Blair Betts

Blair Betts (born February 16, 1980) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played nine seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Calgary Flames, New York Rangers, and Philadelphia Flyers. Betts was born in Edmonton, Alberta, but grew up in Sherwood Park, Alberta.

Playing career Betts was drafted by the Calgary Flames in the 1998 NHL entry draft in the second round, 33rd overall.

During the 2006–07 season, Betts found success on the Rangers checking fourth line. He was mostly paired with Colton Orr and Ryan Hollweg. Betts was also a key factor on the penalty kill. He was one of the Rangers most consistent faceoff men with 52.3 percent of faceoffs won. He was first on the team with 1,186 faceoffs taken. He was also sixth on the team, first among forwards, with 98 blocked shots and led the team with 276 minutes and 42 seconds of short-handed time on the ice. In the 2008–09 season, Betts served as one of the Rangers' alternate captains while Scott Gomez was injured.

TSN hockey analyst Pierre McGuire declared Betts "the most underrated player in the league".

After becoming a free agent, Betts was invited to the 2009 Philadelphia Flyers training camp. The Flyers signed him to a one-year contract on October 1, 2009. The Flyers later signed Betts to a two-year contract extension on February 12, 2010. On October 5, 2011, The Montreal Canadiens picked Betts up off waivers from the Flyers. However, on October 9, 2011, the Montreal Canadiens cancelled the waiver claim on Betts and returned him to the Philadelphia Flyers, as he had failed his physical. Betts missed the entire season and subsequently retired after the season.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1996–97 Prince George Cougars WHL 58 12 18 30 19 15 2 2 4 6 1997–98 Prince George Cougars WHL 71 35 41 76 38 11 4 6 10 8 1998–99 Prince George Cougars WHL 42 20 22 42 39 7 3 2 5 8 1999–2000 Prince George Cougars WHL 44 24 35 59 38 13 11 11 22 6 2000–01 Saint John Flames AHL 75 13 15 28 28 19 2 3 5 4 2001–02 Saint John Flames AHL 67 20 29 49 10 — — — — — 2001–02 Calgary Flames NHL 6 1 0 1 2 — — — — — 2002–03 Saint John Flames AHL 19 6 7 13 2 — — — — — 2002–03 Calgary Flames NHL 9 1 3 4 0 — — — — — 2003–04 Calgary Flames NHL 20 1 2 3 10 — — — — — 2004–05 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 16 5 4 9 4 — — — — — 2005–06 New York Rangers NHL 66 8 2 10 24 4 1 1 2 2 2006–07 New York Rangers NHL 82 9 4 13 24 10 0 0 0 4 2007–08 New York Rangers NHL 75 2 5 7 20 8 0 0 0 2 2008–09 New York Rangers NHL 81 6 4 10 16 6 0 0 0 0 2009–10 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 63 8 10 18 14 23 1 1 2 4 2010–11 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 75 5 7 12 8 11 0 0 0 0 AHL totals 177 44 55 99 48 19 2 3 5 4 NHL totals 477 41 37 78 118 62 2 2 4 12

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 1999 Canada WJC 5 0 0 0 2 Junior totals 5 0 0 0 2

Awards and honours Award Year WHL CHL Top Prospects Game 1998 AHL Calder Cup (Saint John Flames) 2001