Daniel Cleary

Daniel Cleary (born Daniel Michael Cleary on December 18, 1978) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player, currently playing for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL).

On June 4, 2008, Daniel became the first player from Newfoundland and Labrador to get his name on the Stanley Cup when the Red Wings won hockey's top prize.

He was selected in the first round of the 1997 NHL Entry Draft (13th overall) by the Chicago Blackhawks.

Early Playing Career
After playing minor hockey in his home area of Harbour Grace, Daniel left home when he was 15 years old to play for the Kingston (ON) Voyageurs of the Metro Junior Hockey League (OHA).

Daniel scored 46 points in 41 games with the V's that season and subsequently was selected eleventh-overall in the 1994 OHL Priority Selection by the Belleville Bulls.

He had a phenomenal junior career with the Belleville Bulls of the OHL which begun by scoring a hat trick in his very first game as an underage 16-year-old in September of 1994.

Coincidentally, Daniel scored that hat trick against the Guelph Storm and future Red Wings teammate Todd Bertuzzi. Although his performance tailed off in his draft year, Chicago still selected him midway through the first round in the draft.

NHL Career
Just one year removed from junior hockey, Daniel was dealt to the Edmonton Oilers as part of a package that landed Boris Mironov in Chicago.

Daniel played parts of four seasons in Edmonton. His $1 million contract was bought out by the Oilers in the summer of 2003.

Shortly thereafter, Daniel was signed to a much cheaper contract by the Phoenix Coyotes. He played with his former Edmonton teammate and friend Shawn Horcoff for Mora IK of Elitserien during the 2004-05 NHL lockout. Following the lockout, Phoenix did not offer Daniel a qualifying contract. He was invited to the Detroit Red Wings training camp, making the team out of camp and signing to a one-year contract with the Red Wings on October 4, 2005.

In the 2005–06 season, Daniel established himself as a dependable role player as a defensive forward.

In the 2006–07 season, given an expanded role with the Wings, Daniel scored a career high 20 goals in 71 games.

During the 2006–07 NHL playoff quarterfinals against Calgary, Daniel successfully converted a penalty shot while shorthanded; this was the first time it had been done in Detroit during the playoffs. In the 2007–08 season, he repeated the accomplishment of scoring 20 goals in the regular season.

On February 9, 2008, Daniel suffered a broken jaw which forced him to miss 19 games. On March 11, 2008, he signed a five-year contract extension with the Detroit Red Wings, worth $14 million.

On June 4, 2008, Daniel won the Stanley Cup with the Detroit Red Wings as they beat the Pittsburgh Penguins four games to two in the Stanley Cup Final, becoming the first Newfoundlander to do so.

On June 30, 2008, Daniel brought the Stanley Cup home to Newfoundland. A packed lobby welcomed Cleary at the St. John's International Airport. Later that day, he brought the Cup to the Janeway Children's Hospital.

On July 1, 2008, Daniel brought the Stanley Cup back to his hometown Harbour Grace, Newfoundland for a Canada Day celebration that included a parade and a concert. The event attracted an estimated 27,000 people.

The event also attracted an estimated 103 individual media accreditations with media from across Canada and the United States landing in Harbour Grace to cover Dan Cleary's story.

The Newfoundland bluegrass/folk band Greeley's Reel recorded a "hockey anthem" version of their song "Come In" about Daniel after the win. The refrain specifically highlights the celebration that would occur "when Danny Cleary brings the Stanley Cup to Newfoundland."

In addition to receiving extensive local radio airplay, the song appeared on CBC Television and a Fox Sports Detroit special.

In the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs on May 14, 2009, Daniel scored the tie breaking, Western Conference semi-final series winning goal for the Detroit Red Wings against the Anaheim Ducks with three minutes left in game seven.

With the win the Red Wings moved on to face the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference Final. Daniel scored five goals against his former team in a 4-1 series win clinching the Western Conference title before succumbing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games in a rematch of the previous Stanley Cup final.

On September 12, 2013, the Detroit Red Wings re-signed Daniel to a one-year, $1.75 million contract.

Awards & Achievements

 * OHL First All-Star Team (1996 and 1997)
 * AHL Second All-Star Team (2000)
 * Carhartt “Hardest Working” Player of the Month (January 2008)
 * NHL Stanley Cup (2008 w\Detroit)

International Play
Daniel played for Team Canada at the 2002 IIHF World Championship, scoring two goals and three points in a disappointing sixth-place finish which was Canada's fifth straight World Championship without a gold medal.