Professional Career
Following Courtenay's junior hockey career with Laval Titan and Granby Bisons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) he was signed by the Minnesota North Stars as a free agent on 1 October 1989. Minnesota assigned Courtenay to play with Kalamazoo Wings in the International Hockey League (IHL) where he spent his first three professional seasons.
Courtenay was selected by the San Jose Sharks in the 1991 Dispersal Draft when the NHL expanded to include San Jose. During the 1991–92 and 1992–93 seasons Courtenay played 44 NHL games for San Jose.
Courtenay spent the next four seasons playing for the Kansas City Blades, the Chicago Wolves, the Peoria Rivermen and the San Francisco Spiders in the IHL; the Reno Renegades in the West Coast Hockey League (WCHL); and the Jacksonville Lizard Kings and the South Carolina Stingrays in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) before joining the Sheffield Steelers in the United Kingdom to play in the Ice Hockey Superleague (ISL) in 1997. Courtenay played for Sheffield for three seasons before signing for the Ayr Scottish Eagles for the 2000–01 and 2001–02 seasons, also in the ISL.
He returned to North America when he was signed as a free agent by the Verdun Dragons of the Quebec Semi-Pro Hockey League (QSPHL) on 12 July 2002 for the 2002–03 season. Courtenay returned to the South Carolina Stingrays for the 2003–04 and 2004–05 seasons before he returned to Europe as a player/coach with the Belfast Giants in 2005. His contract expired at the end of the 2007-2008 season, with Steve Thornton taking over the roll as Head Coach. Courtenay was also a player/coach with the Belfast Giants in the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL), guiding the team to league success in 2006. Courtenay left his role after the 2007/08 season and was succeeded by Steve Thornton. He has played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the San Jose Sharks.
Read more about this topic: Ed Courtenay
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