Peter Stastny
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Template:Titlelacksdiacritics Peter Šťastný (born September 18, 1956 in Bratislava, Slovakia) is a Slovak ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1980 to 1995. Since 2004, he has also served as a Member of the European Parliament.
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Playing Career
After Wayne Gretzky, Peter Stastny was the most prolific scorer in the NHL in the 1980s. He started his career in the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques and was traded in 1989 to the New Jersey Devils. He retired while with St. Louis Blues in 1994-95.
When the startling news broke in 1980 that Czechoslovakia player of the year, Peter Stastny and his brother Anton had defected to Canada to play with the Quebec Nordiques, it may have been the most important event in modern day professional hockey. The following year, his brother Marian Stastny joined them to become the second trio of brothers to play in the same professional hockey team (the first were the Bentley brothers of Chicago Blackhawks in 1940s). The trickle of Czech and Soviet hockey players rapidly became a flood following his footsteps. According to Peter, his defection “was the best decision I ever made. It has given my family the choices and options that people behind the iron curtain could only dream of. Then, to play pro hockey with my two brothers was like icing on the cake.”
On the ice, Peter proved to be both consistent and productive. He scored 450 goals and added 789 assists for a total of 1239 points in the regular season. After retiring as a player, he captained the Slovak national team in various international tournaments and still enjoys huge popularity among Slovaks.
Stastny was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto in 1998, and into the International Ice Hockey Federation's Hall of Fame in 2000.
Political Career
Stastny also joined the political arena. In 2004, he headed the European elections candidate list of the main ruling-coalition party in Slovakia, the SDKU, and was elected as one of its three Members of the European Parliament.
Awards
- Calder Memorial Trophy - 1981
- Played in 6 NHL All-Star Games - 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988
- World Championships Best Forward Award - 1995
- Inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame - 1998
- Inducted into IIHF Hall of Fame - 2000
Career Statistics
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1980-81 | Quebec | NHL | 77 | 39 | 70 | 109 | 37 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 7 | ||
| 1981-82 | Quebec | NHL | 80 | 46 | 93 | 139 | 91 | 12 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 10 | ||
| 1982-83 | Quebec | NHL | 75 | 47 | 77 | 124 | 78 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 10 | ||
| 1983-84 | Quebec | NHL | 80 | 46 | 73 | 119 | 73 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 31 | ||
| 1984-85 | Quebec | NHL | 75 | 32 | 68 | 100 | 95 | 18 | 4 | 19 | 23 | 24 | ||
| 1985-86 | Quebec | NHL | 76 | 41 | 81 | 122 | 60 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1986-87 | Quebec | NHL | 64 | 24 | 53 | 77 | 43 | 13 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 12 | ||
| 1987-88 | Quebec | NHL | 76 | 46 | 65 | 111 | 69 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1988-89 | Quebec | NHL | 72 | 35 | 50 | 85 | 117 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1989-90 | Quebec | NHL | 62 | 24 | 38 | 62 | 24 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1989-90 | New Jersey | NHL | 12 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | ||
| 1990-91 | New Jersey | NHL | 77 | 18 | 42 | 60 | 53 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 2 | ||
| 1991-92 | New Jersey | NHL | 66 | 24 | 38 | 62 | 42 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 19 | ||
| 1992-93 | New Jersey | NHL | 62 | 17 | 23 | 40 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1993-94 | St. Louis | NHL | 17 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1994-95 | St. Louis | NHL | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| NHL Totals | 977 | 450 | 789 | 1239 | 824 | 93 | 33 | 72 | 105 | 125 | ||||
International Play
- Played for Czechoslovakia in IIHF World Championships - 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980
- Played for Czechoslovakia in Canada Cup - 1976
- Played for Canada in Canada Cup - 1984
- Played for Slovakia in 1994 Winter Olympics
- Played for Slovakia in IIHF World Championships - 1995
NHL Milestones and Records
- 1st player in NHL history to collect over 100 points in rookie year (109). Wayne Gretzky had 137 points in his first year (1979-80), but was not considered a "rookie".
- 2nd player in NHL history to record 1000 or more points in one decade (1119).
- One of 5 players in NHL history to record at least 6 consecutive 100+ point seasons.
- Shares NHL record for assists by a rookie (70) with Joe Juneau. Wayne Gretzky scored 86 assists in his "rookie" year (1979-80).
- Holds NHL record for points in a road game with 8 (four goals and four assists on February 22nd, 1981 against Washington Capitals).
- Recorded 100th NHL point with an assist on March 29th, 1981 against the Montreal Canadiens.
- Recorded 1000th NHL point on October 19th, 1989 with a goal against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Bibliography
2003 NHL Official Guide & Record Book
Publisher: Dan Diamond and Associates, Inc
ISBN (Canada): 0-920445-79-9
ISBN (United States): 1-57243-500-3
Pages used: 167, 196, 200