- Robert Kristan
=Robert Kristan= Robert Kristan (b. April 4th 1983 in Jesenice, Slovenia) is a professional goaltender who plays in the Slovenian League for
Acroni Jesenice .
*Gender Male
*Born 04.04.83, Jesenice, Slovenia, Yugoslavia
*Height 183 cm / 6' 0"
*Weight 80 kg / 176lbs / 12st 8lbs
*Position Goalie
*Catches leftplaying career
In 2006, he signed with Brynäs IF of the Elitserien, one of the better European leagues.
Goalie Robert Kristan came into the IIHF World Hockey Championship about as unheralded as you can be and promptly made 60 saves for Slovenia during a 5-1 loss to Canada in Friday's opening game. The 25-year-old spent this past season playing for HK Jesenice in Austria but still harbours hopes of catching on somewhere else soon.
"Every hockey player has got a dream to play in the NHL," said Kristan. "I'm going to keep working hard and be the same person I am right now and we'll see what happens."
He looked more than capable against Canada.
Kristan faced 31 shots in the second period alone and made a jaw-dropping save on Dany Heatley during a Canadian power play. He was an easy choice as player of the game for Slovenia.
"He was incredible," said Canadian captain Shane Doan. "It was nice to see at the end of the game, everyone kind of gave him a little bit more of a standing ovation when he won player of the game. That's nice because he played phenomenal for them."
He played one season for Brynas in the Swedish Elite League but has otherwise had an unspectacular pro career.
His retro-looking brown pads drew attention before he even made a save against the Canadians. Many people have asked him if they're left over from the 1980s.
"Those are new pads but it's old school," said Kristan.
Slovenia never really threatened the Canadians but his goaltending certainly kept the game close. He joked afterwards that he would be looking for bruises after taking off his equipment.
If anything, Kristan seemed unfazed by his performance.
"There was not so much pressure on me," he said. "I feel kind of comfortable in the net.
"I was trying to show that I can play at a high level too."
Slovenia coach Mats Waltin is among those who would like to see Kristan get a chance in a higher-tiered pro league next season. After grabbing some of the spotlight here, it could happen.
Canadian coach Ken Hitchcock was reluctant to talk about Kristan's performance out of fear that NHL teams other than his Columbus Blue Jackets might notice.
"We might have to draft him," said Hitchcock.
tats
career stats
eason stats
*Team League Season GP GD G A P PIM GAA PCT
*Acroni Jesenice Slovenian League 00/01 25 0 1 1 0
*Acroni Jesenice International League 00/01 13 20 0 0 0 0 2.77 .863
*Acroni Jesenice International League 01/02 4 1.50 .684
*Acroni Jesenice Slovenian League 01/02 4 0 0 0 0
*Olimpija Hertz Ljubljana International League 02/03 13 16 0 0 0 2 1.46 .946
*Olimpija Hertz Ljubljana Slovenian League 02/03 26 0 0 0 0
*Acroni Jesenice International League 03/04 16 0 1 1 12
*Acroni Jesenice Slovenian League 04/05 22 0 0 0 27
*Acroni Jesenice Continental Cup 05/06 3 3 0 0 0 0 2.00 .904
*Acroni Jesenice International League 05/06 17 0 1 1 14
*Acroni Jesenice Slovenian League 05/06 23 0 0 0 14
*Brynäs IF J20 Superelit (SWE) 06/07 1 1 0 0 0 0 0.00 1.000
*Brynäs IF Elitserien 06/07 33 47 0 1 1 6 2.23 .909
*Acroni Jesenice Austrian League 07/08 39 41 0 0 0 31 2.99 .906playoffs stats
*Team League Season GP GD G A P PIM GAA PCT
*Olimpija Hertz Ljubljana Slovenian League 02/03 5 0 0 0 4
*Acroni Jesenice International League 03/04 7 0 0 1 2
*Acroni Jesenice Slovenian League 03/04 4 0 0 0 0
*Acroni Jesenice International League 05/06 6 0 0 1 2
*Brynäs IF Elitserien 06/07 5 5 0 0 1 22 3.38 .886
*Acroni Jesenice Austrian League 07/08 5 5 0 0 0 0 3.31 .898
*Acroni Jesenice Slovenian League 07/08 5 6 0 0 0 2 1.19international stats
*Team League Season GP GD G A P PIM GAA PCT
*Team Slovenia EJC d1 99 2 4 0 0 0 0 3.50 .863
*Team Slovenia EJC d1 00 4 4 0 0 0 0 2.72 .845
*Team Slovenia WJC C 00 4 4 0 0 0 0 3.27 .881
*Team Slovenia WJC18 d2 01 4 4 0 0 0 0 1.00 .959
*Team Slovenia WJC d2 01 4 4 0 0 0 0 1.75 .908
*Team Slovenia WC 02 0 2
*Team Slovenia WJC d1 03 3 5 0 0 0 0 2.87 .918
*Team Slovenia WC 03 1 3 0 0 0 0 7.00 .857
*Team Slovenia WC d1 04 4 5 1.09 .952
*Team Slovenia WC 05 1 1 7.00 .816
*Team Slovenia WC 06 6 6 0 0 0 0 3.81 .887
*Team Slovenia WC 08 4 4 0 0 0 0 4.66 .904Awards
*Best goaltender WJC18 d2 2001
*Best goaltender WJC d2
*Best goalkeeper (Interliga 2004/05)
*Playoffs MVP (Slovenian league 2007/08)
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