Derek Leendert Boogaard ( BOH-gard; later BOO-gard; June 23, 1982 – May 13, 2011) was a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger who played for the Minnesota Wild and the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL).
A native of Saskatchewan, where he grew up in several different communities as the son of a Mountie, he was known primarily as a fighter and enforcer throughout his career, from junior hockey to the pros. His fighting prowess earned him the nicknames of "Boogeyman" and "the Mountie", and made him a favourite with fans. In 2007, he was voted as the second-most-intimidating player in the NHL, behind Georges Laraque, who attributed his retirement in part to a desire to avoid the serious injury Boogaard could inflict, such as the cheekbone fracture Todd Fedoruk suffered that had to be repaired with metal plates.
Boogaard died at 28 from an accidental drug and alcohol overdose while recovering from a concussion. A posthumous examination of his brain found he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy more advanced than that seen in some former enforcers. That disclosure came shortly after the deaths of two other hockey enforcers, Rick Rypien and Wade Belak, both of whom were also under 40 and had similar health issues. The three deaths triggered a debate in the hockey community about the issues faced by enforcers and their place in the game. His parents unsuccessfully sued the NHL and its players' union over his death.
Boogaard was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, the first of four children of Len Boogaard, an officer with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and his wife Joanne, who were living in Hanley at the time. Derek Boogaard had two younger brothers, Ryan and Aaron, and a sister, Krysten. The family moved every few years due to the transfers required by the RCMP. While they lived for a time near Toronto, most of Len Boogaard's postings were in Saskatchewan.
Boogaard grew up in Herbert, a predominantly Mennonite community. He was taller than most children his age, reaching 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm) in height and 210 pounds (95 kg) by the age of 15. His adolescent growth spurt led to chronic pain in his knees. In school he struggled, especially with reading—his father believes Boogaard had "cognitive and behavioral issues", in particular impulsivity.
He was a frequent target of bullying, due to his size, shyness, and being the son of a police officer. When challenged to fights, he often won them decisively, though friends and family say he did not seek them out. "Derek would certainly stick up for the team, he would stick up for his teammates," recalled one of his youth hockey coaches, "but wasn't mean at all."
His family encouraged him to play hockey as an outlet, and his father would often drive him to distant games in his police car, an experience Boogaard was to recall fondly later in his life. He quit hockey briefly at the age of 12, but his family talked him into returning. In his early teens he stated that his goal in life was to play in the NHL, and idolized Wendel Clark, another Saskatchewan native who was at the time the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Boogaards later moved to Melfort. Len would often drive his sons to Saskatoon for additional training in skating and boxing. In youth hockey Boogaard, because of his size, often got penalties that, his coach says, were not his fault. Parents of both teammates and opposing players complained that he was too large to be playing with children his age.
One night, while playing for the Melfort Mustangs, an unspecified incident led Boogaard to jump into the opposing bench and attempt to fight with opposing players, whose team was leading by a wide margin. "He had gone ballistic," said his father, who was in attendance. "It was something I hadn't seen before." Boogaard was ejected from the game, and after changing out of his uniform went to sit next to his father in the stands. Later they were approached by scouts from the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League. They were impressed by Boogaard's boldness and offered him the chance to play junior hockey with the team, a first stop toward reaching the NHL.
By the time he began his junior hockey career, Boogaard had realized that if he wanted to make it to the NHL, he would only be able to do so as an enforcer, since fighting was his strongest skill. In his first scrimmage with the Pats, he was challenged by another large player on the team. Boogaard broke the other player's nose with his first punch.
His parents divorced but both moved to Regina to be close to him. Boogaard's career there did not get off to a good start when he backed out of his first fight in a game against the Moose Jaw Warriors. As a result, he was reassigned to the lower-division Regina Pats of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. He played there for most of the 1998–99 season, scoring two goals and five points in 35 games, with 166 penalty minutes (PIM).
The season was not a happy one for Boogaard. At one point he begged the coach to let him play during a tournament in Calgary, but was unsuccessful. He quit after the game and, his mother recalled, cried all the way home when she came to pick him up. That summer he got into a bar fight with some friends one night, during which, he wrote later, they beat up seven men around the age of 30.
By the next season he had reached his full adult height of 6 feet 7 inches (201 cm). The Pats called him back to training camp, and he got into 12 fights during the four scrimmages. He played in five games with the team, earning no points and 17 PIM. Early in his rookie season, he was traded to the Prince George Cougars after losing a fight in a game against the Kelowna Rockets.
During his first season he suited up for 20 games, registering no points and had the third-highest penalty minutes total on the team with 149. He lost his first fight, against Eric Godard, a future NHL enforcer with the New York Islanders. "It was a very long year for me," he wrote later. "I struggled with everything it seemed." He had difficulty following rules and failed classes at school. Late in the season he suffered a broken jaw in a game against the Tri-City Americans, and was sent home to Regina to heal. He was expected to lose weight due to the liquid diet forced on him by having his jaw wired shut, but actually gained it when he found ways to get food through gaps in the wiring.
After considering quitting hockey again during training camp, he returned to the Cougars for a second season in 2000–01. He finally found a host family he could get along with, and began winning his fights on the ice. He avenged losses from previous seasons, including the one in which he had been injured. Prince George fans began chanting his name at games, and one poll named him the toughest player in the WHL's Western Conference.
In 61 games he scored a goal and nine points. His team-leading 245 PIM was the eighth highest total in the league. In the playoffs, Boogaard scored a goal in six games, while accumulating 30 PIM. "I don't think I ever saw our rink, or Derek, that happy as the time he scored that goal [in the playoffs]", said one of his assistant coaches. Boogaard agreed, writing "It was the best feeling I had the last 2 years." After the season, the Minnesota Wild drafted Boogaard in the seventh round, 202nd overall, in the 2001 NHL entry draft.
Boogaard began the 2001–02 season with the Cougars, appearing in two games, recording no points and 16 PIM. He was then traded to the Medicine Hat Tigers.
Boogaard finished the 2001–02 season with the Medicine Hat Tigers, as he appeared in 46 games with the team, scoring a goal and nine points, while having 178 PIM, third highest on the team.