To understand how Mark Messier plays hockey, one need only hear his two nicknames: "Moose" and "The Terminator." With a rare combination of power and speed, Messier is one of the most complete players in hockey. Between 1979 and 1991, Messier did it all for the Edmonton Oilers. Skating side by side with Wayne Gretzky, he helped lead the club to four Stanley Cup championships in five seasons between 1984 and 1988. Then, after Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings, Messier and the Oilers captured another Stanley Cup in 1990. He was named the National Hockey League's (NHL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) that season. In the 1991-92 season Messier won a second MVP award, this time after leading the New York Rangers to the league's best record. Then, in June 1994, he led the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup championship since 1940.

Messier was born January 18, 1961, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and grew...