- Marek Malík
-
Marek Malík 
Born June 24, 1975
Ostrava, TCHHeight 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) Weight 240 lb (109 kg; 17 st 2 lb) Position Defence Shoots Left Czech Extraliga team
Former teamsHC Vítkovice Steel
Genève-Servette HC
HC Vítkovice
Tampa Bay Lightning
New York Rangers
Vancouver Canucks
Carolina Hurricanes
Hartford WhalersNational team 
Czech RepublicNHL Draft 72nd overall, 1993
Hartford WhalersPlaying career 1993–present Marek Malík (born June 24, 1975) is a Czech professional ice hockey defenceman who is currently playing for HC Vítkovice Steel of the Czech Extraliga. Malík played in the National Hockey League from 1998 to 2009. He is best known for a highlight reel shootout goal while with the New York Rangers.
Contents
Playing career
After playing with TJ Vitkovice Jr. in the Czech junior league, Malík was drafted 72nd overall by the Hartford Whalers in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. He played one season for HC Vítkovice of the Czech Extraliga before joining the Whalers' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Springfield Falcons, in 1994–95. He played the better part of two seasons with the Falcons before earning a roster spot with the Whalers.
While the Whalers' franchise relocated to Raleigh, North Carolina in 1997–98 to become the Carolina Hurricanes, Malík played in the Swedish Elitserien with the Malmö Redhawks. He returned to the NHL the following season with the Hurricanes. In 2001–02, Malík recorded a career-high 23 points. The following season, his ninth with the Whalers/Hurricanes franchise, Malík was traded to the Vancouver Canucks along with Darren Langdon in exchange for Jan Hlaváč and Harold Druken. He completed his second season with the Canucks, in 2003–04, as co-recipient of the NHL Plus/Minus Award (shared with Martin St. Louis of the Tampa Bay Lightning) with a +35 rating.
During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Malík returned to the Czech Extraliga to play for HC Vítkovice. With NHL play set to resume the following season, he signed a three-year deal with the New York Rangers.
On November 26, 2005, Malík scored on Washington Capitals netminder Olaf Kölzig to finish the longest shootout in NHL history.[1] The goal was described as a "circus shot" as Malík drew the puck towards the center of the net, put his stick between his legs, and shot high on Kölzig's stick side.
With goalies Henrik Lundqvist and Kölzig dominant in net, the shootout went to 15 rounds. The teams had selected so many players to shoot that they were being forced to send out their weaker defencemen. Bryan Muir of the Caps scored in round 14, and Jason Strudwick answered for the Rangers to tie the score again. The next Caps shooter was stopped, which set the stage for Malík. He skated in on Kölzig, deked to his glove, pulled the puck back, put his stick through his legs, and flipped it in over Kölzig's blocker to score and win the game. He had not scored a goal during the season at the time. After the shot, he raised his arm and shrugged to the fans before being mobbed by his teammates. Former Rangers commentator John Davidson said, "Now I've seen it all! First Strudwick scores, then Malík wins a shootout with a shot between the legs. Oh Baby!" The goal was ranked as the play of the year by TSN's SportsCentre.[citation needed]
During his time with New York, Malík was criticized for his lack of physical play, despite his size, as well as his risky decision-making with the puck. These criticisms have been applied to Malík as early as his minor league days in Springfield.[2]
On January 24, 2008, he was not at the game on Brian Leetch Night, even though it was team policy for players to be present at games. He also did not attend practice and his locker was empty for the game after he refused to shake hands with head coach Tom Renney after a victory in the Rangers' previous game.[3]
On October 14, 2008, Malík signed a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
On November 23, 2009, Malik signed a one-year contract with the Genève-Servette HC from the Swiss National League A.
Awards
- Awarded the Plus/Minus Award in 2004 (co-recipient with Martin St. Louis)
- Bronze medal with the Czech Republic at the 2006 Winter Olympics
Personal life
Malík has a wife and two sons.[4][5] While Malík was with the Rangers, his teammates and coaches called him "Harry" because he looks like the title character from Harry and the Hendersons.[6][7]
Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1993–94 HC Vítkovice Czech 41 3 4 7 0 — — — — — 1994–95 Hartford Whalers NHL 1 0 1 1 0 — — — — — 1994–95 Springfield Falcons AHL 58 11 30 41 91 — — — — — 1995–96 Springfield Falcons AHL 68 8 14 22 135 8 1 3 4 20 1995–96 Hartford Whalers NHL 7 0 0 0 4 — — — — — 1996–97 Springfield Falcons AHL 3 0 3 3 4 — — — — — 1996–97 Hartford Whalers NHL 47 1 5 6 50 — — — — — 1997–98 Malmö Redhawks SEL 37 1 5 6 21 — — — — — 1998–99 Beast of New Haven AHL 21 2 8 10 28 — — — — — 1998–99 HC Vítkovice Czech 1 1 0 1 6 — — — — — 1998–99 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 52 2 9 11 36 4 0 0 0 4 1999–00 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 57 4 10 14 63 — — — — — 2000–01 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 61 6 14 20 34 3 0 0 0 6 2001–02 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 82 4 19 23 88 23 0 3 3 18 2002–03 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 10 0 2 2 16 — — — — — 2002–03 Vancouver Canucks NHL 69 7 11 18 52 14 1 1 2 10 2003–04 Vancouver Canucks NHL 78 3 16 19 45 7 0 0 0 10 2004–05 HC Vítkovice Steel Czech 42 1 9 10 50 7 0 0 0 37 2005–06 New York Rangers NHL 74 2 16 18 78 4 0 1 1 6 2006–07 New York Rangers NHL 69 2 19 21 70 10 1 3 4 10 2007–08 New York Rangers NHL 42 2 8 10 48 — — — — — 2008–09 Tampa Bay Lightning NHL 42 0 5 5 36 — — — — — NHL totals 691 33 135 168 620 65 2 8 10 64 International play
Medal record Competitor for Czech RepublicIce hockey Winter Olympics Bronze 2006 Turin Malík has played for the Czech Republic in the following competitions:
- 1993 European Junior Championships
- 1994 World Junior Championships
- 1995 World Junior Championships
- 2004 World Cup
- 2006 Winter Olympics
See also
References
- ^ "Game of the Night: Canucks outlast Ducks in 13 round shootout". National Hockey League. 2008-10-31. http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=389833. Retrieved 2008-10-31.
- ^ Lowe, Mike (May 10, 1996). "PIRATES TRY TO FINISH OFF FALCONS". Portland Press Herald.
- ^ Greenberg, Jay (2008-01-25). "Malik sits out Rangers' victory". New York Post. http://www.nypost.com/seven/01252008/sports/rangers/malik_sits_out_rangers_victory_128895.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-27.
- ^ Weinman, Sam (2007-03-01). "Malik doesn’t get the boos, and neither do I". The Journal News. http://rangers.lohudblogs.com/2007/03/01/malik-doesnt-get-the-boos-and-neither-do-i/. Retrieved 2008-07-31.
- ^ Weinman, Sam (2007-01-24). "Malik status a mystery". The Journal News. http://rangers.lohudblogs.com/2008/01/24/malik-status-a-mystery/. Retrieved 2008-07-31.
- ^ Brooks, Larry (2008-01-29). "Sather shops for Malik deal". New York Post. http://www.nypost.com/seven/01292008/sports/rangers/sather_shops_for_malik_deal_132013.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
- ^ Dellapina, John (2007-12-12). "Malik the odd man out". Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/rangers/2007/12/malik-the-odd-man-out.html. Retrieved 2008-07-31.
External links
Preceded by
Peter Forsberg and Milan HejdukCo-winner of the NHL Plus/Minus Award
(with Martin St. Louis)
2004Succeeded by
Wade Redden and Michal RozsivalCategories:- 1975 births
- Beast of New Haven players
- Carolina Hurricanes players
- Czech expatriate ice hockey people
- Czech expatriates in Canada
- Czech expatriates in Sweden
- Czech expatriates in Switzerland
- Czech expatriates in the United States
- Czech ice hockey players
- Elitserien players
- Genève-Servette HC players
- Hartford Whalers draft picks
- Hartford Whalers players
- HC Vítkovice players
- Ice hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics
- Living people
- Malmö Redhawks players
- Nationalliga A players
- New York Rangers players
- Olympic bronze medalists for the Czech Republic
- Olympic ice hockey players of the Czech Republic
- People from Ostrava
- Springfield Falcons players
- Vancouver Canucks players
- Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
