Growing up in western Canada, he played his minor hockey in Calgary, Alberta. He was drafted fifth overall in 1973, and became the first goalie in NHL history to jump directly from major junior to the NHL. While his hockey career was fraught with many significant injuries, he is perhaps best remembered as a player for leading the Rangers to the 1979 Stanley Cup Finals on an injured left knee. His jersey numbers were 35, 00 and 30. Davidson was the first, and one of only two, NHL players to wear the number 00; after Martin Biron briefly wore the number in 1995, the league banned the use of the number. Davidson was the inspiration for the song "Double Vision" from 1978's album Double Vision by Foreigner. Members of the band who were Rangers fans were watching a Stanley Cup Playoff game between Davidson's New York Rangers and the Buffalo Sabres. Davidson was shaken up when a shot hit his goalie mask. As he was recovering, announcers Jim Gordon and Bill Chadwick said Davidson was suffering from "Double Vision."
Broadcasting career
After retiring due to injury, he joined MSG's hockey coverage staff in 1983, and was the color commentator for Rangers games from 1986–87 to 2005–06. Davidson, often known by the nickname "J.D.", became one of the most prominent color commentators in the sport, and his hockey insight is so well respected that he currently sits on the Hockey Hall of Fame selection committee. Long-time network TV partner Mike Emrick also sits on that committee, and the two shared the 2004 Lester Patrick Trophy for service to hockey in the U.S. Davidson has also contributed to NHL coverage on various national television networks. Davidson served as the lead color commentator, partnering with play-by-play announcer Mike Emrick, for the NHL on Fox from 1994–1999 and again for the NHL on NBC from 2005–2006. Eddie Olczyk, a studio analyst, would take over the color commentator position in the 2006–2007 season after Davidson left broadcasting to take over as President of the St. Louis Blues. The following timeline is a list of all season-long hockey coverage he has done, such as in-game commentary and post-game analysis shows. It does not include special events such as the Winter Olympics or Canada Cup. Davidson was known as a broadcaster for his signature phrase of "Oh, baby!" He was also featured in full motion videos shot for the EA Sports video gameNHL 97. Davidson co-authored the book Hockey for Dummies with sportswriter John Steinbreder.
Executive career
Davidson was named president of the St. Louis Blues on June 30, 2006. He left the Blues after agreeing to a buyout of his contract on October 9, 2012. He was then named president of the Columbus Blue Jackets on October 24, 2012, and held this position until his resignation on May 17, 2019. On May 17, 2019, Davidson was named as president of the New York Rangers.
