Ryan Graves (born May 21, 1995) is a Canadian 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 ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the la ...

for 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 ...

of 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). Graves was selected by the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

, 110th overall, in the

2013 NHL Entry Draft The 2013 NHL Entry Draft was the 51st NHL Entry Draft. All seven rounds of the draft took place on June 30, 2013, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The top three selections were Nathan MacKinnon going to the Colorado Avalanche, Alek ...

. He has previously played for the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...

and

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional sports, professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern ...

Early life

Graves was born on May 21, 1995, in

Yarmouth, Nova Scotia Yarmouth is a town in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. A port town, industries include fishing, and tourism. It is the terminus of a ferry service to Bar Harbor, Maine, run by Bay Ferries. History Originally inhabited by the Mi'kmaq, the regi ...

, to Ron Graves and Monica Brennan. He was childhood friends with

Nathan MacKinnon Nathan Raymond MacKinnon (born September 1, 1995) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). MacKinnon was selected first overall by the Avalanche in the 201 ...

, another Nova Scotia native, and the two would play youth ice hockey against each other on local teams and together on regional teams. Graves had a reputation in the Nova Scotia youth hockey circuit for clumsiness, caused primarily by his comparatively tall physique. His strength and shot-blocking abilities, however, drew praise from coaches in the Yarmouth County Minor Hockey Association. During the 2010-11

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from cla ...

season, Graves played for the South Shore Canadian Tire Mustangs, for whom he scored five

goals A goal is an objective that a person or a system plans or intends to achieve. Goal may also refer to: Sport * Goal (sports), a method of scoring in many sports, or the physical structure or area where scoring occurs ** Goals, the goal frame in ...

and recorded seven assists. In addition to being named the team's top rookie, he was given the Scott Dee Memorial Award for the best rookie

in the Nova Scotia Major Midget Hockey League. That same year, he made one appearance with the

Yarmouth Mariners The Yarmouth Mariners are a Junior "A" team based in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. They play in the Maritime Junior Hockey League. All home games are played out of the 1,501 seat Mariners Centre. The season usually runs from mid-September to early March e ...

of the

Maritime Junior Hockey League The Maritime Junior Hockey League (MHL) is a Junior A ice hockey league under Hockey Canada, a part of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. It consists of five teams from New Brunswick and one team from Prince Edward Island, which make up the E ...

Playing career

Junior

The

Prince Edward Island Rocket The Charlottetown Islanders are a junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Based in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, the Islanders play their home games at the Eastlink Centre, which has 3,717 arena se ...

of the

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The l ...

(QMJHL) selected Graves in the first round, ninth overall, of the 2011 QMJHL Entry Draft. As a rookie during the 2011–12 season, Graves had two goals and seven assists for a total of nine points, as well as 34

penalty minutes A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for an infringement of the rules. Most penalties are enforced by sending the offending player to a penalty box for a set number of minutes. During the penalty the player may not participate in play. Penaltie ...

. The Rocket, meanwhile, finished in last place in the league with a 19–43–2–4 record and missed the postseason for the first time in seven years. Graves said after his rookie season that he had difficulty adjusting from minor to

junior ice hockey Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

, and his improved confidence in the 2012–13 season was due to his greater familiarity with the league, increased playing time as a second-year skater, and his ability to learn from older teammates. He also practiced three times a week with a Newfoundland skating coach that helped to improve the coordination issues that had followed him from adolescence. After improving his offensive output in the following 2012–13 season, Graves gained the eye of NHL scouts, and was later selected in the fourth round, 110th overall, by the

in the

. The Rocket were rebranded as the

Charlottetown Islanders The Charlottetown Islanders are a junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Based in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, the Islanders play their home games at the Eastlink Centre, which has 3,717 arena se ...

for the 2013–14 season. In collecting 12 points in 39 games, Graves was dealt by the Islanders to the

Val-d'Or Foreurs The Val-d'Or Foreurs are a junior ice hockey team based in Val-d'Or, in the region of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Quebec, Canada. The team was founded for the 1993–94 season of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, a member of the Canadian Hockey ...

for their post-season push. He helped the Foreurs in the playoffs with 8 points in 24 games to help the club claim 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 ...

. On March 17, 2014, Graves' progression was rewarded as he was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Rangers. Prior to the 2014–15 season, Graves was again on the move in the QMJHL, traded by the Foreurs to the

Quebec Remparts There have been two junior ice hockey franchises known as the Quebec Remparts (french: Remparts de Québec) that played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The first edition played from 1969 to 1985; the current franchise has pla ...

in exchange for Vincent Lanoue and draft picks on August 18, 2014. An assistant captain, Graves broke out offensively in his final junior season, contributing with a career-high 15 goals and 24 assists for 39 points in just 50 games. He was selected to the Canadian Hockey League's

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League, a consortium of three major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tournament played between t ...

All-Star Team after collecting 5 points in 5 games for host club Quebec.

Professional

New York Rangers organization (2015–18)

In the 2015–16 season, Graves was assigned to the Rangers AHL affiliate, the

Hartford Wolf Pack The Hartford Wolf Pack are a professional ice hockey team based in Hartford, Connecticut. A member of the American Hockey League (AHL), they play their home games at the XL Center. The team was established in 1926 as the Providence Reds. After a ...

. He made his professional debut on opening night against the

St. John's IceCaps The St. John's IceCaps were a professional ice hockey team based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. They were members of the North Division of the Eastern Conference of the American Hockey League (AHL). The team was originally aff ...

on October 10, 2015. He collected his first goal and assist in a 4–3 victory over the

Syracuse Crunch The Syracuse Crunch are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). They play in Syracuse, New York, at the Upstate Medical University Arena. They are the primary development affiliate of the National Hockey League's Tampa ...

on October 23, 2015. As a hulking defenceman with good mobility, Graves was a staple on the blueline for the Wolf Pack and represented the club at the 2016 AHL All-Star Game, winning the hardest shot contest with a 103.4 m/ph slapshot. With the Wolf Pack finishing out of playoff contention, Graves finished the season, leading the blueline with 9 goals in his 21 points in 74 games. In the following 2016–17 season, Graves continued his upward development in leading the blueline in all scoring categories with 8 goals, 22 assists and 30 points. Assigned to the Wolf Pack for the final year of his rookie contract, Graves regressed with just 4 goals and 11 points in 57 games in the 2017–18 season.

Colorado Avalanche (2018–21)

Graves was dealt by the New York Rangers at the trade deadline to the

in exchange for Chris Bigras on February 26, 2018. He was immediately assigned to the Avalanche's AHL affiliate, the San Antonio Rampage. On July 17, he was re-signed to a one-year contract by the Avalanche. In the season, Graves scored his first NHL goal on January 4, 2019, against the team that drafted him, the New York Rangers. On July 8, Graves was re-signed to a one-year contract. During the 2019–20 season, primarily playing alongside eventual

Calder Memorial Trophy The Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given "to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League (NHL)." It is named after Frank Calder, the first president of the NHL. Serving as ...

winner

Cale Makar Cale Douglas Makar (born October 30, 1998) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected with the fourth overall pick by the Avalanche in the 2017 NHL Entry Dr ...

, Graves in a top-pairing role scored career highs in both goals and points, and lead the NHL in the

plus–minus Plus−minus (+/−, ±, plus/minus) is a sports statistic used to measure a player's impact on the game, represented by the difference between their team's total scoring versus their opponent's when the player is in the game. In ice h ...

statistic at +40. On October 12, 2020, Graves signed a three-year, $9.5 million contract with the Avalanche. In the pandemic delayed season, Graves made his 100th NHL appearance in a 3–2 overtime victory over 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. ...

on January 22, 2021. Used in a top-four role, Graves was relied upon as the mainstay of the Avalanche penalty kill, finishing third in the league in short-handed time on ice. He registered 2 goals and 15 points in appearing in 54 of 56 regular season games.

New Jersey Devils (2021–2023)

On July 15, 2021, due to impending expansion draft considerations, Graves was traded by Avalanche to the

in exchange for Mikhail Maltsev and a second-round pick 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 ...

Pittsburgh Penguins (2023–present)

On completion of his contract with the Devils, Graves left the organization as a free agent and opted to remain in the Metropolitan Division by signing a six-year, $27 million contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 1, 2023.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honours

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Graves, Ryan 1995 births Canadian ice hockey defencemen Charlottetown Islanders players Colorado Avalanche players Colorado Eagles players Hartford Wolf Pack players Ice hockey people from Nova Scotia Living people New Jersey Devils players New York Rangers draft picks P.E.I. Rocket players People from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia Quebec Remparts players San Antonio Rampage players Val-d'Or Foreurs players