Mariusz Czerkawski

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Mariusz Czerkawski
Born (1972-04-13) April 13, 1972
Radomsko, Łódź, POL
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Left
Played for Boston Bruins
Edmonton Oilers
New York Islanders
Montreal Canadiens
Toronto Maple Leafs
National team  Poland
NHL Draft 106th overall, 1991
Boston Bruins
Playing career 1990–2008

Mariusz Krzysztof Czerkawski (pronounced [ˈmarjuʂ t͡ʂɛrˈkafski]; born April 13, 1972) is a retired Polish ice hockey player. He played for the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs in the National Hockey League (NHL). In addition to playing in the NHL, Czerkawski played for several different European-based teams. A consistent scorer, Czerkawski was the first person born and trained in Poland to play in the NHL.[citation needed]

Playing career

After a good season with the GKS Tychy in 1990–91, the Boston Bruins drafted him in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft in the 5th round, 105th overall. Czerkawski joined that year the Djurgårdens IF of the Elitserien. If his first season numbers were unimpressive, reflecting his rookie status, he posted good results in his second season in Stockholm, with 34 points in 39 games.

Czerkawski made his NHL debut in 1993–94 with the Bruins, playing in 4 games, a long enough stint to collect two goals and an assist and introduce himself as a promising youngster. The next season, he played 47 games with Boston, collecting 12 goals and 14 assists in the shortened season.

In 1996, Czerkawski was traded to the Edmonton Oilers. He played about a season and a half there before another trade sent him to the New York Islanders, where Czerkawski would have his best years, including two 30-goal plus seasons. After being traded to the Montreal Canadiens in 2002, however, he found himself waived to the Hamilton Bulldogs of the American Hockey League. His contract was bought out and he signed a one year deal with the Islanders in 2003, netting another 25-goal season.

Czerkawski made his only NHL All Star game appearance in 2000.

Next season, he joined the Toronto Maple Leafs. There again, he had a disappointing season, being benched for the most part of the first half of the season. A light resurrection occurred in December when he was paired with Mats Sundin, but overall, he only gathered 5 points in the 19 games he played in. The Bruins claimed him off waivers on March 8; however, he only played 16 games with Boston, scoring four goals and one assist.

Czerkawski joined the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers of the NLA in 2006. He played two seasons for the Swiss team, collecting respectively 41 and 53 points. He retired in 2008.

After retiring from Hockey, he actively plays golf, where after 2 years he plays to a handicap 5.

For his contribution to the development of Polish ice hockey, he received the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (5th Class) in 2004.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
SeasonTeamLeague GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1988–89 GKS Tychy Jr. Poland Jr. — — — — — — — — — —
1989–90 GKS Tychy Jr. Poland Jr. 30 35 11 46 — — — — — —
1990–91 GKS Tychy Poland 24 25 15 40 — — — — — —
1991–92 Djurgårdens IF Elitserien 39 8 5 13 4 3 0 0 0 2
1992–93 Hammarby IF Sweden-2 32 39 30 69 74 13 16 7 23 34
1993–94 Djurgårdens IF Elitserien 39 13 21 34 20 6 3 1 4 2
1993–94 Boston Bruins NHL 4 2 1 3 0 13 3 3 6 4
1994–95 Kiekko-Espoo SM-liiga 7 9 3 12 10 — — — — —
1994–95 Boston Bruins NHL 47 12 14 26 31 5 1 0 1 0
1995–96 Boston Bruins NHL 33 5 6 11 10 — — — — —
1995–96 Edmonton Oilers NHL 37 12 17 29 8 — — — — —
1996–97 Edmonton Oilers NHL 76 26 21 47 16 12 2 1 3 10
1997–98 New York Islanders NHL 68 12 13 25 23 — — — — —
1998–99 New York Islanders NHL 78 21 17 38 14 — — — — —
1999–00 New York Islanders NHL 79 35 35 70 34 — — — — —
2000–01 New York Islanders NHL 82 30 32 62 48 — — — — —
2001–02 New York Islanders NHL 82 22 29 51 48 7 2 2 4 4
2002–03 Montreal Canadiens NHL 43 5 9 14 16 — — — — —
2002–03 Hamilton Bulldogs AHL 20 8 12 20 12 6 1 3 4 6
2003–04 New York Islanders NHL 81 25 24 49 16 5 0 1 1 0
2004–05 Djurgårdens IF Elitserien 46 15 9 24 20 5 1 0 1 2
2005–06 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 19 4 1 5 6 — — — — —
2005–06 Boston Bruins NHL 16 4 1 5 4 — — — — —
2006–07 Rapperswil-Jona Lakers NLA 43 21 20 41 70 7 6 6 12 16
2007–08 Rapperswil-Jona Lakers NLA 49 22 31 53 30 5 1 0 1 4
2008–09 GKS Tychy Poland 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
Elitserien totals 124 36 35 71 44 14 4 1 5 6
SM-liiga totals 7 9 3 12 10 — — — — —
AHL totals 20 8 12 20 12 6 1 3 4 6
NLA totals 92 43 51 94 100 12 7 6 13 20
NHL totals 745 215 220 435 274 42 8 7 15 18

International

Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
1989 Poland EJC-B 5 5 6 11 6
1990 Poland WJC 7 1 0 1 4
1990 Poland EJC 6 9 3 12 14
1991 Poland WJC-B 7 12 3 15 2
1991 Poland WC-B 7 6 2 8 4
1992 Poland Oly 5 0 1 1 4
1992 Poland WC 6 0 0 0 4
1998 Poland WC-B 3 2 1 3 0
2000 Poland WC-B 7 4 7 11 2
2002 Poland WC 3 2 2 4 4
2006 Poland WC-B 5 3 4 7 2
Junior int'l totals 25 27 12 39 26
Senior int'l totals 36 17 17 34 20

All Star Games

Year Location   G A P
2000 Toronto 0 1 1
All-Star Totals 0 1 1

  • All statistics taken from NHL.com[1]

Awards

International

Award Year
IIHF U-20 Division I Best Player 1990

Personal life

Czerkawski was married from 1996 to 1998 to Polish-Swedish actress Izabella Scorupco, best known from the 1995 James Bond film GoldenEye. They have a daughter Julia (b. September 16, 1997). Since September 1, 2007 he is married to Emilia Raszyńska (1st vice miss Polonia, 1999), they have a son named Iwo, born in 2009.

References

  1. ↑ NHL.com (2009). "Mariusz Czerkawski's NHL Profile". NHL.com. Retrieved 2009-07-08. 

External links

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