Petr Nedvěd facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Petr Nedvěd |
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Nedvěd in 2021
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| Born | December 9, 1971 Liberec, Czechoslovakia |
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| Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) | ||
| Weight | 196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | Vancouver Canucks St. Louis Blues New York Rangers Pittsburgh Penguins HC Sparta Praha Edmonton Oilers Phoenix Coyotes Philadelphia Flyers HC Bílí Tygři Liberec |
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| National team | .svg){kind=small} Canada and Czech Republic |
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| NHL Draft | 2nd overall, 1990 Vancouver Canucks |
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| Playing career | 1990–2014, 2017–2018 | ||
Petr Nedvěd, born on December 9, 1971, is a former professional ice hockey player. He is both Czech and Canadian. He played for 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1990 to 2007.
Contents
Early Life and Hockey Start
Petr Nedvěd was born in Liberec, which was then part of Czechoslovakia. His parents are Jaroslav and Soňa Nedvěd.
When he was 17 years old, Petr left Czechoslovakia. This happened on January 2, 1989. He had just played in a big international youth hockey tournament in Calgary, Canada. At that tournament, Nedvěd scored an amazing 17 goals and made 9 assists.
Playing in the NHL
After moving to Canada, Nedvěd played one season for the Seattle Thunderbirds. This team is part of the Western Hockey League. He was so good that the Vancouver Canucks picked him second overall in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. He had scored 145 points in 71 games for the Thunderbirds.
Vancouver Canucks and Olympic Dream
In the 1992–93 season, Nedvěd scored 38 goals and 71 points for the Canucks. He even had a club record with a 15-game scoring streak.
Before the 1993–94 season, Nedvěd had a disagreement about his contract with the Canucks. During this time, he became a Canadian citizen. He then played for Canada in the 1994 Winter Olympics. His team won a silver medal!
His contract issue was solved when he joined the St. Louis Blues. He scored 20 points in 19 games for them.
Time with the Rangers and Penguins
Nedvěd later moved to the New York Rangers for the 1994–95 season. He finished that year with 23 points.
For the 1995–96 season, Nedvěd joined the Pittsburgh Penguins. This was a great time for him. He played on a strong offensive team with stars like Mario Lemieux and Jaromír Jágr. In his first year with the Penguins, he had his best season ever. He scored 45 goals and 99 points. He also scored 20 points in the playoffs, helping the Penguins reach the conference finals. He even scored a goal in a game that went into quadruple-overtime!
In the 1996–97 season, he continued to play well, scoring 33 goals and 71 points.
Return to the Rangers
Nedvěd missed the entire 1997–98 season due to another contract disagreement. He played for some teams in the Czech Republic during this time.
He eventually returned to the New York Rangers in the 1998–99 season. His second time with the Rangers was more successful. He played there for six seasons, which was the most stable part of his career. He led the Rangers in scoring twice. In the 2000–01 season, he had his second-best year, scoring 32 goals and 78 points. He played with Jan Hlaváč and Radek Dvořák, and they were called the 'Czech Mates'.
After the 2003–04 season, Nedvěd was traded to the Edmonton Oilers. He scored 15 points in 16 games for them.
Later NHL Years
Nedvěd signed with the Phoenix Coyotes in 2004. He played in the Czech Extraliga during the 2004–05 NHL lockout.
When the NHL returned in 2005–06, he played for the Coyotes and then the Philadelphia Flyers. He scored 14 points for the Flyers and returned to the NHL playoffs for the first time since 1997.
In the 2006–07 season, Nedvěd played for the Flyers and then the Edmonton Oilers again. He also played a bit in the American Hockey League (AHL) for the Philadelphia Phantoms.
Playing in the Czech Republic
After his NHL career, Petr Nedvěd returned to play in the Czech Extraliga. He played for HC Sparta Praha and his hometown team, HC Bílí Tygři Liberec.
In 2012, at 40 years old, Nedvěd played for the Czech Republic national team in the 2012 IIHF World Championship. He became the oldest Czech player to score a goal in the World Championship. He scored a game-winning goal against Latvia.
In 2014, Nedvěd was chosen to play for the Czech team in the 2014 Sochi Olympics. He played in five games. On March 13, 2014, Petr Nedvěd played his very last professional game for Bílí Tygři Liberec. He officially announced his retirement after the game.
Awards and Achievements
Petr Nedvěd received several awards during his career:
- 1989–90 – Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy (Rookie of the Year in the WHL)
- 1989–90 – Rookie of the Year (Canadian Hockey League)
- 1993–94 – Silver medal (1994 Winter Olympics)
- 2011–12 – Bronze medal (2012 IIHF World Championship)
Personal Life
Petr Nedvěd married supermodel Veronika Vařeková in 2004. They separated in 2006. He has since moved back to the Czech Republic. His brother, Jaroslav Nedvěd, is also an ice hockey player.
Career Statistics
Regular Season and Playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1989–90 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 71 | 65 | 80 | 145 | 80 | 11 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 2 | ||
| 1990–91 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 61 | 10 | 6 | 16 | 20 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1991–92 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 77 | 15 | 22 | 37 | 36 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 16 | ||
| 1992–93 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 84 | 38 | 33 | 71 | 96 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 1993–94 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 19 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1994–95 | New York Rangers | NHL | 46 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 26 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 6 | ||
| 1995–96 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 80 | 45 | 54 | 99 | 68 | 18 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 16 | ||
| 1996–97 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 74 | 33 | 38 | 71 | 66 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | ||
| 1998–99 | New York Rangers | NHL | 56 | 20 | 27 | 47 | 50 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–2000 | New York Rangers | NHL | 76 | 24 | 44 | 68 | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | New York Rangers | NHL | 79 | 32 | 46 | 78 | 54 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | New York Rangers | NHL | 78 | 21 | 25 | 46 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | New York Rangers | NHL | 78 | 27 | 31 | 58 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | New York Rangers | NHL | 65 | 14 | 17 | 31 | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 16 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 25 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 28 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 36 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 2006–07 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 21 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 19 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 982 | 310 | 407 | 717 | 708 | 71 | 19 | 23 | 42 | 64 | ||||
International Play
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing Canada |
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| Olympic Games | ||
| Silver | 1994 Lillehammer | Ice hockey |
| Representing Czech Republic |
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| World Championships | ||
| Bronze | 2012 Helsinki | Ice hockey |
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Canada | OG | 8 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 6 | |
| 1996 | Czech Republic | WCH | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
| 2012 | Czech Republic | WC | 9 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2014 | Czech Republic | OG | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| Senior totals | 25 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 20 | |||
