Mark Messier is a Canadian former professional ice hockey center of the National Hockey League and former special assistant to the president and general manager of the New York Rangers Hockey Team. He played a quarter of a century in the NHL (1979-2004) with the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers Hockey Team, and Vancouver Canucks. He played professionally with the World Hockey Association (WHA)'s Indianapolis Racers and Cincinnati Stingers. He was the last former WHA player to be active in professional hockey, and the last active player who had played in the NHL in the 1970s.