Stan Mikita Legacy

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Born in the Slovak Republic, Mikita was adopted and moved to Canada at age eight. In the 1961 Stanley Cup playoffs, he led the league in goals with six as the Black Hawks won the Stanley Cup, making him the first Slovak-born player to win the Cup. He won the first of four Art Ross Trophies in 1963–64, and in 1966–67 and 1967–68 he won the Hart Memorial Trophy, Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, and Art Ross Trophy in the same season—the first and only time a player has done so. He was the sixth player to record 1,000 points (1972) and the eighth to score 500 goals (1977). Mikita was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Slovak Hockey Hall of Fame in 2002. His jersey was retired by the Black Hawks in 1980, the first player to receive the honor in franchise history. In 2017, he was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players.

In Their Own Story

In the summer of 1967, Mikita returned to his country of origin, Czechoslovakia, to visit family and played several exhibition games. However, his defining international moment came during the 1972 Summit Series. Though named to Team Canada, injuries limited him to just two games, both played in Canada against the Soviet Union. He also participated in two additional exhibition games against Sweden in Stockholm and Czechoslovakia in Prague. Back in Chicago, his legacy extended beyond hockey; in 1973, he co-founded the American Hearing Impaired Hockey Association (AHIHA) with Irv Tiahnybik and established the Stan Mikita School for the Hearing Impaired. His off-ice contributions included helping bring the Special Olympics to Chicago, where he volunteered alongside his family.

Reader's Guide

Mikita played his entire 22-year NHL career with the Chicago Black Hawks, recording over 500 goals and 900 assists in nearly 1,400 games. He led the league in scoring four times in five seasons and was known for his innovative curved stick. After retiring in 1980, he became a golf pro and a goodwill ambassador for the Blackhawks. A statue honoring him was raised at the United Center in 2011. He died on August 7, 2018, at age 78.

Did You Know?

• Mikita was born as Stanislav Guoth and was adopted by his aunt and uncle, who gave him the surname Mikita.
• He won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for sportsmanship three times (1967, 1968, 1969) after his daughter asked why he spent so much time in the penalty box.
• Mikita co-founded the American Hearing Impaired Hockey Association in 1973.
• He appeared as himself in the 1992 film Wayne's World, which featured a 'Stan Mikita' doughnut shop.
• Posthumous study of Mikita's brain found he suffered from stage 3 chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), making him the first Hall of Famer diagnosed with the disease.