Thomas Vanek facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Thomas Vanek |
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![]() Vanek with the Buffalo Sabres in 2011
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Born | Baden bei Wien, Austria |
19 January 1984 ||
Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
Weight | 218 lb (99 kg; 15 st 8 lb) | ||
Position | Left wing | ||
Shot | Right | ||
Played for | Buffalo Sabres Graz 99ers New York Islanders Montreal Canadiens Minnesota Wild Detroit Red Wings Florida Panthers Vancouver Canucks Columbus Blue Jackets |
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National team | ![]() |
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NHL Draft | 5th overall, 2003 Buffalo Sabres |
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Playing career | 2004–2019 |
Thomas Vanek (born January 19, 1984) is a former professional ice hockey player from Austria. He played as a winger for 14 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). Vanek played for many teams, including the Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Detroit Red Wings.
The Buffalo Sabres picked Vanek as the fifth overall player in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. This made him one of the highest-drafted Austrian players in NHL history.
Contents
Early Life and First Steps
Thomas Vanek was born in Baden bei Wien, Austria. His parents moved to Austria from Czechoslovakia in 1982. He grew up in Zell am See and Graz, where his father also played professional ice hockey.
When he was young, Vanek played in the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament in 1997 and 1998. In 1998, at 14 years old, he moved to Lacombe, Alberta, Canada, to continue his hockey journey.
Amazing College Hockey Career
Before joining the NHL, Vanek played junior hockey for the Sioux Falls Stampede. Then, he went to the University of Minnesota and played for the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
In the 2002–03 season, he was the team's top scorer. He had 31 goals, 31 assists, and 62 points. His great playing helped the Golden Gophers win the 2003 NCAA National Championship.
Vanek was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the Frozen Four tournament. He scored the winning goals in both the semifinal and the final games. He was also the first freshman to be named Minnesota's team MVP.
He led all first-year players in the NCAA with 31 goals. He was also named the 2003 WCHA Rookie of the Year.
Starting His Pro Career
Vanek played for the Austrian national team in the 2004 IIHF World Championships. He scored seven points in six games.
In the 2004–05 season, Vanek played for the Rochester Americans. This team was linked to the Sabres in the American Hockey League (AHL). He scored 68 points in 74 games and helped the team have the best record in the AHL. He led the team with 42 goals.
Time with the Buffalo Sabres
Vanek signed a three-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres in 2004. He started playing for them in the 2005–06 season. He had a strong first year, scoring 25 goals and 48 points in 81 games.
His best season came in 2006–07. He played in all 82 games and scored 43 goals and 41 assists. He also had an NHL-best +47 rating, which means his team scored 47 more goals than they gave up when he was on the ice. This earned him the NHL Plus-Minus Award.
After this great season, Vanek signed a big seven-year, $50 million contract with the Sabres. Even with the new contract, his points dropped a bit in 2007–08.
In 2009, Vanek was chosen for his first NHL All-Star Game in Montreal. On December 13, 2008, he scored the 10,000th goal in the Sabres' history.
On February 4, 2009, Vanek made NHL history by scoring four natural hat-tricks in a row. This matched an NHL record set many years ago. A few days later, he broke his jaw after being hit by a shot. He was out for several weeks. He finished the 2008–09 season with 40 goals.
The 2009–10 season also started with an injury for Vanek. On October 10, 2010, he scored four goals against the Ottawa Senators.
During the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Vanek played for the Graz 99ers in Austria for a short time. On October 1, 2013, the Buffalo Sabres named Vanek and Steve Ott as team captains.
Moving to Other Teams
On October 27, 2013, Vanek was traded to the New York Islanders. He played on their top line with John Tavares. However, Vanek decided not to sign a new contract with the Islanders.
On March 5, 2014, Vanek was traded again, this time to the Montreal Canadiens. He scored his first hat trick for the Canadiens on March 19, 2014. After the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Canadiens decided not to re-sign him.
On July 1, 2014, Vanek signed a three-year contract with the Minnesota Wild. He joined his former Sabres teammate Jason Pominville there. The Wild bought out his contract on June 24, 2016, ending his time with the team.
Later NHL Career
On July 1, 2016, Vanek signed a one-year contract with the Detroit Red Wings. He played with his former co-captain Steve Ott again.
On March 1, 2017, Vanek was traded to the Florida Panthers. He scored 10 points in 20 games for them.
On September 1, 2017, Vanek signed a one-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks. He scored his 10th career hat trick on December 20, 2017. On February 26, 2018, he was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets. He scored his 11th career hat trick on March 27, 2018.
On July 1, 2018, Vanek signed a one-year contract for a second time with the Detroit Red Wings. He scored 16 goals and 20 assists in what would be his final NHL season.
Personal Life
Thomas Vanek and his wife Ashley have three sons. They live in Stillwater, Minnesota.
Career Statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
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Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
1999–00 | Sioux Falls Stampede | USHL | 35 | 15 | 18 | 33 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
2000–01 | Sioux Falls Stampede | USHL | 20 | 19 | 10 | 29 | 15 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 2 | ||
2001–02 | Sioux Falls Stampede | USHL | 53 | 46 | 45 | 91 | 54 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | ||
2002–03 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | WCHA | 45 | 31 | 31 | 62 | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2003–04 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | WCHA | 38 | 26 | 25 | 51 | 72 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2004–05 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 74 | 42 | 26 | 68 | 62 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | ||
2005–06 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 81 | 25 | 23 | 48 | 72 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
2006–07 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 82 | 43 | 41 | 84 | 40 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 10 | ||
2007–08 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 82 | 36 | 28 | 64 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2008–09 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 73 | 40 | 24 | 64 | 44 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2009–10 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 71 | 28 | 25 | 53 | 42 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | ||
2010–11 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 80 | 32 | 41 | 73 | 24 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
2011–12 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 78 | 26 | 35 | 61 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2012–13 | Graz 99ers | EBEL | 11 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2012–13 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 38 | 20 | 21 | 41 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2013–14 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 13 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2013–14 | New York Islanders | NHL | 47 | 17 | 27 | 44 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2013–14 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 18 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 8 | 17 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 4 | ||
2014–15 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 80 | 21 | 31 | 52 | 37 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | ||
2015–16 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 74 | 18 | 23 | 41 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2016–17 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 48 | 15 | 23 | 38 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2016–17 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 20 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2017–18 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 61 | 17 | 24 | 41 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2017–18 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 19 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ||
2018–19 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 64 | 16 | 20 | 36 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
NHL totals | 1,029 | 373 | 416 | 789 | 547 | 69 | 21 | 15 | 36 | 26 |
Medal record | ||
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Ice hockey | ||
Representing ![]() |
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IIHF World Championships | ||
Gold | 2008 Austria | Division I Group A |
IIHF World U20 Championships | ||
Gold | 2003 Slovenia | Division I Group B |
Silver | 2002 Austria | Division I Group A |
Representing Team Europe | ||
World Cup | ||
Silver | 2016 Toronto |
International
Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
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2002 | Austria | WJC D1 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 2 | |
2003 | Austria | WJC D1 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 10 | |
2004 | Austria | WJC | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 37 | |
2004 | Austria | WC | 6 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0 | |
2008 | Austria | WC D1 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 6 | |
2009 | Austria | WC | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | |
2013 | Austria | WC | 7 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 | |
2014 | Austria | OLY | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
2016 | Team Europe | WCH | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Junior totals | 16 | 17 | 11 | 28 | 49 | |||
Senior totals | 34 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 16 |
Awards and Honours
Award | Year | |
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College | ||
All-USHL First Team | 2001–02 | |
All-WCHA Rookie Team | 2002–03 | |
All-WCHA Second Team | 2002–03 | |
All-NCAA All-Tournament Team | 2003 | |
All-WCHA Second Team | 2003–04 | |
AHCA West second-team All-American | 2003–04 | |
NHL | ||
NHL YoungStars Game | 2006–07 | |
NHL Plus-Minus Award | 2006–07 | |
NHL Second All-Star team | 2006–07 | |
NHL All-Star Game | 2009 |
See Also
- List of NHL players who have signed offer sheets