players Ice hockey players from Saint Paul, Minnesota Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey players Muskegon Lumberjacks players NCAA men's ice hockey national champions Rochester Americans players Sportspeople from White Bear Lake, Minnesota