FORT McMURRAY, AB (December 12, 2014) – The Fort McMurray Oil Barons of the Alberta Junior Hockey League are proud to announce that the franchise will retire the number 7 in honour of former Oil Baron forward Scottie Upshall (Fort McMurray, AB) on January 10th, 2015.
It will be the third number to be retired by the organization, alongside #6 (Chris Phillips) and #18 (Richard Warwick).
Upshall, 31, played for the Oil Barons as a 16-year old in the 1999-00 AJHL season, helping to secure the team’s first and only national championship as it hosted and won the 2000 Royal Bank Cup. Upshall scored 52 points (26 goals, 26 assists) in 52 regular season games, adding six points in five games at the Royal Bank Cup.
He later played for the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League (WHL) where he was named the Canadian Hockey League’s Rookie of the Year in 2001, and in 2002 was drafted 6th overall by the Nashville Predators, becoming the second-highest ever drafted McMurrayite.
Upshall has since played in more than 500 regular season NHL games for the Predators, Philadelphia Flyers, Phoenix Coyotes, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Florida Panthers.
The jersey retirement will occur before the Oil Barons game that night against the Drayton Valley Thunder, with Upshall himself in attendance. The date was chosen as the Panthers conveniently play in Calgary the night before, and in Edmonton the night after.
The Oil Barons organization would like to congratulate Scottie and his family on receiving this honour, and looks forward to the community’s turnout on January 10th to honour one of Fort McMurray’s greatest athletic heroes.