Jiří Hrdina

Playing career

The Calgary Flames picked Jiří Hrdina in the eighth round of the 1984 NHL draft, 159th overall. Because of a Czechoslovak rule that kept national team players from joining pro clubs abroad, he could not leave for North America until after the 1988 Winter Olympics. Once the Games ended, he joined the Flames and made his NHL debut on March 3, 1988, at age 30. In that first game he got an assist, and on March 15 he scored his first NHL goal against the Hartford Whalers. He played nine games to close the 1987–88 season, finishing with two goals and seven points. Early in his first full NHL season, 1988–89, Hrdina scored four goals in one game to help Calgary beat Hartford 6–3. That season he appeared in 70 games, putting up 22 goals and 32 assists. He played only four playoff games but was part of the Flames’ Stanley Cup championship team. The next season, playing as a defensive forward, he had 30 points in 64 games. On December 13, 1990, the Pittsburgh Penguins traded for Hrdina, sending defenseman Jim Kyte to Calgary. The Penguins needed another center and also hoped Hrdina could help their fellow Czech rookie Jaromír Jágr adjust to life in North America. Hrdina was upset by the trade and thought about retiring or going back to Europe, but decided to give Pittsburgh a chance. He finished the 1990–91 season with 23 points in 51 games between the two teams, then played 14 more in the playoffs. In the postseason he scored two goals, both in Game 7 of Pittsburgh’s first-round series against the New Jersey Devils, including the game-winner. The Penguins went on to win the Stanley Cup. In 1991–92, as a depth player, Hrdina had 16 points in 56 regular-season games and added two assists in 21 playoff games as the Penguins repeated as champions. He retired from the NHL after that season. Today he works as an amateur scout for the Dallas Stars.