Roberts grew up in Whitby Ontario and excelled in hockey and lacrosse. He won two Memorial Cup Championships in Junior with Ottawa 67’s and Geulph Platers. Gary also won a Minto Cup Championship in lacrosse with the Whitby Warriors. Drafted in the First-Round 12th Overall by the Flames in 1984, he made his NHL debut in ’86 and would go onto win a Stanley Cup with his childhood friend Joe Nieuwendyk in ’89 with the Flames. His style of play caught up to him and a serious neck injury caused him to miss many games and an entire season in ‘96/’97. The new Carolina Hurricanes signed him in 1997 where he was instrumental in leading them into the playoffs in only their second year in Carolina. In 2000, he signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs where he was a fan favourite and team leader. Roberts would go onto play in Florida and Pittsburgh and retired after spending his last season with the Tampa Bay Lightning in ‘08/’09 tallying a career 909 points in 1224 games. He currently resides in Aurora with his family and runs the Gary Roberts High Performance Centre and Fitness Institute, where he trains several professional hockey players.
