Jan Suchy
Encyclopedia
Jan Suchý was an ice hockey
player from Havlíčkův Brod
, Czechoslovakia
. He was sometimes referred to as the "European Bobby Orr
."
From the ages of 8 to 19, Suchý played for a local team, Jiskra Havlíčkův Brod. He then played for the Czechoslovakian army team Dukla Jihlava from 1963 to 1979. He helped lead them to seven Czechoslovakian league titles. By his last season he had scored more goals than any defenceman in league history. He then continued to play in Austria and Germany until 1984.
Suchý won the first two Golden Hockey Stick awards as Czechoslovakia's best player, in 1969 and 1970. He was named the best defenceman at the Ice Hockey World Championships
in 1969 and 1971.
He was also the first European to be placed on an NHL protected list (by the Boston Bruins
).
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player from Havlíčkův Brod
Havlíckuv Brod
Havlíčkův Brod , Německý Brod until 1945 is a town in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It is also the capital of the Havlíčkův Brod district. It is located on the Sázava River in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands and has a population of 24,321 as of 2003...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. He was sometimes referred to as the "European Bobby Orr
Bobby Orr
Robert Gordon "Bobby" Orr, OC is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Orr played in the National Hockey League for his entire career, the first ten seasons with the Boston Bruins, joining the Chicago Black Hawks for two more. Orr is widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest...
."
From the ages of 8 to 19, Suchý played for a local team, Jiskra Havlíčkův Brod. He then played for the Czechoslovakian army team Dukla Jihlava from 1963 to 1979. He helped lead them to seven Czechoslovakian league titles. By his last season he had scored more goals than any defenceman in league history. He then continued to play in Austria and Germany until 1984.
Suchý won the first two Golden Hockey Stick awards as Czechoslovakia's best player, in 1969 and 1970. He was named the best defenceman at the Ice Hockey World Championships
Ice Hockey World Championships
The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation . First officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics, it is the sport's highest profile annual international tournament. The IIHF was created in 1908 while the European...
in 1969 and 1971.
He was also the first European to be placed on an NHL protected list (by the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
).