Kris Versteeg was born May 13, 1986 in Lethbridge, Alberta. The fifth round, 134th overall selection of the Boston Bruins in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, Versteeg honed his skills with three WHL clubs.
A highly skilled forward, Versteeg more than doubled his point production in his sophomore season in the WHL with the Lethbridge Hurricanes. After yet another consistant season in Lethbridge, Versteeg spent only 14 games in Kamloops before the club dealt him to the Red Deer Rebels. After his final game of junior hockey in Red Deer, Versteeg signed a tryout with the Providence Bruins and appeared in 13 games with the club.
He returned to the Providence Bruins for his 2006-07 season, but after racking up 49 points in 43 games, he was dealt to Chicago by Boston for Brandon Bochenski on February 3, 2007. He completed his season with the Norfolk Admirals of the AHL and went on to tally 49 points in 56 games the following season. That same season, Versteeg made his NHL debut with Chicago in a November 22nd, 2007 game against the Calgary Flames.
Versteeg scored the opening goal of the 2009 Winter Classic held at Wrigley Field against the Detroit Red Wings and finished his first full season with 22 goals and 53 points, second in rookie scoring to Bobby Ryan of the Anaheim Ducks, earning himself a nomination for the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year along with Ryan and goaltender Steve Mason of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The 2009-10 season would end triumphantly for Versteeg and the Blackhawks when they defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in six games to capture the club's first Stanley Cup championship since 1961.
With the cup celebration seemingly still in full-swing, the Blackhawks began to shed salary and Versteeg would be one of the casualties. On June 30, 2010 he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a package of players that included Viktor Stalberg.
Versteeg's time in Toronto would be short-lived. Just 53 games into his first season with the Maple Leafs, the talented winger was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a first and third round draft picks. Just months later Versteeg was on the move again. This time he was traded by the Flyers to the Florida Panthers in exchange for a third round draft pick. The deal marked the third time the winger had been traded in just over a year.
