Dominik Hasek
[edit] BiographyDominik Hasek (born January 29, 1965) is a professional National Hockey League goaltender currently playing for the Detroit Red Wings. Although his goaltending style is unorthodox, his acrobatic play and extraordinary reflexes have backstopped him to a successful career. In an eight season span (1994-2001) he won six Vezina Trophies, and in 1998 he became the first goaltender to win consecutive Hart Trophies. His strong play also solidified the idea that European goaltenders could compete in a league that was largely dominated by North American goalies. In 2002, Wayne Gretzky was quoted as saying, "I think Hasek is the best player in the game." Hašek is often regarded a future Hall of Famer by those in the hockey world. He is the oldest active goalie in the NHL at 41, and is the second oldest active player in the league, after Chris Chelios, also of the Red Wings. Hašek was born in Communist Czechoslovakia and consequently not allowed to play in North America. When Communist rule ended, the borders opened, allowing Hasek to emigrate to the United States with aspirations of playing in the NHL. Hasek was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 1983 and despite being a very talented player, he was selected in the 10th round, 199th overall. This was mainly due to the unwillingness of NHL teams to draft players from behind the Iron Curtain as players' countries often barred them from playing in the NHL, or the players themselves preferred not to go. In fact, it would be several months until Hasek would find out he was even drafted. His debut with the Blackhawks finally came in the 1990-91 season. From 1981 to 1990, Hasek played in his native Czechoslovakia, for HC Pardubice and HC Jihlava. He also played parts of two seasons in the IHL with the Indianapolis Ice. He was named the top ice hockey player in Czechoslovakia in 1987, 1989, and 1990, along with being named Czechoslovakian Goaltender of the Year from 1986 through 1990. In Chicago, Hasek spent time as the backup to Ed Belfour, and only played 25 games over two seasons with the Blackhawks. He made his NHL debut on November 6, 1990, in a game against the Hartford Whalers. He would record his first shutout against the Toronto Maple Leafs later that year. On August 7, 1992, Hasek was traded to the Buffalo Sabres for goalie Stephane Beauregard and future considerations, which later materialized into a draft pick used to obtain Eric Daze. In Buffalo, he was initially the backup goaltender, first playing behind Tom Draper and then Grant Fuhr. When Fuhr was injured partway through the season, Hasek was elevated to starter, where he displayed his talent and began to develop into a top tier goaltender. In 1994, Hasek won his first Vezina Trophy, and he shared the William M. Jennings Trophy with teammate Grant Fuhr. Hašek played 58 games with a league best 1.95 GAA, seven shutouts, and a .930 save percentage. He followed this feat by again winning the Vezina Trophy in 1995. The regular season success of the Sabres in 1996-97 was overshadowed by what took place during the playoffs. Tensions between Sabres head coach Ted Nolan and Haš-sek had been high for most of the season and after being scored upon in game three of the first-round against the Ottawa Senators, Hasek left the game, forcing backup Steve Shields to step in. Hasek claimed he felt his knee pop, and the team doctor pronounced him day-to-day. Being integral to the Sabres' Cup run, the media speculated that Hasek was not doing his utmost to return from the injury because he was at odds with Nolan. Buffalo News columnist Jim Kelley wrote a column that night that appeared in the following day's newspaper that detailed that day's events, which irked Hasek. After the Senators won game five, Hasek came out of the Sabres' training room and allegedly attacked Kelley, choking him and tearing his shirt. Despite issuing an apology, things went downhill soon afterwards. Shields starred as the Sabres rallied to reclaim and win the series against Ottawa. Before the next series against the Philadelphia Flyers, the NHL announced that Hasek had been suspended for three games for his altercation with Kelley. Set to return in game four with the team down by three games in the series, Hasek told the Sabres' coaching staff he felt a twinge in his knee and left the ice after the pregame skate. Shields turned in another season-saving performance as Buffalo staved off the almost inevitable sweeping elimination with a win. Again before the fifth game, Hasek declared himself unfit to play and Buffalo lost 6-3, losing the series in five games. Though General Manager John Muckler was named Executive of the Year, he was fired for his constant feuding with Nolan. Hašek, who sided with Muckler, stating in an interview during 1997 NHL Awards Ceremony that "It would be better for me if he (Nolan) did not return". Ted Nolan did not return the next year, despite winning the Jack Adams Award as top coach. Hasek would again win the Vezina Trophy, and also win the Lester B. Pearson Award along with the Hart Trophy for league MVP. At the time, he was the second goalie to ever win the Hart, along with Jacques Plante. Back in Buffalo, he set a team record with 13 shutouts in the 1997-98 season. He played a career high 72 games, and posted the second most shutouts in a month, with six in December 1997. He again won the Lester B. Pearson Award, Hart Trophy, and Vezina Trophy. He became the first and only goalie to win the Hart twice, as well as in consecutive seasons. In 1999, he notched a career best 1.87 GAA and .937 save percentage, easily capturing him his third consecutive Vezina, while he also finished runner-up for the Hart and Pearson Trophies. Though the Sabres did not have a stellar regular season, he carried them through the playoffs, knocking off the Ottawa Senators, Boston Bruins, and Toronto Maple Leafs along the way. Despite the playoff loses to Boston and Toronto, the Bruins' Byron Dafoe and the Leafs' Curtis Joseph would be Vezina finalists along with Hasek. His team met the Presidents' Trophy winning Dallas Stars in the championship series; with Hašek helping the Sabres to win game one in the Stars' home arena. However, the Stars took the next two and though the Sabres won game four, the Stars would close out the series to claim the Stanley Cup. The decisive game six was notable for being one of the most memorable defeats for Hašek, and one of the longest Stanley Cup playoff games in NHL history. He and Ed Belfour made 50 and 53 saves, respectively, in a triple-overtime duel that only ended when Brett Hull scored a controversial Cup-winning goal with his foot in the crease. Soon after the controversy that could've seen the Sabres in game 7, the NHL negated that rule. After the season ended, Hasek contemplated retirement due to a combination of injuries and a desire to become more involved in his family life. His initial announcement that he was considering quitting hockey stunned many of his teammates, particularly Mike Peca and Jason Woolley. The 1999-00 season was not a successful one for Hasek, due to persistent injuries. He failed to win a major NHL award for the first time in several seasons, though his backup Martin Biron was allowed to blossom in his absence. Though being healthy in time for the playoffs, the Sabres lost in five games to the Philadelphia Flyers in the first round. The 2000-01 season, would be Hasek's final year in Buffalo, and would see him winning the Vezina Trophy for the sixth time, the most of any goaltender in the modern era. He also won his second William M. Jennings Trophy. The Sabres were again matched up with Philadelphia in the first round; this time seeing Hasek outplay his Czech compatriot and 1998 Olympic fellow back-up Roman Cechmanek. Hasek lead the Sabres to a blanking of the Flyers 8-0 in the deciding game six. The second round was a dramatic series against Mario Lemieux's Pittsburgh Penguins, going all the way to seven games before the Penguins advanced with an overtime win. Hasek again was denied the one trophy that eluded him - the Stanley Cup. Prior to the start of the 2001-02 NHL season, Hasek was traded to the Detroit Red Wings in an attempt to lower the Sabres' payroll and to send Hasek to a more competitive team. He was dealt for a first round selection in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft (which eventually became Jim Slater), Vyacheslav Kozlov, and future considerations. During his first season with Detroit, Hasek posted a career high 41 wins with just 15 losses. In June 2002, Hasek lead the star-studded Wings past the Carolina Hurricanes in the finals to win the Stanley Cup. Hasek also became the first goalie to get an assist on an overtime game-winning goal in the post-season, with a pass to Steve Yzerman, who would assist Fredrik Olausson in scoring the final goal. He also claimed the record for most shutouts in a post-season with six, until Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils tied it in 2003. That summer Hasek offically announced his retirement, so he could spend time with his family. However, after watching Detroit's first round loss to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the 2003 playoffs, he announced his desire to play again. However, the Red Wings already had Curtis Joseph signed to a lucrative contract, and Joseph's underachievement the previous season made him virtually impossible to trade to make room for Hasek and his salary. But, knowing that the rival Colorado Avalanche would be looking for a goalie after Patrick Roy's retirement, Detroit was forced to sign Hasek. With Manny Legacé also on the Wings' roster, Detroit now had three potential starters all worthy of the spotlight. The 2003-04 season was problematic for Hasek, and he injured his groin after playing just a brief 14 games. Then on January 9, 2004, he and the team agreed he should rest his injury for two to four weeks. At that time, he told general manager Ken Holland that he would not accept any pay while he was out injured. However, he did not make his refusal of pay public at that time. On February 10, he announced that he was not going to continue to play that season, surprising Red Wings management. Holland discussed Hasek's refusal of pay with reporters, with Hasek then making the issue public. He eventually refused $3 million (US) of his $6 million salary. In April 2004, he underwent groin surgery in Prague, and returned to his hometown of Pardubice to recuperate. After Hasek's contract with the Wings expired, they decided not to re-sign him. Realizing that, Hasek stated that he wanted to join a club that could contend for the Stanley Cup, and specifically named the Ottawa Senators as a possibility. On July 6, 2004, the Senators signed Hasek to a one-year deal, after trading Patrick Lalime to the St. Louis Blues. Hasek played increasingly well for the Senators up until the Olympics; his GAA and save percentage being second best in the NHL. At the Olympics, he injured his right upper thigh making a save in the first match against Germany. Despite that, the Czech Republic finished in third place, and Hasek was awarded the bronze medal after playing just 9 minutes and 25 seconds. Hasek's injury caused him to miss the rest of the regular season and post-season despite several rumours that he would return in time for the playoffs. Hasek said that if he were to be re-signed, he would take a pay cut. On July 31, 2006, at the age of 41, Hašek signed a one-year, $750,000 US contract with the Detroit Red Wings (with added bonuses if the team does well in the playoffs), joining them for the third time in his career. The team announced that Hasek would not play back - to - back straight games within two days, so there would be not as much of a chance of any injuries, and to prevent overworking him so Hasek could focus on staying healthy and fresh for the playoffs. On November 14th, 2006, Hasek's personal record shutout streak of 181 minutes, 17 seconds was broken by the Vancouver Canucks. Hašek presents one of the most unorthodox styles of goaltending in hockey. He goes down on almost every shot, successfully covering the bottom of the net where most goals are scored. He flops around in his crease, sticking out his legs, arms or even his head - he is also known to drop his hockey stick to cover the puck with his blocking glove. He has become a goaltending pioneer by introducing several new saves. One of his most notable is the "Hasek Roll", where he folds into a 'C' shape, covering the bottom of the net. He was also one of the first goalies to lay flat on their stomach with their pads outstretched to the sides to make saves. Hasek's style has been known to attract fans to games. At 166 lbs, he is extremely flexible. Because of his very loose joints, Hašek manages to make saves that other goalies would consider very difficult. For this third stint in Detroit, Hasek lost a considerable amount of weight between May and September to increase his flexibility, resulting in arguably better play. Among his strengths are excellent concentration and tremendous foot speed. Hasek has a wife named Alena [1]and two children, a son named Michal (born 1989) and a daughter named Dominika (born 1994). He divides much of his free time playing squash and inline hockey, but as a defenseman. He plays soccer recreationally, and has a brother Martin Hasek who plays for a Czech Republic soccer team AC Sparta Praha. He has a brand of sportswear named Dominator Clothing, which was launched shortly after the Nagano Olympics in 1998 and is very popular among Dominik's fans in the Czech Republic, and for a short time was also located in Michigan. In May 2001, Hašek founded the Dominik Hasek Youth Hockey League/Hasek's Heroes, and has donated over $1 million dollars to help underprivileged children in Buffalo play hockey. On May 18, 2003, Hasek was involved in an incident which took place in an inline hockey match. He crosschecked Martin Sila while playing as a defender for Bonfire Strida. The prosecutor in the case, Lenka Strnadova, ruled two months later that there was no evidence that Hasek intended bodily harm and recommended the case be treated as a misdemeanor, punishable only by fine ($95 USD maximum), rather than a felony where jail time would have been possible. Hasek's lawyer Pavel Jelinek announced in a statement that media reports about the incident were exaggerated, with Sila not having sustained any documented injuries. In October 2003, the country's top prosecutor overruled Strnadova, saying her ruling was unlawful because the case had not been properly investigated. The Pardubice prosecution then investigated the case again, and reached the same decision. [edit] International playHasek's most memorable international performance came in the 1998 Olympics. He was stellar throughout the tournament, allowing six goals in total - only two of which were in the medal round. Hasek led the Czech Republic to the Gold Medal, shutting out Russia 1-0 in the final game. Hasek was overjoyed. After he won the gold, he was quoted as saying, "When the game ended, I just threw my stick. I was so happy. When I saw the flag go up, I saw my whole career flash before my eyes from the first time my parents took me to a game until now." His play made him arguably one of the most popular figures in the Czech Republic; his reputation is comparable to that of then-president Václav Havel. He also helped to inspire an opera (aptly titled Nagano) about the Czech team's gold medal victory, and in 2003 NASA named an asteroid, (8217 Dominikhasek) in his honor. In the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, he played for just 9:25, until he injured his right adductor muscle. His team managed to earn a bronze medal, which Hašek received as well. [edit] Transactions
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[edit] References[edit] Related Articles[edit] Recent Dominik Hasek ArmchairGM Stories
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