Ray Martynuik (March 28, 1950 – October 20, 2013), sometimes spelled Martyniuk, was a 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 ...

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

. He was born in

Flin Flon, Manitoba Flin Flon (pop. 5,185 in 2016 census; 4,982 in Manitoba and 203 in Saskatchewan) is a mining city, located on a correction line on the border of the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with the majority of the city located within ...

, and played for the

Flin Flon Bombers The Flin Flon Bombers are a Canadian junior ice hockey team in Flin Flon, a city located on the Manitoba-Saskatchewan provincial border. The Bombers are members of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL), which is a member of the Canadian ...

in the

Western Canada Hockey League The Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL), founded in 1921, was a major professional ice hockey league originally based in the prairies of Canada. It was renamed the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 1925 and disbanded in 1926. The WCHL's Victoria C ...

, where he earned the nickname "Can't Miss Kid". He won the WCHL Top Goaltender Award in the 1968–69 and 1969–70 seasons, helping his team win the

President's Cup The Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world minus Europe. Europe competes against the United States in a similar but considerably ...

, the league championship, in both seasons. Martynuik was drafted in the first round, fifth overall, by the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

in the

1970 NHL Amateur Draft The 1970 NHL Amateur Draft was the eighth NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 11, 1970, the day after the 1970 Expansion Draft, at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec. The last active player in the NHL from this draft class was Bil ...

. At the time, this was the second highest selection of a goaltender in draft history. Martynuik never 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 ...

, however, spending his career playing for various minor-league teams. He reported to the Canadiens'

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events, ...

that year, but was unable to secure a position on the team while competing against fellow goaltenders

Ken Dryden Kenneth Wayne Dryden (born August 8, 1947) is a Canadian politician, lawyer, businessman, author, and former National Hockey League (NHL) goaltender. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. He was a Liber ...

and

Rogie Vachon Rogatien Rosaire "Rogie" Vachon (born September 8, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League. Montreal ...

. Instead, he was sent to 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 Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

(AHL)'s

Montreal Voyageurs Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pe ...

, where he played ten games. From there, he went to the Kansas City Blues in the

Central Hockey League The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...

(CHL) before finishing the season with the

Seattle Totems The Seattle Totems were a professional ice hockey franchise in Seattle, Washington. Under several names prior to 1958, the franchise was a member of the Pacific Coast Hockey League (renamed the Western Hockey League in 1952) between 1944 and 19 ...

of the now-defunct

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

. After trying out for the Canadiens again in 1971, he played for the

Baltimore Clippers The Baltimore Clippers were a minor league professional ice hockey team from in Baltimore, Maryland, playing in the Baltimore Civic Center. The Clippers were members of the American Hockey League from 1962 to 1976, and then played one season in ...

in the AHL and the CHL's Oklahoma City Blazers before the Canadiens organization traded his rights to the

California Golden Seals The California Golden Seals were a professional ice hockey club that competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1967 to 1976. Based in Oakland, California, they played their home games at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena. The S ...

, who assigned him to their International Hockey League affiliate in Columbus. In 1972, he was drafted by the

Calgary Broncos The Calgary Broncos were an original World Hockey Association franchise, founded November 1, 1971. In the first WHA draft, the Broncos chose Barry Gibbs, Jim Harrison, Dale Hoganson and Jack Norris. The team relocated prior to the start of the f ...

in the 17th round of the

World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association (french: Association mondiale de hockey) was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) ...

(WHA)'s General Player Draft, but he did not sign with the team. After spending part of the 1972–73 season with Columbus, Martynuik was sent to the WHL's

Salt Lake Golden Eagles The Salt Lake Golden Eagles were a minor professional hockey team based in Salt Lake City from 1969 to 1994. History They played in the Western Hockey League from 1969 to 1974, the Central Hockey League from 1974 to 1984 and the International H ...

, where he found some success and was named an all-star. He received an offer from the WHA's

Chicago Cougars The Chicago Cougars were a franchise in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1975. The Cougars played their home games in the International Amphitheatre. During the 1974 Avco Cup Finals against Gordie Howe and the Houston Aeros, the team's ...

and signed with the team, but the club folded before Martynuik could play with the team. After returning to Salt Lake City, he was called up to the NHL by the Seals, but he did not have any playing time. Martynuik spent the next few years playing mainly in Salt Lake City, with stints playing for the AHL's

Springfield Kings The Springfield Indians were a minor professional ice hockey franchise, originally based in West Springfield, Massachusetts and later Springfield, Massachusetts. The Indians were founding members of the American Hockey League. They were in existen ...

, the IHL's

Columbus Owls The Columbus Owls were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League from 1973 to 1977. Prior to 1973, the team was known as the Columbus Golden Seals since 1971. After 1977, the team moved and became the Dayton ...

, and the CHL's

Tucson Mavericks The Tucson Mavericks were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the Central Hockey League The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was ...

interspersed. In 1977, he joined the senior amateur

Western International Hockey League The Western International Hockey League (WIHL) was a senior level ice hockey league that featured teams from the Western United States and Western Canada. It operated from 1946–62 and 1963–88. It grew out of the West Kootenay League, which ...

Cranbrook Royals The Cranbrook Royals were a senior men's AAA level ice hockey team that played in the Western International Hockey League from 1965 to 1987. The Cranbrook Royals won the Allan Cup The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the national s ...

. Returning to Cranbrook after the Royals lost the championship series, he asked the bus driver to stop the bus. Martynuik threw his goaltending equipment into Moyie Lake. The following year, he played five games for the IHL's

Grand Rapids Owls The Grand Rapids Owls was a USA Hockey-sanctioned Tier III Junior A ice hockey team in the Central States Hockey League. The team played their home games at the Southside Community Ice Center in Byron Center, Michigan. The players, ages 16– ...

before retiring from hockey. Following his hockey career, Martynuik lived in Cranbrook and worked for Coca-Cola, maintaining its local vending machines. He supported the

Children's Wish Foundation of Canada The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada is a registered national Canadian charitable organization whose mission is to fulfill the wishes of children diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses. Founded in 1983, the foundation Foundation may refer ...

and

Canadian Cancer Society The Canadian Cancer Society (french: Société canadienne du cancer) is Canada's largest national cancer charity and the largest national charitable funder of cancer research in Canada. History The idea to form the Canadian Cancer Society origin ...

, raising over $600,000 by organizing charity golf tournaments. Martynuik moved to Panama, where he stayed until his death on October 20, 2013.

Awards

* WCHL All-Star Team – 1969 & 1970

References

External links

*
1970 NHL Amateur Draft - Ray Martyniuk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martynuik, Ray 1950 births 2013 deaths Baltimore Clippers players Canadian ice hockey goaltenders Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Columbus Golden Seals players Columbus Owls players Flin Flon Bombers players Grand Rapids Owls players Ice hockey people from Manitoba Kansas City Blues players Montreal Canadiens draft picks Montreal Voyageurs players National Hockey League first-round draft picks Oklahoma City Blazers (1965–1977) players People from Flin Flon Salt Lake Golden Eagles (CHL) players Seattle Totems (WHL) players Springfield Kings players Tucson Mavericks players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States