Playing career

Wesley was drafted 3rd overall by the Boston Bruins in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft from the Portland Winter Hawks, appearing in 202 regular season games over 3+ seasons, scoring 49 goals and 175 assists for 224 points.

Wesley began his NHL career with the Boston Bruins, whom he played for from 1987 to 1994. He earned a berth on the 1988 All-Rookie team. He reached the Stanley Cup Finals twice with the Bruins, in 1988 and 1990, though the Bruins lost both series to the Edmonton Oilers.

Prior to the start of the 1994-95 season, Wesley was traded to the Hartford Whalers for their first-round draft picks in 1995, 1996, and 1997. With the picks, the Bruins drafted Kyle McLaren (1995), Johnathan Aitken (1996) and Sergei Samsonov (1997), the latter of whom was Wesley's teammate in his final year in the NHL.

Wesley moved with the Whalers to Carolina in 1997 and quickly became a leader. In 2002, he reached the Stanley Cup Finals for a third time. In March 2003, nearing the trade deadline, he was traded from Carolina to Toronto, joining the Maple Leafs for the rest of the 2002-2003 season in an effort for both teams to make the Stanley Cup playoffs. He re-signed with the Hurricanes at the end of the season. He got his fourth trip to the Stanley Cup Finals against the Edmonton Oilers. This would be Wesley's third time playing against the Oilers. Wesley won his first Stanley Cup on June 19, 2006 with the Hurricanes, defeating Edmonton in seven games, which is his childhood favorite team. When he won this, he ended one of the longest streaks for active players who had not yet won a Stanley Cup. Wesley played two more seasons with the Hurricanes before retiring, leaving him as the only player to have played in each of the Hurricanes' first 10 seasons since the team relocated to North Carolina.

On June 5, 2008 Wesley announced his retirement after his 20th NHL season, and his 10th with the Carolina Hurricanes. He remains in the Hurricanes organization as Director of Defensemen Development. The Hurricanes retired Wesley's No. 2 jersey February 17, 2009, while hosting the Boston Bruins at the RBC Center in Raleigh, NC.

Wesley, a resident of the United States since he was in his early 20s, is now an American citizen. He took the Stanley Cup to Camp Lejeune, to the beach, and to his churches for his day with the Cup. He visited with family and topped it off with a giant sundae from the Cup.

Personal life

Wesley and his wife, Barb, have 3 children, Amanda, Josh and Matthew. His older brother Blake is also a retired NHL defenseman. As of February 2014, his son Josh, was drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, was playing with the Plymouth Whalers of the Ontario Hockey League and was listed as #79 on the North American skater prospects list for the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.

Wesley lived in Danvers, Massachusetts in the early 1990s while a member of the Bruins and Avon, Connecticut from 1994 until 1997 when the Whalers relocated to North Carolina. The Wesley family now resides in Cary, North Carolina.

Awards and achievements

• Named Western Hockey League Western Conference Defenceman of the Year 1985-86 and 1986-87
• Named to the NHL All-Rookie Team in 1988.
• Played in NHL All-Star Game (1989)
• Member of Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes in 2006.
• Had his number 2 retired by the Carolina Hurricanes on February 17, 2009.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1983-84	Portland Winter Hawks	WHL		3	1	2	3	0		—	—	—	—	—
1984-85	Portland Winter Hawks	WHL		67	16	52	68	76		6	1	6	7	8
1985-86	Portland Winter Hawks	WHL		69	16	75	91	96		15	3	11	14	29
1986-87	Portland Winter Hawks	WHL		63	16	46	62	72		20	8	18	26	27
1987-88	Boston Bruins	NHL		79	7	30	37	69		23	6	8	14	22
1988-89	Boston Bruins	NHL		77	19	35	54	61		10	0	2	2	4
1989-90	Boston Bruins	NHL		78	9	27	36	48		21	2	6	8	36
1990-91	Boston Bruins	NHL		80	11	32	43	78		19	2	9	11	19
1991-92	Boston Bruins	NHL		78	9	37	46	54		15	2	4	6	15
1992-93	Boston Bruins	NHL		64	8	25	33	47		4	0	0	0	0
1993-94	Boston Bruins	NHL		81	14	44	58	64		13	3	3	6	12
1994-95	Hartford Whalers	NHL		48	2	14	16	50		—	—	—	—	—
1995-96	Hartford Whalers	NHL		68	8	16	24	88		—	—	—	—	—
1996-97	Hartford Whalers	NHL		68	8	26	32	40		—	—	—	—	—
1997-98	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		82	6	19	25	36		—	—	—	—	—
1998-99	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		74	7	17	24	44		6	0	1	1	2
1999-00	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		78	7	15	22	38		—	—	—	—	—
2000-01	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		71	5	16	21	42		6	0	0	0	0
2001-02	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		77	5	13	18	56		22	0	2	2	12
2002-03	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		63	1	7	8	40		—	—	—	—	—
2002-03	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		7	0	3	3	4		5	0	1	1	2
2003-04	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		74	0	6	6	32		—	—	—	—	—
2005-06	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		64	2	8	10	46		25	0	2	2	16
2006-07	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		68	1	12	13	56		—	—	—	—	—
2007-08	Carolina Hurricanes	NHL		78	1	7	8	52		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals (20 Seasons)				1457	128	409	537	1045		169	15	38	53	141
WHL totals (4 Seasons)				202	49	175	224	244		41	12	35	47	64

[ Source: Wikipedia ]