Joey Crabb was a player unfairly maligned by fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The 2010-11 and the 2011-12 Leafs were hardly world-beaters and arguably Crabb was played too high in the line-up for someone with his skill-set.

That’s not to say the right-winger (played on the left side in Toronto at times) was a terrible player because that’s simply not the case.

Drafted 226th overall by the New York Rangers in 2002, Crabb had to wait until 2006 to be signed by an NHL club.

Having penned an Entry-Level Contract with the Atlanta Thrashers, the rookie forward had to bide his time in the American Hockey with the Chicago Wolves.
After two full professional campaigns under his belt during which he was part of a Calder Cup Championship team (2008), Crabb finally made his NHL debut for the Thrashers during the 2008-09 season and recorded nine-point (4-5-9) in 29 outings.

Signed to another one year contract after the expiration of his ELC, Crabb would fail to feature in the NHL the following year despite being traded to Chicago Blackhawks.

However, he would go on to have a career AHL season production-wise, finishing fourth in team scoring for Chicago Wolves (24-29-53) accruing 53 points.

A free agent in the summer of 2010, the American forward signed for the Toronto Maple Leafs on July 1st.

Crabb featured in 115 games throughout two seasons for the Leafs, registering fourteen goals and twenty-seven assists for 41 points.
Certainly not mind-blowing but not the bust player that many portrayed him as at the time and even now with hindsight.

In the AHL, the Anchorage native was excellent for the Toronto Marlies, recording 18 points (11-7-18) through 34 games in 2010-11 and bettered that the following season with fifteen points (7-8-15) in just nine games.

A personable player who always gave his all, Crabb was very much a well-liked ‘Marlie’ during his short tenure at Ricoh Coliseum.

The Washington Capitals acquired the winger in free-agency in 2012 but the NHL lock-out meant Crabb headed to his home-town to play some ECHL level hockey with the Alaska Aces.
He would dress in 26 games for the Capital in that shortened campaign, netting two goals and was a point per game player for the Hershey Bears through twelve regular-season games and five playoff outings.

Florida was Crabb’s next port of call but despite signing a two-year deal the Panthers offered him just nine opportunities at that NHL level as he would spend the majority of his time back in the AHL, this time with San Antonio Rampage.

Traded to the New York Rangers half-way through that contract it was the same story as Crabb spent the entirety of the 2014-15 campaign with the Hartford Wolf Pack before opting to depart the North American hockey scene.

On October 7, 2015, having been released by Arizona Coyotes from their training camp, Crabb signed a one-year deal with Swedish club, Växjö Lakers HC.

The Alaska native appeared in 31 games with the Lakers registering ten points before opting to transfer to fellow SHL club, Frölunda HC on February 1, 2016.
Five goals and two assists in 14 post-season games helped the Indians claim their fourth Le Mat Trophy in Franchise history and made himself somewhat of a cult-hero amongst the fans.

 

After what was his 10th professional season, Crabb announced his retirement from the game.

He initially joined hometown collegiate program, Alaska Anchorage Seawolves, as a volunteer assistant coach in the 2016-17 season, a return to where he began his playing hockey as a member of the Colorado College (WCHA).
Since then he hasn’t been involved in any organized hockey program that I could find during my research.

Joey Crabb finished his North American career with 241 points (106 goals/135 assists) in 439 AHL regular-season games and recorded a further 31 points in 64 playoff outings.

In 179 NHL games split between Atlanta, Toronto, Washington and Florida, he registered twenty goals and thirty-three assists for 53 points.