Václav "Vinny" Prospal (born February 17, 1975) is a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

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 ...

player, currently a hockey coach. He played 16 seasons in the

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

(NHL) for the

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 (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member ...

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference, and initially played their home g ...

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play ...

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Mighty may refer to: * ''Mighty'' (The Planet Smashers album) * ''Mighty'' (Kristene DiMarco album) * ''The Mighty'' (1929 film), a 1929 American action film *'' The Mighty'', a 1998 comedy-drama film * ''The Mighty'' (comics), a DC Comics title * ...

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its ho ...

and

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ...

. On January 24, 2014, he announced his retirement from professional hockey. He is currently serving as the manager of

Motor České Budějovice HC Motor České Budějovice is a professional men's ice hockey club, based in České Budějovice, Czech Republic. It is a member of the Czech Extraliga (ELH) after reforming when the original club, now known as Mountfield HK, moved to Hradec K ...

in the Czech hockey league.

Playing career

Prospal was drafted by the

in the

1993 NHL Entry Draft The 1993 NHL Entry Draft was the 31st NHL Entry Draft. It took place on June 26, 1993, at the Colisée de Québec in Quebec City, Quebec. First overall pick Alexandre Daigle is widely regarded today as one of the all-time greatest draft bust ...

, third round, 71st overall. While with the Flyers, Prospal suffered a fractured arm during the 1997 playoffs. Prospal and another player collided during the Flyers' practice session. During the 1997–98 season, Prospal, who was named to the 1998 Czech Olympic hockey team, broke his leg while fighting for the puck with

Lance Pitlick Lance Eric Pitlick (born November 5, 1967) is an American former professional ice hockey player. He played in the NHL with the Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers. Playing career Pitlick graduated from Robbinsdale Cooper High School in New Ho ...

during a game with the

; Prospal was unable to play in the

1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially known as the and commonly known as Nagano 1998 ( ja, 長野1998), was a winter multi-sport event held from 7 to 22 February 1998, mainly in Nagano, Japan, with some events taking place in th ...

. Prospal was traded to the Senators a few months later. During the 2004–05 lockout, Prospal played for his hometown team HC České Budějovice, leading them in scoring and helping the team return to the

Czech Extraliga The Czech Extraliga ( cs, Extraliga ledního hokeje, ELH) is the highest-level ice hockey league in the Czech Republic. It was created by the 1993 split of the Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League following the breakup of Czechoslovakia. The le ...

At the beginning of the 2007–08 season, while with the Lightning, Prospal posted 12 goals and 10 assists making it his best career start. On February 25, 2008, Prospal was dealt back to the Flyers for defenseman Alexandre Picard and a

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...

second-round draft pick. On June 18, 2008, the Lightning acquired the rights to Prospal in exchange for the

Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (commonly referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and ha ...

' seventh-round pick (previously acquired), 196th overall, in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. The Lightning signed Prospal to a four-year contract on June 30, in a deal worth $14 million overall to the player. On July 28, 2009, Prospal was bought out from the remaining three years of his contract with the Lightning and became a free agent. On August 16, 2009, Prospal signed a one-year, $1.1 million contract with the

. He was named an alternate captain of the Rangers on November 3, 2009. On July 1, 2010, Prospal was re-signed by the Rangers to another one-year deal worth $2.1 million. After he was not re-signed in 2011, he agreed to a 1-year $1.75 million deal with the

in the summer of 2011, followed by one-year, $2.5 million contract for the 2012–13 season, after which Prospal announced his retirement from professional hockey.

Post-hockey career

Prospal worked as a scout for the New York Rangers until the end of the 2013–14 season. He currently lives with his wife and four children in Tampa, Florida. He also served as an assistant coach for the Czech national team in the World Cup of Hockey in September 2016. Now He is Manager of HC České Budějovice in

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Prospal, Vaclav 1975 births Columbus Blue Jackets players Czech ice hockey left wingers Czech ice hockey coaches Florida Panthers players Motor České Budějovice players Hershey Bears players Ice hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics Living people Medalists at the 2006 Winter Olympics Mighty Ducks of Anaheim players New York Rangers players Olympic bronze medalists for the Czech Republic Olympic ice hockey players of the Czech Republic Olympic medalists in ice hockey Ottawa Senators players Sportspeople from České Budějovice Philadelphia Flyers draft picks Philadelphia Flyers players Philadelphia Phantoms players Tampa Bay Lightning players