Steve Heinze

Stephen Herbert Heinze (born January 30, 1970) is a former National Hockey League right winger. He was drafted in the third round, 60th overall, by the Boston Bruins in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. Heinze was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, but grew up in North Andover, Massachusetts. Heinze played three seasons for Boston College, where he, David Emma, and Marty McInnis formed the "HEM" Line. Heinze, Emma, and McInnis finished first, second, and third, respectively, in the 1989–90 Hockey East scoring race. Heinze played for the 1992 U.S. Olympic hockey team and signed a multiyear contract with the Boston Bruins on March 6, 1992, following the Olympic games. After nine seasons with the Bruins, he joined the Columbus Blue Jackets for the 2000–01 season. The Blue Jackets traded him to the Buffalo Sabres at that season's trade deadline. He then joined the Los Angeles Kings as a free agent before the 2001–02 season, and played the final two seasons of his career there. Because of his last name, Heinze requested to wear #57 (as in Heinz 57 ketchup) with the Bruins. However, the Bruins denied his request, stating that only Ray Bourque (#77) could wear an unorthodox number. Instead, Heinze wore #23 in Boston. He was granted #57 when he joined the Blue Jackets and he wore it for the remainder of his NHL career. In his NHL career, Heinze appeared in 694 games. He scored 178 goals and added 158 assists. He also appeared in 69 NHL playoff games, scoring 11 goals and adding 15 assists.