Petr Sýkora
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Position | Right Wing |
| Shoots | Left |
| Nickname(s) | Sykie |
| Height Weight |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg/13 st 8 lb) |
| NHL Team F. teams |
Pittsburgh Penguins New Jersey Devils Mighty Ducks of Anaheim New York Rangers Edmonton Oilers |
| Nationality |  Czech Republic |
| Born | November 19, 1976 , Plzen, CS |
| NHL Draft | 18th overall, 1995 New Jersey Devils |
| Pro career | 1992 – present |
Petr Sýkora (pronounced /pɪitɝ/ɹ̩ sɪkɔɹɑ/, born November 19, 1976 in Pilsen, Czechoslovakia) is a professional ice hockey player, currently playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League.
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[edit] Playing career
Before being drafted, Sykora spent several seasons in the Czechoslovak Extraliga and the IHL. As a Cleveland Lumberjack, Sykora became the youngest player ever to play in the IHL at 17 years and 71 days.[1]
In the 1995 NHL Entry Draft, Sykora was drafted in the first round, 18th overall, by the New Jersey Devils. Among that draft class, only Jarome Iginla has scored more points.
Sykora began his NHL career in 1995-96 with New Jersey, posting 42 points in his rookie campaign, as well as being chosen as the NHL Rookie of the Month for December.[2] In his fourth NHL season, his career would take off, recording a breakout 72 points, which still stands as the second highest total of his career. As part of the Devils' effective A-line, with Patrik Elias and Jason Arnott, he helped lead the team to a Stanley Cup in 2000. The next season, Sykora and the Devils were only game away from repeating as Stanley Cup champions, but lost in the seventh game to the Colorado Avalanche. That year, Sykora recorded career highs in goals (35), assists (46), and points (81).
However, the next season, Sykora's offensive production dropped to just 48 points, and the before the start of 2001-02, he was traded to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim for Jeff Friesen and Oleg Tverdovsky. In his first season with Anaheim, Sykora appeared in his third Stanley Cup final, but lost to his former teammates from New Jersey. En route to the finals, he scored the game-winning quintuple-overtime goal in the fourth-longest playoff game in NHL history in Game 1 of the quarter finals against Dallas.
In 2002, Sykora was selected to play for the Czech Republic in the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, where the team placed fourth. Two years later, Sykora also represented the Czech Republic in the 2004 World Cup. However, his greatest achievement on an international level came the following year during the 2005 World Championships, in which Sykora helped lead the Czechs to the finals to play Team Canada. In a stunning upset, the Czechs beat Canada 3-0, marking Sykora's first gold medal in an international tournament.
While the NHL lockout was in effect, Sykora played for Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the Russian Super League, scoring 31 points in 45 games. As NHL play resumed, in 2005-06, Sykora requested to be traded from Anaheim and on January 9, 2006, the New York Rangers acquired Sykora in exchange for young defenceman Maxim Kondratiev and the return of a 4th round draft pick the Rangers had previously traded to Anaheim.
After completing the season with New York, it was announced on July 7, 2006, that Sykora would not return to the Rangers, and he was subsequently signed to a one-year deal with the Edmonton Oilers. On a line with countryman Ales Hemsky, Sykora maintained the previous few seasons' scoring output and managed 53 points.
In July 2007, Sykora signed a 2-year contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins as an unrestricted free agent. After initially playing with Sidney Crosby, Sykora was later lined up with Evgeni Malkin after Crosby suffered an injury towards the end of the season. Benefitting from high-caliber linemates, Sykora enjoyed his best offensive season since 2000-01, tallying 63 points.
Reaching the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals against the Detroit Red Wings, Sykora scored an overtime goal in game five after "calling" it to on-ice reporter Pierre McGuire in the second overtime.[3] With the Penguins down 3-1 in the series, Sykora scored the next period on the powerplay to force a game six.
[edit] Career statistics
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1991-92 | Plzen Jr | Czech-Jr. | 30 | 50 | 50 | 100 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1992-93 | HC Lasselsberger Plzen | Czech | 19 | 12 | 5 | 17 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1993-94 | HC Lasselsberger Plzen | CzRep | 37 | 10 | 16 | 26 | -- | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -- | ||
| 1993-94 | Cleveland Lumberjacks | IHL | 13 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 8 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1994-95 | Detroit Vipers | IHL | 29 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 16 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1995-96 | Albany River Rats | AHL | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1995-96 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 63 | 18 | 24 | 42 | 32 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1996-97 | Albany River Rats | AHL | 43 | 20 | 25 | 45 | 48 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 1996-97 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 19 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1997-98 | Albany River Rats | AHL | 2 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1997-98 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 58 | 16 | 20 | 36 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1998-99 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 80 | 29 | 43 | 72 | 22 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 | ||
| 1999-00 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 79 | 25 | 43 | 68 | 26 | 23 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 10 | ||
| 2000-01 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 73 | 35 | 46 | 81 | 32 | 25 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 12 | ||
| 2001-02 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 73 | 21 | 27 | 48 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2002-03 | Anaheim Mighty Ducks | NHL | 82 | 34 | 25 | 59 | 24 | 21 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 12 | ||
| 2003-04 | Anaheim Mighty Ducks | NHL | 81 | 23 | 29 | 52 | 34 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2004-05 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | RSL | 45 | 18 | 13 | 31 | 44 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | ||
| 2005-06 | Anaheim Mighty Ducks | NHL | 34 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 28 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2005-06 | New York Rangers | NHL | 40 | 16 | 15 | 31 | 22 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2006-07 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 82 | 22 | 31 | 53 | 40 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2007-08 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 81 | 28 | 35 | 63 | 41 | 20 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 16 | ||
| NHL Totals | 845 | 275 | 353 | 628 | 371 | 108 | 32 | 36 | 68 | 56 | ||||
[edit] References
- ^ Petr Sykora Official Player Page. Retrieved on 2008-05-09.
- ^ Petr Sykora. NHL Players Association. Retrieved on 2008-05-09.
- ^ Pittsburgh Penguins marvel at Petr Sykora's called-shot goal. International Herald Tribune (2008-06-04). Retrieved on 2008-06-04.
[edit] External links
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