| Ladislav Ščurko | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 4, 1986 Gelnica, CS |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb) |
| Position | Center |
| Shot | Left |
| Played for | HC Košice |
| National team | Slovakia |
| NHL Draft | 170th overall, 2004 Philadelphia Flyers |
| Playing career | 2007–2009 |
Ladislav Ščurko (born April 4, 1986 in Gelnica) is a Slovak professional ice hockey center who played for HC Košice of the Slovak Extraliga until he confessed to the murder of a referee in 2009.
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Ščurko started his junior career by playing in 37 games with his junior team, HK VTJ Spisská Nová Ves, in Slovakia. He scored 44 points on 20 goals and 24 assists. Following that season he was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 6th round, 170th overall, in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. Shortly after, he was drafted seventh overall in the CHL Import Draft by the Seattle Thunderbirds. In his first year in the Western Hockey League (WHL), he scored 42 points, which put him in fifth in the league for points scored by a rookie. Ladislav also set a Thunderbird record with a nine-game point streak from December 11, 2004 through January 12, 2005, during which he scored 12 points. He enjoyed similar success in fewer games the following season.
On April 23, 2009, Ščurko confessed to the murder of referee Marek Liptaj in January 2008 at a motorway service area near Kosice.[1] He admitted that he killed Liptaj by stabbing him down with a knife 14 times.[1] Liptaj's body was hastily buried in a forest.[1] Scurko is now facing up to 20 years in jail. No motive has been revealed yet, but police say the crime was not premeditated.[2]
Ščurko was released from jail on November 8, 2011, however the trial is supposed to start anew in the future. He is going to play his first hockey game after the realese from prison on December 3, 2011 playing for his boyhood club HK Slovan Gelnica.
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2003–04 | HK VTJ Spisská Nová Ves | SVK U20 | 37 | 20 | 24 | 44 | 102 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 8 | ||
| 2003–04 | HK VTJ Spisská Nová Ves | SVK-2 | 30 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2004–05 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 67 | 18 | 25 | 43 | 40 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 10 | ||
| 2005–06 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 64 | 17 | 26 | 43 | 41 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | ||
| 2006–07 | Tri-City Americans | WHL | 12 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | HC Košice | SVK | 32 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | HK VTJ Trebišov | SVK-2 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 48 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | HC Košice | SVK | 52 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| SVK totals | 84 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| WHL totals | 143 | 39 | 57 | 96 | 99 | 19 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 12 | ||||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for Slovakia | ||
| Men's ice hockey | ||
| World U18 Championships | ||
| Silver | 2003 Yaroslavl | |
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Slovakia Jr. | WJC U18 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2004 | Slovakia Jr. | WJC U18 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 2005 | Slovakia Jr. | WJC | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 2006 | Slovakia Jr. | WJC | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 16 |