Branko Radivojevič ( sr, Бранко Радивојевић / ; born 24 November 1980) is a Slovak former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

forward who began and finished his career playing for

HK Dukla Trenčín Hokejový Klub Dukla Trenčín is a professional Slovak ice hockey club based in Trenčín, playing in the Slovak Extraliga. The club has won three Slovak league championships (1994, 1997, 2004) and one Czechoslovak league championship (1992). T ...

of the

Slovak Extraliga The Tipos Extraliga (Slovak Extraliga) is the highest-level ice hockey league in Slovakia. From the 2018–19 season to the 2020–21 season, the league included one or two teams from Hungary. In 2009, it was ranked by the IIHF as the fifth st ...

(Slovak). He played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) with the Phoenix Coyotes,

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Well ...

and

Minnesota Wild The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Ener ...

. His father Matija, a

Bosnian Serb The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sr-Cyrl, Срби у Босни и Херцеговини, Srbi u Bosni i Hercegovini) are one of the three constitutive nations (state-forming nations) of the country, predominantly residing in the politi ...

, came to

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

during the 1970s as a contractor of a Yugoslavian company.

Playing career

Drafted by the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

, Radivojevič signed a 3-year deal with the Phoenix Coyotes on June 19, 2001 and played parts of the next three seasons there. Part of a mid-season trade in 2003–04, he was sent to the

along with

Sean Burke Sean Burke (born January 29, 1967) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender and the current director of goaltending for the Vegas Golden Knights. He played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New Jersey Devils, H ...

and the rights to

Ben Eager Benjamin Arthur Eager (born January 22, 1984) is a Canadians, Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010. Playing career Eager was drafted in the first round, 23rd overall, by the A ...

for

Mike Comrie Michael William Comrie (born September 11, 1980) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. During his 13-year National Hockey League (NHL) career he played with the Edmonton Oilers, Philadelphia Flyers, Phoenix Coyotes, Ottawa Senators ...

. After 2005–06, the Flyers declined to tender him a qualifying offer, thus making him an unrestricted free agent. He signed with the

as an unrestricted free agent on July 6, 2006. After a couple seasons with the Wild, he opted to go to the KHL. After two years with the Wild, Radivojevič signed with

Spartak Moscow Spartak Moscow may refer to the following teams based or formerly based in Moscow, Russia: * FC Spartak Moscow, an association football club * HC Spartak Moscow, a professional ice hockey team * Spartak GM Moscow, a semi-professional rugby club * WB ...

of the

Kontinental Hockey League The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; russian: Континентальная хоккейная лига (КХЛ), Kontinental'naya khokkeynaya liga) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs ba ...

(KHL). In the 2008–09 season Branko established himself as an offensive presence with Spartak, leading the team in scoring with 45 points in 49 games. He was re-signed to a further two-year contract with Spartak on December 23, 2009. After three seasons with Spartak (during the last one he was the captain of the team) Branko decided to change the team. After some arguments with Spartak's management his contract was terminated and Branko signed with Atlant Moscow Oblast. After spending only one season with Atlant (2011–2012) he returned to Spartak. For 2013-14 season he signed with Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk, but changed the team during the season for Slovan Bratislava. In the 2014–15 season, Radivojevic returned to his original hometown club in

of the

. However, after just 12 games he left for the Czech Extraliga, signing for the remainder of the season with HC Bílí Tygři Liberec on October 14, 2014. Returning for a third stint with Dukla, Radivojevic played the final two seasons of his 21-year career before announcing his retirement upon the conclusion of the 2018–19 season on March 20, 2019.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honours

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Radivojevic, Branko 1980 births Living people Belleville Bulls players Colorado Avalanche draft picks Atlant Moscow Oblast players HC Bílí Tygři Liberec players HC Slovan Bratislava players HC Spartak Moscow players Ice hockey players at the 2010 Winter Olympics Ice hockey players at the 2014 Winter Olympics Luleå HF players Minnesota Wild players Olympic ice hockey players of Slovakia People from Piešťany Philadelphia Flyers players Phoenix Coyotes players Slovak expatriate ice hockey players in Russia Slovak ice hockey right wingers Slovak people of Serbian descent Springfield Falcons players VHK Vsetín players Slovak expatriate ice hockey players in the Czech Republic Slovak expatriate ice hockey players in Canada Slovak expatriate ice hockey players in Sweden Slovak expatriate ice hockey players in the United States