Biography of Ryan Getzlaf [Age, Height, Family, Wife, Awards, Salary & Net Worth]

Ryan Getzlaf is a professional Canadian ice hockey player and has an extraordinary playmaking center. He is an overall package that is currently a captain of the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Getzlaf has devoted all his professional years to the Anaheim Ducks organization since his first-round selection, 19th overall, at the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

To add, he is also one of the franchise’s all-time leading scorers and a member of the Ducks’ 2007 Stanley Cup championship team in three NHL All-Star Games.

Ryan Getzlaf

Overall, as a power forward, Getzlaf has led all the team’s games, even assists, playoff points, and second in overall points after Teemu Selanne. We have tabled all the general facts on the player below.

Quick Facts

Physical Attributes

Getzlaf is a tall, strong built man with a fair complexion. He has an oval face and stands tall at 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) while weighing 220 lb (100 kg).

Ryan Getzlaf | Early Life

Getzlaf was born under the star sign of Taurus on May 10, 1985. He is the younger son of Steve Getzlaf and Susan Getzlaf.

He grew up with his elder brother, Chris Getzlaf, in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Getzlaf attended Robert Usher Collegiate in Regina.

To illustrate, their family were all sports-oriented; both Ryan and Chris were motivated to devote themselves to any one particular sport, especially hockey or football.

His elder brother, Chris, focused on football and ultimately joined their hometown Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Canadian Football League as a slotback.

Ryan with Anaheim

While Ryan first played as a tailback in football and then represented Saskatchewan as a catcher in a national youth baseball tournament. Eventually, he played hockey and focused his career on it.

Ryan Getzlaf | Career

Junior Level

Season 2000-2001

In 2000, Getzlaf was a member of the Regina Bantam AAA Rangers when Getzlaf was drafted into the Western Hockey League (WHL) by the Calgary Hitmen 54th pick in the 2000 WHL Bantam Draft.

During Ryan’s draft, he was 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall to broaden the topic. However, by 16, he grew up 6 inches (0.15 m); thus, he was 6 ft 3 inches tall at enrolment.

Season 2001-2002

Getzlaf made his first debut and recorded 18 points in 63 games.

Season 2002-2003

As a 17-year-old, he made his mark in season 2002-2003 with 29 goals and 68 points. Due to his performance, he was the top prospect for the 2003 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft.

Additionally, he was ranked as the fifth-best North American skater in the NHL Central Scouting Bureau draft. The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim also selected him in the first round with the 19th overall.

Season 2003-2004

For this season, Getzlaf played for the Hitmen and scored 75 points in just 49 games. Thus, he was named to the WHL’s first all-star team.

Season 2004-2005

For this season, Getzlaf commenced his fourth season of junior hockey as he returned to Hitmen for NHL Lock-out.

He was the team captain; however, he was briefly removed from the position due to several misconduct penalties for arguing with the officials. In a week’s interval, he restored his position and maintained moderate interactions with the referees.

In the same season, during a match against the Red Deer Rebels, Getzlaf was hit by Dion Phaneuf, which resulted in a concussion. After his injury was healed, he finished the regular season with 54 points in 51 games.

Right after it, the Hitmen were eliminated from the WHL playoffs, and he got assigned to the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks of the American Hockey League (AHL) for their own playoff run.

In the end, Getzlaf had one goal and four assists in 10 post-season games for Cincinnati in his professional debut.

Anaheim Ducks

The Year 2005

Getzlaf made the Mighty Ducks’ roster out of training camp and commenced his season in Anaheim. Then, he made his NHL debut on October 5, 2005, against the Chicago Blackhawks.

He made his foremost point with an assist on October 14 against the Columbus Blue Jackets for the season. Seven days later, he made his first NHL goal against goaltender Manny Legace of the Detroit Red Wings.

When Getzlaf had seven points in his first 16 games with Anaheim, he was demoted to the AHL’s Portland Pirates in mid-November.

He gained more playing time here than he used to get in Anaheim. He appeared in 17 games for the Pirates, in which he scored 8 goals and added 25 assists.

Getzlaf and his teammate Corey Perry were titled AHL co-rookie of the month in December. Thereafter, he closed the NHL season with 14 goals and 39 points in 57 regular-season games and added seven points in 16 post-season contests.

The Year 2006

Getzlaf was named to the 2006 AHL All-Star game; however, he did not appear in it; thus, he was recalled to Anaheim in mid-January.

As his enrolment with the newly named Anaheim Ducks, he appeared in 82 regular season games scoring 25 goals and 58 points for his sophomore season.

The Year 2007

He played for the team in the YoungStars Game at the 2007 NHL All-Star  Game in Dallas. Right after it, teaming up with Corey Perry (21 years old) and Dustin Penner (24 years old), Getzlaf (22 years old) formed the Ducks’ “kid line.”

For the 2007 playoff run to Stanley Cup Finals, the Ducks’ “kid line” stood aloof as the top-scoring unit.

The Ducks, led by Getzlaf, defeated the Ottawa Senators in the final series with 17 points, a franchise playoff record. Hence, this became the first Stanley Cup championship in Anaheim’s franchise history.

The Ducks Stanley cup

The Year 2008

Before the season 2007-08, the Ducks’ “kid line” got disbanded as Penner signed a contract as a restricted free agent with the Edmonton Oilers.

However, Getzlaf remained in Anaheim and signed a five-year, $26.625 million extension carried through the 2012–13 season.

Consequently, Getzlaf played his first All-Star Game leading the Ducks in both assists (58) and points (82).

As a result, he rose as one of the NHL’s top young stars. On October 29, he gained the 5-4 victory over the Detroit Red Wings. Thus, tying the Ducks with their franchise history records with five assists.

Furthermore, as the league’s top scorer, he led the Ducks with a franchise-record 66 assists, and his 91 points were sixth-best in the NHL.

The Year 2009

As the startup of the year, he appeared in the NHL as the starting line-up after being voted by his fans. However, the Ducks were eliminated in the second round of the 2009 playoffs.

Having it, Getzlaf made the franchise’s playoff record with 14 assists (in 13 games) and finished sixth overall in post-season scoring.

In the end, Getzlaf was down with just 66 games with 50 assists and was second in team scoring with 69 points due to his ankle injury. At the end of the season, Getzlaf was made the captain right after the retirement of Scott Niedermayer.

The Year 2010-2011

The Ducks’ head coach Randy Carlyle described Getlaf’s promotion due to his maturity as an NHL player. This season was harsh with Getzlaf as he had multiple nasal sinus fractures due to the hit by a puck on his face.