Jaroslav Špaček

Jaroslav Spacek (Czech pronunciation: [ˈjaroslaf ˈʃpatʃɛk]; born February 11, 1974) is a Czech former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for over 13 seasons with the Florida Panthers, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Edmonton Oilers, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens and the Carolina Hurricanes.

Jaroslav Špaček
Born (1974-02-11) February 11, 1974
Rokycany, Czechoslovakia
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 206 lb (93 kg; 14 st 10 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Left
Played for HC Plzeň
Färjestad BK
Florida Panthers
Chicago Blackhawks
Columbus Blue Jackets
HC Sparta Praha
Edmonton Oilers
Buffalo Sabres
Montreal Canadiens
Carolina Hurricanes
National team  Czech Republic
NHL Draft 117th overall, 1998
Florida Panthers
Playing career 19922012
Medal record
Representing  Czech Republic
Ice hockey
Winter Olympics
Gold medal – first place 1998 Nagano
Bronze medal – third place 2006 Torino
World Championships
Gold medal – first place1999 Lillehammer
Gold medal – first place2001 Nuremberg
Gold medal – first place2005 Vienna

Playing career

Špaček was drafted in the fifth round, 117th overall, by the Florida Panthers in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft.

On January 26, 2006, the Chicago Blackhawks traded Špaček to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Tony Salmelainen. In 2005–06, Špaček was part of the Cinderella Edmonton Oilers team that made a run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals. However, the Oilers lost in Game 7 of the finals to the Carolina Hurricanes. Špaček had three goals and 11 assists in the 2006 Playoffs. He was only one victory away of joining the Triple Gold Club.

On July 5, 2006, Špaček signed a three-year contract with the Buffalo Sabres. In the 2006–07 season, he helped the Sabres reach the Eastern Conference Finals. Špaček was named an alternate captain for the month of December 2007 and captain for the month of January under the Sabres 2007–08 rotating captain and alternate captains system. In the 2008–09 season, Špaček tied a career-high with 45 points in 80 games for the Sabres.

On July 1, 2009, Špaček signed a three-year contract worth $11.5 million with the Montreal Canadiens.[1]

In the final year of his contract in the 2011–12 season, on December 9, 2011, Montreal traded Špaček to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for defenceman Tomáš Kaberle.[2]

A free agent, and with the 2012–13 NHL lockout in effect well into the 2012–13 season, Špaček effectively announced his retirement on November 19, 2012.[3] He became assistant coach for HC Škoda Plzeň and was also added to Plzeň's roster before the trade deadline. He was forced into playing again in the final series due to injuries to Plzeň's defencemen, and he helped Plzeň win its first-ever Czech Extraliga title.[4]

In 2014, Špaček was named assistant coach for the Czech team at the 2014 IIHF World Championship.[5]

Špaček was inducted into the Czech Ice Hockey Hall of Fame on November 3, 2016.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1991–92 TJ Škoda Rokycany TCH U20 34 7 14 21
1992–93 TJ Škoda Rokycany TCH U20 19 12 8 20
1992–93 HC Škoda Plzeň TCH 16 1 3 4
1993–94 HC Škoda Plzeň ELH 34 2 10 12 37
1994–95 HC Interconnex Plzeň ELH 38 4 8 12 14 3 1 0 1 2
1995–96 HC ZKZ Plzeň ELH 40 3 9 12 30 3 0 1 1 4
1996–97 HC ZKZ Plzeň ELH 52 9 29 38 44
1997–98 Färjestad BK SEL 45 10 16 26 63 12 2 5 7 14
1998–99 Florida Panthers NHL 63 3 12 15 28
1998–99 Beast of New Haven AHL 14 4 8 12 15
1999–2000 Florida Panthers NHL 82 10 26 36 53 4 0 0 0 0
2000–01 Florida Panthers NHL 12 2 1 3 8
2000–01 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 50 5 8 13 20
2001–02 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 60 3 10 13 29
2001–02 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 14 2 3 5 24
2002–03 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 81 9 36 45 80
2003–04 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 58 5 17 22 45
2004–05 HC Lasselsberger Plzeň ELH 30 3 8 11 26
2004–05 HC Slavia Praha ELH 17 4 9 13 29 7 0 2 2 8
2005–06 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 45 7 17 24 72
2005–06 Edmonton Oilers NHL 31 5 14 19 24 24 3 11 14 24
2006–07 Buffalo Sabres NHL 65 5 16 21 62 16 0 0 0 10
2007–08 Buffalo Sabres NHL 60 9 23 32 42
2008–09 Buffalo Sabres NHL 80 8 37 45 38
2009–10 Montreal Canadiens NHL 74 3 18 21 50 10 1 3 4 6
2010–11 Montreal Canadiens NHL 59 1 15 16 45 7 0 0 0 4
2011–12 Montreal Canadiens NHL 12 0 3 3 2
2011–12 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 34 5 7 12 6
2012–13 HC Škoda Plzeň ELH 3 0 1 1 0
ELH totals 211 25 73 98 180 20 1 6 7 22
NHL totals 880 82 263 345 628 61 4 14 28 44

International

Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
1994 Czech Republic WJC 7 2 0 2 8
1998 Czech Republic OG 6 0 0 0 4
1999 Czech Republic WC 12 1 5 6 8
2001 Czech Republic WC 9 0 3 3 4
2002 Czech Republic OG 4 0 0 0 0
2002 Czech Republic WC 7 1 2 3 8
2003 Czech Republic WC 9 1 5 6 4
2004 Czech Republic WC 6 2 1 3 6
2004 Czech Republic WCH 4 0 0 0 0
2005 Czech Republic WC 9 1 0 1 0
2006 Czech Republic OG 8 0 1 1 2
Senior totals 72 6 17 23 36

References

  1. "Habs ink Jaroslav Spacek". Montreal Canadiens. 2009-07-01. Archived from the original on 2009-07-04. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
  2. "Canadiens acquire Kaberle from Hurricanes for Spacek". ' 'TSN' '. 2011-12-09. Retrieved 2011-12-09.
  3. "Spacek wanted at Philadelphia, What did he say? Ends career..." isport.cz (in Czech). 2012-11-19. Retrieved 2012-11-19.
  4. "Nejprve trenér, později i hráč. A nyní spálím výstroj, plánuje po zisku titulu Jaroslav Špaček - Hokej.cz". Archived from the original on 2014-05-03. Retrieved 2014-05-03.
  5. Spacek named assistant coach
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