Brian Rafalski
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Brian Rafalski (born September 28, 1973, in Dearborn, Michigan) is a defenseman for the New Jersey Devils. After enduring a long struggle to enter the NHL, Rafalski has won 2 Stanley Cups and become a star in the league.
Rafalski was not drafted by any NHL team. He played for four years at the University of Wisconsin and played very well, scoring 45 points in 43 games in his senior year, in which he was named to the WCHA First All-Star Team and the NCAA West First All-Star Team. With no immediate NHL prospects, Rafalski headed overseas. He spent the 1995-1996 season with Brynäs IF of the Swedish Elite League. After scoring only 9 points in 22 games in Sweden, he then moved to Finland. He played a season for HPK Hameenlinna of the SM-Liiga, and scored 35 points. He went to HIFK Helsinki in 1997, and spent two years there, and played very well in both. In his final year in Finland, he scored 19 goals and 53 points in 53 games.
On May 7, 1999, Rafalski was signed by the New Jersey Devils as a free agent. He would be 26 in the coming season, much older than most rookies, and he had played in some of the finest leagues in Europe. He showed that he was ready in the NHL in his rookie season. He scored 32 points and was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team. The Devils also won the Stanley Cup that year, and Rafalski was a big part of their win. In his sophomore season, he scored an impressive 52 points, and added another 18 in the playoffs, although the Devils lost to the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Finals.
In the 2000-01 NHL season, Rafalski continued his scoring ways, notching 47 points. He played in his first NHL All-Star Game, and won a Silver Medal in the Olympic Games, playing for Team USA. The following year, Rafalski won his second cup as the Devils defeated the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. He played in a second All-Star Game in 2004, although the Devils stumbled in the playoffs.
Brian Rafalski is considered very small for an NHL defenseman, standing only 5'10", and weighing only 200 pounds. However, he is an intelligent playmaker and works effectively without the benefit of the sort of impressive physical stature had by Zdeno Chara or even Eric Lindros. Many teams put such an emphasis on size, though, that even a player as obviously qualified to play in the NHL as Rafalski went totally undrafted, and had to go to Europe to find a place to play hockey. A similar issue confronted Martin St. Louis, although he made it to the NHL much more quickly. It is also true, though, that Rafalski is not an elite defender, and is strictly an offensive-defenseman. He is usually paired with Scott Stevens, who is an elite defender, and Stevens's defensive presence allows Rafalski to gamble a bit more on offense.
In the end, though, Rafalski has played a very important role in two Stanley Cup victories, and is a top-pairing defenseman for one of the best teams in the league. Even though he is now 30, he has several years of quality hockey left to play.
External links
- Rafalski's stats at tsn.ca (http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/teams/player_bio.asp?player_id=1846&hubname=NJ)
- Rafalski's stats at hockeydb.com (http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php3?pid=4438)