Paul Stastny

Infobox Ice Hockey Player
name = Paul Stastny

---

image_size = 230px
position = Center
shoots = Left
height_ft = 6
height_in = 0
weight_lb = 205
nickname = Staz
team = Colorado Avalanche
league = NHL
nationality = USA
nationality_2 = CAN
birth_date = birth date and age|mf=yes|1985|12|27
birth_place = Quebec City, QC
career_start = 2006
draft = 44th overall
draft_year = 2005
draft_team = Colorado Avalanche

Paul Stastny (born December 27, 1985) is a Canadian-American professional ice hockey center of Slovak descent who plays for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). Stastny is the son of Hockey Hall of Famer Peter Šťastný, who played for the Avalanche franchise when it was the Quebec Nordiques. [Unlike their father, Paul and Yan Stastny have dropped the diacritics from their name.] Paul's older brother Yan has played for the Boston Bruins, the Edmonton Oilers, and the St. Louis Blues, and his uncles Anton and Marián Šťastný both played for the Nordiques during the 1980s.

Stastny began his junior hockey career with the River City Lancers of the United States Hockey League before moving to the University of Denver Pioneers in 2004. He won the NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship in his first season playing for the Pioneers. He would remain at the University of Denver for one more season. He signed a contract with the Avalanche before the 2006-07 NHL season, scored 78 points in 82 games in his rookie season and was nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy. In 2007–08 he was named to his first NHL All-Star Game, but did not play because of an appendicectomy. As a dual citizen, Stastny has chosen to play for the United States in international hockey competitions, which have included the 2004 Viking Cup and the 2007 IIHF World Championship.

Stastny, a left-handed center, considers himself to be a playmaker. His style is similar to his father's, with characteristics such as strong skating and ability to see the game. Stastny is one of the few remaining NHLers who continue to use wooden sticks.

Early years

Paul Stastny has numerous family relatives who have played in the NHL. He is the son of Czechoslovak defector and Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Peter Šťastný, the first European-trained player to reach 1,000 points in the NHL, [cite news |title =Spotlight - Peter Stastny|url =http://www.legendsofhockey.net/html/spot_pinnaclep199803.htm|author =Podnieks, Andrew|publisher =Legends of Hockey|accessdate =2007-01-04] and the nephew of retired NHL players Anton and Marián.cite news |title =Paul Stastny a chip off the old block|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?articleid=289937&page=NewsPage&service=page|author =Grossman, Evan|publisher =NHL|date =2007-03-02|accessdate =2007-01-04] Peter and Anton were the first two out of the three brothers to come to North America, in 1980; they were smuggled, along with Peter's pregnant wife with the help of the Quebec Nordiques' owner Marcel Aubut and chief scout Gilles Leger out of Czechoslovakia to Austria.cite book|title=The Official Illustrated NHL History|author=Pincus, Arthur|date=2006|publisher=Calton Books|pages=147–148] Marián arrived a year later, when Peter and Anton raised the $30,000 needed to bribe officials of the Czechoslovak government. All three played for the Quebec Nordiques from 1981 to 1985, which was only the second time that three brothers played for the same team in the NHL at the same time; the first three brothers who had played for the same team were Reg, Doug and Max Bentley. [Cite web|url=http://www.legendsofhockey.net:8080/LegendsOfHockey/jsp/SearchPlayer.jsp?player=11973|title=Reg Bentley|accessdate=2008-04-03|publisher=Legends of Hockey] Paul's older brother Yan has played for the Boston Bruins, for the Edmonton Oilers, and most recently for the St. Louis Blues. He currently plays for the Blues' American Hockey League affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen. [cite web |title =Yan Stastny profile|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8470223&tab=crst|publisher =NHL|accessdate =2007-01-04] Peter and Paul Stastny currently rank fourth all-time in total scoring by a father-son combination in the NHL.

Stastny was born in Quebec City, Canada, to Peter and Darina Šťastný, while Peter was playing for the Nordiques. He spent his early years in Quebec and in |accessdate =2008-01-28]

Playing career

Amateur career

Stastny began his junior ice hockey career in 2002 with the River City Lancers of the United States Hockey League (USHL), playing with the team for two seasons, scoring 107 points in 113 games. In 2002–03, the Lancers finished the regular season fourth in the West Division and progressed to the playoffs. [cite web |title =USHL Standings 2002/03|url =http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/standings.html?leagueid=49&seasonid=102|publisher =Pointstreak.com|accessdate =2007-01-05] After advancing two rounds, the Lancers lost in the Clark Cup final against the Lincoln Stars. [cite web |title =USHL 2003 Playoff bracket|url =http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/playoffbracket.html?leagueid=49&seasonid=184|publisher =Pointstreak.com|accessdate =2007-01-05] In 2003–04, the Lancers finished third in the West Division and lost in the first round of the playoffs against the Sioux City Musketeers. [cite web |title =USHL Standings 2003/04|url =http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/standings.html?leagueid=49&seasonid=258|publisher =Pointstreak.com|accessdate =2007-01-05] [cite web |title =USHL 2004 Playoff bracket|url =http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/playoffbracket.html?leagueid=49&seasonid=436|publisher =Pointstreak.com|accessdate =2007-01-05] Stastny's 77 points in 56 games ranked him second in the league behind teammate Mike Howe. [cite web |title =USHL 2003/04 Scoring leaders|url =http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/scoringleaders.html?leagueid=49&seasonid=258|publisher =Pointstreak.com|accessdate =2007-01-05]

Stastny entered the University of Denver to play for the Pioneers in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in 2004. Despite entering college hockey younger than the usual USHL player, Stastny scored 45 points in 42 games in his first season in Denver to help the Pioneers win the WCHA regular season and playoffs. Stastny then helped the team win its second NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship in a row by scoring two power-play goals in the final game at the 2005 Frozen Four tournament against North Dakota. [cite web |title =Denver Pioneers Men's Hockey: Year-By-Year|url =http://www.uscho.com/stats/teamYxY.php/denver-pioneers/mens-college-hockey/team,du/gender,m.html|publisher =United States College Hockey Online|accessdate =2007-01-05] [cite news |title =Denver Wins Title Again, With Stastny Scoring 2 Goals|url =http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/10/sports/hockey/10puck.html?_r=1&oref=slogin|publisher=New York Times|author=Lapointe, Joe|date =2005-04-10|accessdate =2007-01-05] Stastny won the award for WCHA Rookie of the Year and was part of the WCHA All-Rookie Team and the NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team.cite web |title =Paul Stastny career stats|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8471669&tab=crst|publisher =NHL|accessdate =2007-01-05]

In 2005–06, Stastny scored 53 points in 39 games and finished 7th overall in the NCAA scoring list, tied with Matt Carle for the Pioneers' scoring lead. [cite web |title =2005–2006 NCAA Division I Men Statistical Leaders|url =http://www.uscho.com/stats/conf.php?season=20052006&conf=d1&gender=m |publisher =United States College Hockey Online|accessdate =2007-01-05] He scored 44 points in 28 conference games to win the WCHA scoring title. [cite web |title =2005–2006 WCHA Men Statistical Leaders|url =http://www.uscho.com/stats/conf.php?season=20052006&conf=wc&gender=m|publisher =United States College Hockey Online|accessdate =2007-01-05] [cite web |title =Paul Stastny profile|url =http://www.uscho.com/stats/player.php?pid=10113&gender=m|publisher =United States College Hockey Online|accessdate =2007-01-05] He was part of the WCHA First All-Star Team and the NCAA West Second All-American Team, as the Pioneers finished the WCHA regular season in second place and lost in the first round of the playoffs against the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs. [cite web |title =Denver Pioneers: 2005–2006 Men's Hockey Schedule Results|url =http://www.uscho.com/schedules/team.php/-/-college-hockey/team,du/season,20052006/gender,m.html|publisher =United States College Hockey Online|accessdate =2007-01-05] At the end of the season, Stastny left the University of Denver as a business major.cite news |title =Stastny's genes are advantage to rookie|url =http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/nhl/article/0,2777,DRMN_23920_4986170,00.html|author = Sadowski, Rick|publisher =Rocky Mountain News|date =2006-09-12|accessdate =2007-01-05]

Colorado Avalanche

Stastny was draft-eligible in the |accessdate =2007-01-04]

On February 21, 2007, Stastny scored two goals and passed Alex Tanguay's total of 51 points to set a new Colorado Avalanche record for points by a rookie.cite web|url=http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=197003&hubname=|title=Stastny scorches Flames for two goals|date=2007|accessdate=2007-03-26|publisher=TSN] His father holds the franchise record with 109. Between February 3 and March 17, he had a 20-game scoring streak, breaking not only his father's franchise rookie record of 16 games, but also the NHL rookie record of 17 games that belonged to Teemu Selänne.cite news |title =Stastny Named To NHL All-Rookie Team|url =http://avalanche.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=319888&page=NewsPage&service=page|author =|publisher =Colorado Avalanche|date =2007-06-14|accessdate =2007-06-22] [cite news |title =Streak longest in NHL since Heatley's 22 in '05|url =http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=2794806|author =Associated Press|publisher =ESPN|date =2007-03-11|accessdate =2007-01-05] He scored 11 goals and had 18 assists during that period and became the third-youngest player in NHL history to record a 20-game scoring streak, following Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky.cite news |title =After Banner Rookie Season, Stastny Looking For More In Year 2|url =http://avalanche.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=323136|author =Kelly, Michael|publisher =Colorado Avalanche|date =2007-06-27|accessdate =2008-01-29] At the start of the season, Wojtek Wolski was the Avalanche player seen as favorite to contend for the Calder Memorial Trophy; however, [cite news |title =For Avs' Wolski, at least more of a role is a given|url =http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Paul_Stastny&action=edit&section=4|author =Sadowski, Rick|publisher =Rocky Mountain News|date =2006-09-11|accessdate =2008-01-29] the scoring streak put Stastny into contention as well. [cite news |title =Colorado Rookie Has Ice in Bloodlines|url =http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/18/sports/hockey/18hockey.html|author =Klein, Jeff Z. and Reif, Karl-Eric|publisher =New York Times|date =2007-03-18|accessdate =2008-01-29] Stastny's play was one of the reasons the Avalanche experienced their best run of the season towards the end, [cite news |title =Colorado 2, Minnesota 3|url =http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/preview?gameId=270311030|publisher =ESPN|date =2007-03-11|accessdate =2008-01-29] winning 15 of their last 19 games but missing the playoffs by one point. Stastny ended his rookie season with 78 points, finished second to Pittsburgh Penguins' Evgeni Malkin in the voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy and was named to the 2006–07 NHL All-Rookie Team. [cite news |title =Calder just eludes Stastny|url =http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_6144379|author =Dater, Adrian|publisher =Denver Post|date =2007-06-14|accessdate =2008-01-29]

Coming into his sophomore season, Stastny admitted the pressure would increase during the year. He continued the strong finish of his rookie year, [cite news |title =Stastny carries strong finish into second season|url =http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/nhl/avalanche/2007-10-09-stastny_N.htm|author =Allen, Kevin|publisher =USA Today|date =2007-10-11|accessdate =2008-01-29] by scoring his first career hat-trick against Marty Turco of the Dallas Stars in the season's first game and scoring five points for the first time four days later, against the San Jose Sharks. [cite news |title =Avalanche 4, Stars 3|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=Recap&gameNumber=6&season=20072008&gameType=2|author =Associated Press|publisher =NHL|date =2007-10-03|accessdate =2007-01-29] [cite news |title =Avalanche 6, Sharks 2|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=Recap&gameNumber=35&season=20072008&gameType=2|author =Associated Press|publisher =NHL|date =2007-10-07|accessdate =2008-01-29] He scored 15 goals and had 28 assists in his first 34 games of the season, and had his 100th NHL point in his 99th NHL game.cite news |title =Paul Stastny 2007–2008 Regular Season Game By Game Stats|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8471669&tab=gbgt|publisher =NHL|accessdate =2008-01-29] [cite news |title =Avalanche 4, Wild 2|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?gameNumber=246&gameType=2&page=Recap&season=20072008&service=page|author =Associated Press|publisher =NHL|date =2007-11-11|accessdate =2008-03-01] At the same time, Stastny hit a slump, during which he had one point in eight games. With the Avalanche having lost top players Joe Sakic and Ryan Smyth to injuries, Ryan Kennedy of "The Hockey News" pointed to Stastny's inconsistency and wrote it was time for Stastny to step up and be a leader in all aspects.cite news |title =Time for Wolski and Stastny to man up|url =http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/12403-THNcom-Blog-Time-for-Wolski-and-Stastny-to-man-up.html|author =Kennedy, Ryan|publisher =The Hockey News|date =2008-01-04|accessdate =2008-01-29] Despite being on the longest scoreless streak of his career, which lasted 10 games, on January 11, 2008, the NHL announced Stastny would be playing at the 56th National Hockey League All-Star Game. [cite news |title =Avalanche center Paul Stastny makes first All-Star team|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?articleid=349619&page=NewsPage&service=page|author =Associated Press|publisher =NHL|date =2008-01-11|accessdate =2008-01-28] He scored two goals and three assists in three games before the Colorado Avalanche announced six days later that Stastny would be missing approximately two to three weeks, including his first All-Star Game to have his appendix removed. [cite news |title =Stastny Out Two to Three Weeks|url =http://avalanche.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=350351|publisher =Colorado Avalanche|date =2007-01-17|accessdate =2007-01-17] After recovering from the surgery and returning to skating, he suffered a groin injury during a practice, delaying his return. [cite news |title =Revolving door for Avs . . . again|url =http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_8255314|author =Dater, Adrian|publisher =Denver Post|date =2008-02-14|accessdate =2008-02-15] Stastny would end up missing 15 games, but he scored a goal on his comeback against the Phoenix Coyotes on February 22. He scored seven goals and had 15 assists until the end of the regular season, missing a game due to flu on March 20. [cite news |title =Flames 2, Avalanche 1|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=Recap&gameNumber=1115&season=20072008&gameType=2|author =Associated Press|publisher =NHL|date =2008-03-20|accessdate =2008-04-26] With 71 points scored, he finished the regular season as the team's scoring leader and the Avalanche finished 6th in the Western Conference, progressing to the playoffs to play against the Minnesota Wild. [cite news |title =No. 3 Minnesota Wild vs. No. 6 Colorado Avalanche|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?articleid=359517&page=NewsPage&service=page|author =NHL.com Staff|publisher =NHL|date =2008-04-07|accessdate =2008-04-26] Stastny failed to score a point until the fifth game, when his game winning goal gave the Avalanche the lead in the series. [cite news |title =Avalanche 3, Wild 2|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=Recap&gameNumber=175&season=20072008&gameType=3|author =Associated Press|publisher =NHL|date =2008-04-17|accessdate =2008-04-26] Colorado ended the series by winning the sixth game and progressed to meet the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference semi-finals. Stastny scored a goal and an assist in the first game of the series, but a depleted Avalanche team was swept in four games. [cite web |title =Red Wings 4, Avalanche 3|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?gameNumber=231&gameType=3&page=Recap&season=20072008&service=page|publisher =NHL|accessdate =2008-08-11] cite web |title =Red Wings 8, Avalanche 2|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?gameNumber=234&gameType=3&page=Recap&season=20072008&service=page|publisher =NHL|accessdate =2008-08-11] Stastny missed the last game of the series injuring his knee during the first period of the third game. [cite web |title =Red Wings 4, Avalanche 3|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?gameNumber=233&gameType=3&page=Recap&season=20072008&service=page|publisher =NHL|accessdate =2008-08-11]

International play

Despite having been born in Canada, Stastny is a dual citizen of both Canada and the United States. Both he and his brother Yan have chosen to play internationally for the United States. Among the reasons that led him to choose to play for the United States was the possibility to play in an international competition with his brother, who had chosen to play for the United States before Paul.cite web |title =Paul Stastny's Conference Call with NHL Media Members|url =http://avalanche.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=339579&page=NewsPage&service=page|publisher =Colorado Avalanche|accessdate =2008-03-20] Paul Stastny represented the United States for the first time in the 2004 Viking Cup, where he won a silver medal playing for the junior team.cite news |title =Stastny, Arnason on U.S. team|url =http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/nhl/article/0,2777,DRMN_23920_5488617,00.html|author =Sadowski, Rick|publisher =Rocky Mountain News|date =2007-04-17|accessdate =2008-01-28] According to "Hockey's Future", he was one of the most important American talents in the tournament. [cite news |title =USA represented well by Waterloo at Viking Cup|url =http://www.hockeysfuture.com/articles/6607/usa_represented_well_by_waterloo_at_viking_cup/|author =Shaner, Jason|publisher =Hockey's Future|date =2004-01-18|accessdate =2008-01-28] Stastny played internationally for the United States national ice hockey team for the first time in the 2007 IIHF World Championship. [cite news |title =USA Roster at IIHF World Championship 2007|url =http://www.iihf.com/Hydra/Tournaments_07/output/WS/hydra.iihf.com/113/IHM1130USA_33_6_0.pdf|publisher =IIHF|accessdate =2008-01-28|format=PDF] He played seven games, scored four goals and four assists, had two penalty minutes and finished even in plus/minus. [cite web |title =IIHF World Championship 2007 Scoring Leaders|url =http://www.iihf.com/Hydra/Tournaments_07/output/WS/hydra.iihf.com/113/IHM113Z17_85B_1_0.pdf|publisher =IIHF|accessdate =2008-01-28|format=PDF] The United States lost in the quarterfinals against Finland. Stastny was named the best American player in the 3–0 win against Germany, when he scored two goals and had one assist. [cite web |title =IIHF World Championship 2007 - USA - GER - Game Summary|url =http://www.iihf.com/Hydra/Tournaments_07/output/WS/hydra.iihf.com/113/IHM113F34_74_4_0.pdf|publisher =IIHF|accessdate =2008-01-28|format=PDF] [cite web |title =IIHF World Championship 2007 - Best players per game|url =http://www.iihf.com/Hydra/Tournaments_07/output/WS/hydra.iihf.com/113/IHM113000_85K_31_0.pdf|publisher =IIHF|accessdate =2008-01-28|format=PDF] He was chosen as one of the three best United States players at the tournament, together with Lee Stempniak and Toby Petersen. [cite web |title =IIHF World Championship 2007 - Three best players of each team selected by coaches|url =http://www.iihf.com/Hydra/Tournaments_07/output/WS/hydra.iihf.com/113/IHM113000_85J_1_0.pdf|publisher =IIHF|accessdate =2008-01-28|format=PDF]

tyle of play

Quote box
quote = Paul reminds me a lot of his dad. [...] His play-making ability, his vision on the ice, the ability to come up with loose pucks - the puck just seems to follow him around. But his play without the puck is the part that we enjoy. For a young kid, to have that hockey sense, is unusual.
source = Joel Quenneville, "The Globe and Mail", "The Stastny bloodline is clear to see"cite news |title =The Stastny bloodline is clear to see|url =http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061128.wsptduha28/TPStory/Sports/columnists|author =Duhatschek, Eric|publisher =The Globe and Mail|date =2006-11-28|accessdate =2008-01-29]
width = 35%
align = rightStastny is a left-handed center and one of the few NHL players who still use a wooden |accessdate =2008-03-21]

Career statistics

As of the end of the 2007-08 NHL season.

Regular season and playoffs

International

ee also

* List of family relations in the National Hockey League
* List of Colorado Avalanche players
* List of Colorado Avalanche draft picks

Notes and references

External links

*nhlprofile|8471669
*hockeydb|69840
*TSN-NHL-profile|4812

Persondata
NAME = Stastny, Paul
ALTERNATIVE NAMES = Šťastný, Paul
SHORT DESCRIPTION = ice hockey player
DATE OF BIRTH = December 27, 1985
PLACE OF BIRTH = Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
DATE OF DEATH =
PLACE OF DEATH =