John McIntyre was a scrappy defensive centre who had many tricks up his sleeve that could throw off opposing forwards. A decent scorer in junior, he carved out a six-year NHL career by focusing on his checking assignments and battling hard in the corners and the slot.
The native of Ravenswood, Ontario played Junior B with the Strathroy Rockets before joining the OHL's Guelph Platers in 1985-86. During his rookie season, he helped the club win the Memorial Cup. McIntyre was chosen 49th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1987 and was the top-two way pivot his last two years in the OHL. In 1989, he was a member of Team Canada when it finished fourth at the World Junior Championships.
As a rookie, the young forward played 59 games as one of the few checkers on the offensive-minded Toronto Maple Leafs in 1989-90. The next year, he was sent to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for veteran Mike Krushelnyski. McIntyre saw plenty of ice time as a defensive shadow and penalty killer and helped his new club reach the second round of the 1991 playoffs.
Late in the 1992-93 season, the Kings traded McIntyre to the New York Rangers. Early the next year he was picked up on waivers by the Vancouver Canucks where he played two seasons as a checker. McIntyre retired in 1996 after playing 53 games for the AHL's Syracuse Crunch.
