Petr Sýkora

Lore & Background

Sýkora began his NHL career with the New Jersey Devils after being drafted 18th overall in the 1995 NHL entry draft. He posted 42 points in his rookie campaign and was named NHL Rookie of the Month for December.

His breakout came in his fourth season with 72 points, and as part of the Devils' 'A-line' with Patrik Eliáš and Jason Arnott, he helped lead the team to a Stanley Cup in 2000. In the deciding game, Sýkora was injured and hospitalized; Devils Head Coach Larry Robinson and linemate Patrik Eliáš wore his jersey during the victory, and the team brought the trophy to him in the hospital. The following season, Sýkora recorded career highs of 35 goals, 46 assists, and 81 points, but the Devils lost the Stanley Cup Final in seven games to the Colorado Avalanche.

After a drop in production, Sýkora was traded to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim before the 2002–03 season. In his first season with Anaheim, he appeared in his third Stanley Cup Final, losing to his former Devils teammates.

En route to the Final, he scored the game-winning, quintuple-overtime goal in the fourth-longest playoff game in NHL history against the Dallas Stars. Following the 2004–05 lockout, during which he played for Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the Russian Superleague, Sýkora was traded to the New York Rangers in January 2006. He then signed a one-year deal with the Edmonton Oilers for the 2006–07 season, where he played on a line with countryman Aleš Hemský and managed 53 points.

Reader's Guide

Petr Sýkora's career is notable for his consistent presence in high-stakes playoff hockey, appearing in six Stanley Cup Finals across three different teams. His resilience was demonstrated in 2000 when, despite being hospitalized during the Devils' Cup-clinching game, he was celebrated by his teammates who wore his jersey and brought the trophy to him. He later won a second Cup with the Penguins in 2009, though he was sidelined by a foot injury in the deciding game and had to force his swollen foot into a skate to join the post-game celebration.

Sýkora also scored memorable overtime goals, including a quintuple-overtime winner for Anaheim and a triple-overtime power-play goal for Pittsburgh in the 2008 Final after telling an on-ice reporter he would score. His career included a notable milestone: he held the NHL record for most two-goal games without a single hat-trick before finally recording his first career hat-trick in December 2008. Sýkora's international play included representing the Czech Republic in the 2002 Winter Olympics and the 2004 World Cup, and he won three Men's World Ice Hockey Championships medals: one bronze (1998) and two gold (1999 and 2005).