Chris Simon
A fearsome enforcer with hands skilled enough to hoist the Stanley Cup, his career became a complex portrait of hockey's brutal physical toll.
Born 1972 (age 54)·Canadian ice hockey player·Birthday: January 30·Generation X
Biography
Chris Simon, a hulking left winger from Wawa, Ontario, carved out a 15-year NHL career defined by a simple, punishing job description: protect his teammates. Drafted in 1990, he brought a blend of size, surprising skating ability, and a willingness to fight anyone to franchises like the Quebec Nordiques and Colorado Avalanche. In Colorado, he was a key physical component of the 1996 Stanley Cup championship team, sharing a locker room with legends. But his role came at a steep cost. Simon became one of the most suspended players in league history, with bans for stick-swinging, stomping, and cross-checking incidents that highlighted the game's unchecked violence during his era. His posthumous diagnosis with CTE in 2024 reframed his story, turning his on-ice struggles into a sobering case study in the long-term consequences of the sport's enforcer culture.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Chris was born in 1972, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Chris Was Born
The biggest hits of 1972
#1 Movie
The Godfather
Best Picture
The Godfather
#1 TV Show
All in the Family
Chris's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1972Born
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1977Started school
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1985Became a teenager
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1988Could drive
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1990Could vote
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
1993Turned 21
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
2002Turned 30
Euro currency enters circulation
Gas: $1.36/galHome: $137,800Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"How You Remind Me" — NickelbackBest Picture: Chicago
2012Turned 40
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
2022Turned 50
Russia invades Ukraine; Queen Elizabeth II dies
Gas: $3.97/galHome: $348,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"As It Was" — Harry StylesBest Picture: Everything Everywhere All at Once
2026Age 54 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won the Stanley Cup in 1996 as a member of the Colorado Avalanche.
- Played over 780 games in the NHL, amassing over 1800 penalty minutes.
- Scored a career-high 29 goals and 49 points during the 1999-2000 season with the Washington Capitals.
- Represented the New York Rangers in the 2002 NHL All-Star Game.
Did You Know?
He was of Ojibwe descent and was raised in the First Nations community of Wawa.
He was teammates with Hall of Famer Joe Sakic on the Stanley Cup-winning Avalanche.
His eight NHL suspensions totaled a record 65 games at the time of his retirement.
After his NHL career, he played several seasons in the Russian-based KHL.
“My role was to create space for the skill players and answer the bell when called.”
