Jiří Hrdina (born January 5, 1958) is a 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. He spent 10 seasons in the

Czechoslovak First League The Czechoslovak First League ( cs, 1. fotbalová liga, sk, 1. futbalová liga) was the premier football league in the Czechoslovakia from 1925 to 1993, with the exception of World War II. Czechoslovakia was occupied by German forces who for ...

with Sparta ČKD Praha and

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 ...

and five 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) with the

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are the third major professional ice hockey te ...

and

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

. Of his four full NHL seasons, Hrdina is a three-time

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

champion, playing on NHL championship teams in

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

and

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engin ...

. Internationally, Hrdina was a member of the Czechoslovakian national team between 1977 and 1990. He appeared in two

Canada Cup The Canada Cup (french: Coupe Canada) was an invitational international ice hockey tournament held on five occasions between 1976 and 1991. The brainchild of Toronto lawyer Alan Eagleson, the tournament was created to meet demand for a true worl ...

s, and played in six

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

. He was a member of five World Championship medal-winning teams, including a gold medal at the 1985 tournament. He is a two-time Olympian and won a silver medal with the Czechoslovak team at the 1984 Games in Sarajevo.

Playing career

National Hockey League

The

selected Hrdina with their eighth round selection, 159th overall, at the

1984 NHL Entry Draft The 1984 NHL Entry Draft was the 22nd NHL Entry Draft. It took place on June 9, 1984, at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. The 1984 Entry Draft is noted for the unusually high number of future Hall of Famers picked, particularly in lowe ...

. However, due to a Czechoslovak policy at the time regarding national team players, he was not permitted to join a professional team until after the

1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games (french: XVes Jeux olympiques d'hiver) and commonly known as Calgary 1988 ( bla, Mohkínsstsisi 1988; sto, Wîchîspa Oyade 1988 or ; cr, Otôskwanihk 1998/; srs, Guts� ...

. Hrdina joined the Flames at the Games' conclusion, and made his NHL debut, as a 30-year-old, on March 3, 1988. He recorded his first point, an assist, in that game, then scored his first NHL goal on March 15 against the

Hartford Whalers The Hartford Whalers were a professional ice hockey team based for most of its existence in Hartford, Connecticut. The club played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 until 1979, and in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to ...

. He appeared in nine games to end the 1987–88 season with Calgary and scored two goals and seven points. Hrdina had a four-goal game early in his first full NHL season, 1988–89, leading the Flames to a 6–3 win over the Whalers. On the season, he appeared in 70 games and scored 22 goals to go along with 32 assists. He appeared in only four playoff games that season, but was a member of the Flames'

championship team. Playing as a defensive forward, Hrdina recorded 30 points in 64 games in 1989–90. In need of an additional centre, the

acquired Hrdina from the Flames on December 13, 1990, in exchange for defenceman

Jim Kyte James G. Kyte (born March 21, 1964) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Kyte made history by being the first (and to date, only) legally deaf National Hockey League (NHL) player, playing 598 games in the NHL. Kyte is the son of ...

. The team also hoped he could help their star Czechoslovak rookie

Jaromír Jágr Jaromír Jágr (; born 15 February 1972) is a Czech professional ice hockey right winger for and the owner of Rytíři Kladno of the Czech Extraliga (ELH). He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Pengui ...

, who was struggling to adapt to life in North America. Initially upset at the trade, Hrdina considered retiring or returning to Europe, but chose to give Pittsburgh a try first. He finished the 1990–91 season with 23 points in 51 games combined between the Penguins and Flames, and appeared in 14 more in the

1991 Stanley Cup Playoffs The 1991 Stanley Cup Playoffs for the National Hockey League (NHL) championship began on April 3, 1991, following the 1990–91 regular season. The 16 teams that qualified, from the top four teams of the four divisions, played best-of-seven se ...

. He scored two goals in the playoffs, both in game seven of Pittsburgh's first round series against the

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The club was founded as the Kan ...

, including the game winner. The Penguins went on to win the Stanley Cup. As a depth player in 1991–92, Hrdina had 16 points in 56 regular season games, and added two assists in 21 playoff games as the Penguins repeated as champions. He announced his retirement from the NHL following the season. He is currently an amateur scout for the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and were founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minne ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

*Career statistics:

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hrdina, Jiri 1958 births Living people Calgary Flames draft picks Calgary Flames players Calgary Flames scouts Czech ice hockey centres Dallas Stars scouts Ice hockey players at the 1984 Winter Olympics Ice hockey players at the 1988 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1984 Winter Olympics Olympic ice hockey players of Czechoslovakia Olympic medalists in ice hockey Olympic silver medalists for Czechoslovakia Pittsburgh Penguins players Ice hockey people from Prague Stanley Cup champions HC Sparta Praha players HK Dukla Trenčín players