Vladimír Růžička
Born (1963-06-06) 6 June 1963
Most, Czechoslovakia
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Left
Played for CHZ Litvínov
HK Dukla Trenčín
Edmonton Oilers
Boston Bruins
Ottawa Senators
HC Slavia Praha
National team  Czechoslovakia and
 Czech Republic
NHL Draft 73rd overall, 1982
Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career 19792000

Vladimír Růžička (Czech pronunciation: [ˈvlaɟɪmiːr ˈruːʒɪtʃka]; born 6 June 1963, nickname "Rosie")[1] is a Czech ice hockey coach and former professional player. Růžička was twice named the top player in the Czechoslovak Elite League, and was on the gold medal team in the Ice Hockey World Championship in 1985 and 1998 Olympic Games. He also played 233 games in the National Hockey League (NHL). Since 2008, Růžička has been the head coach of both HC Slavia Praha and the Czech national ice hockey team.

Playing career

Růžička started his career with Czechoslovak side Litvínov, making his first appearance at the age of 16 and scoring after just 10 seconds in his first game, against Dukla Jihlava.[2] Růžička was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs 73rd overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft. Despite this, he was barred from leaving Czechoslovakia by the Communist authorities.[2] He continued to play internationally for Czechoslovakia before finally making his NHL debut in 1989.[2] Růžička had a short career in the NHL, playing a total of five seasons for the Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators. His best season statistically came in 1991–92 when he recorded 75 points (39 goals, 36 assists) with Boston, and led the team in scoring.[2] He has a Stanley Cup ring and is on the 1990 Edmonton Oilers Stanley Cup team picture. However, Růžička only played 25 regular season games and did not appear in the playoffs that season. Thus, his name was not engraved on the Stanley Cup. Růžička finished his NHL career with 233 games, scoring 82 goals and 85 assists.[2]

Růžička played 200 games for his national team, scoring 112 goals in the process.[2] In 1985, he won a gold medal with Czechoslovakia at the 1985 World Ice Hockey Championships.[2] He captained the gold medal-winning Czech Republic team at the 1998 Winter Olympics, going on to retire from the international team after the tournament.[2]

Awards

Coaching career

After retiring as a player in 2000 he started working as a coach in HC Slavia Praha and in 2002–03 and 2007–08 seasons his team won the Czech Extraliga. Between 2002 and 2004 he was also an assistant coach of the Czech national ice hockey team. Shortly after he left the team, the head coach Ivan Hlinka died and Růžička took over the position, leading the Czech Republic team to the Vienna World Championship gold medal in 2005. Růžička has coached the Czech national ice hockey team to two gold medals.[3][4][5]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1979–80 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 91120
1980–81 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 4112132510
1981–82 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 4427224950
1982–83 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 4322244640
1983–84 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 4431235450
1984–85 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 4138226029
1985–86 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 43413273
1986–87 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 3224153946
1987–88 ASVŠ Dukla Trenčín CSSR 4438276570
1988–89 ASVŠ Dukla Trenčín CSSR 3431306142 1115823
1989–90 TJ CHZ Litvínov CSSR 32212344
1989–90 Edmonton Oilers NHL 251161710
1990–91 Boston Bruins NHL 29881619 17211130
1991–92 Boston Bruins NHL 7739367548 132352
1992–93 Boston Bruins NHL 6019224138
1993–94 Ottawa Senators NHL 425131814
1993–94 EV Zug NDA 623514
1993–94 Slavia Praha CZE-2 5639
1994–95 Slavia Praha CZE 4127245138 32022
1995–96 Slavia Praha CZE 3721446546 521326
1996–97 Slavia Praha CZE 4422315378
1997–98 Slavia Praha CZE 4918385656 506620
1998–99 Slavia Praha CZE 4924285222
1999–00 Slavia Praha CZE 21581316
CSSR totals 407286232518 1115823
CZE totals 241117173290256 13471148
NHL totals 2338285167129 30414182

International

Medal record
Representing  Czechoslovakia
Men's ice hockey
European Junior Championships
Gold medal – first place 1979 Poland
Silver medal – second place 1981 Soviet Union
World Junior Championships
Silver medal – second place1982 United States
Silver medal – second place1983 Soviet Union
World Championships
Gold medal – first place1985 Czechoslovakia
Silver medal – second place1983 West Germany
Bronze medal – third place1987 Austria
Bronze medal – third place1989 Sweden
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place1984 Sarajevo
Representing  Czech Republic
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1998 Nagano
Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
1979 Czechoslovakia EJC 3 1 2 3 2
1981 Czechoslovakia WJC 5 5 0 5 2
1981 Czechoslovakia EJC 5 8 8 16 18
1982 Czechoslovakia WJC 7 8 1 9 6
1983 Czechoslovakia WJC 7 12 8 20 6
1983 Czechoslovakia WC 10 3 1 4 4
1984 Czechoslovakia OLY 7 4 6 10 0
1984 Czechoslovakia CC 5 0 0 0 2
1985 Czechoslovakia WC 10 8 3 11 0
1986 Czechoslovakia WC 10 4 11 15 6
1987 Czechoslovakia WC 10 3 3 6 10
1987 Czechoslovakia CC 6 2 0 2 0
1988 Czechoslovakia OLY 8 4 3 7 12
1989 Czechoslovakia WC 10 7 7 14 2
1998 Czech Republic OLY 6 3 0 3 0
Junior totals 27 34 19 53 34
Senior totals 82 38 34 72 36

References

  1. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Vladimír Růžička". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 30 May 2015. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Bouc, František (12 January 2000). "Passing the puck". Prague Post. Archived from the original on 25 February 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
  3. "Czechs eager to rejoin elite". IIHF.com. International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011.
  4. "Czechs are champs!". IIHF.com. International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011.
  5. "Alois Hadamczik set to return as Czech coach". Yahoo.com.
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