Joey MacDonald was born February 7, 1980 in Pictou, Nova Scotia. Undrafted, the netminder honed his skills in the QMJHL and OHL.
A butterfly style netminder, MacDonald recorded his third consecutive 20-plus victory season with the Peterborough Petes in his final year of junior hockey. He made the leap to the professional ranks of hockey the following season, competing with Toledo in the ECHL. Over the next four seasons of his career, MacDonald would appear between the pipes with the Red Wings' AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. After setting a franchise record for most career wins in Grand Rapids, the Nova Scotian backstopper was used in eight regular season NHL games during the 2006-70 season with the Detroit Red Wings. However after posting a 1-5-1 record, the Red Wings placed him on waivers and he was signed by the Boston Bruins. After a brief seven game stint in Boston, MacDonald signed as a free agent with the New York Islanders on July 7, 2007.
Initially, the Nova Scotia native spent the majority of his time with the Islanders' AHL affiliate in Bridgeport, but in 2008, following an injury to star goaltender, Rick DiPietro, MacDonald became the number one netminder on the island. He appeared in 49 games for the club, posting a save percentage over 900.
In the summer of 2009, MacDonald signed as a free agent with the Toronto Maple Leafs, though he would spend less than a year in Toronto. On March 3, 2010, the NHL trade deadline, the goaltender was shipped to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a seventh round draft pick.
MacDonald would not suit up for the Ducks and on July 2, 2010, as an unrestricted free agent, inked a deal to return to the Detroit Red Wings. He would split time over the course of the next two season between the Red Wings and their AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids.
On February 10, 2013, MacDonald's second stint with the Red Wings would come to an end. He was claimed off waivers by the Calgary Flames.
After two seasons in the Flames organization, which included time in the American Hockey League, MacDonald was once again a free agent following the 2013-14 season. This time he inked a deal to join the Montreal Canadiens.
