Mike Rosati
Encyclopedia
Michael Anthony Rosati is a Canadian
-born Italian
professional ice hockey
player. Rosati became the first player to play in a game in the NHL after earning an Italian passport and playing for Italy.
and was soon drafted by the New York Rangers
in 1988 NHL Entry Draft
(#131 pick). Rosati was initially placed in the ECHL
, but after a disappointing season, decided to play in Italy
. Rosati would find much more success in Italy
, and played for the Hockey Club Bolzano. In the 1990s Rosati would lead Bolzano to two Italian Hockey Championships, and would earn himself the place of goaltender for the Italian national hockey team
, who would go on to compete in the 1994
and 1998 Winter Olympics
.
. It was here that Rosati played for Adler Mannheim
of the DEL. In 1998, after two seasons of consistent play with Adler Mannheim
, Rosati signed with the Washington Capitals
. Rosati was the third goaltender of the team, behind Olaf Kolzig
and Craig Billington
. After the shift to the Portland Pirates
farm team
, it seemed that Rosati's chances to play in the NHL
were fading away, and that he was destined to spend his career in the minor leagues, but the injury of the Craig Billington
put him directly on the bench. On November 7, 1998 the incumbent Capitals
goalie, Olaf Kölzig
, suffered an injury and Rosati made his NHL
debut against the Ottawa Senators
in a match won by the Capitals
8–5. Rosati played 28 minutes and didn't allow a goal. His NHL saves total stands at 12. He finished the season with the Manitoba Moose
of the IHL. Despite a less than stellar stint with the Moose, Rosati decided to come back to Mannheim
where he played four more seasons.
second division team.
In the 2004–05 season Rosati was the Adler Mannheim
assistant coach and worked with Stéphane Richer
and Helmut de Raaf (who played with Rosati for multiple seasons).
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
-born Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
professional ice hockey
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. Rosati became the first player to play in a game in the NHL after earning an Italian passport and playing for Italy.
Early years
Mike Rosati started his career by playing in the Ontario Hockey LeagueOntario Hockey League
The Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.The OHL also operates under the Ontario Hockey Federation of Hockey Canada....
and was soon drafted by the New York Rangers
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
in 1988 NHL Entry Draft
1988 NHL Entry Draft
The 1988 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Forum in Montreal, Quebec.-Selections by round:Below are listed the selections in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft...
(#131 pick). Rosati was initially placed in the ECHL
ECHL
The ECHL is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Princeton, New Jersey with teams scattered across the United States...
, but after a disappointing season, decided to play in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. Rosati would find much more success in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and played for the Hockey Club Bolzano. In the 1990s Rosati would lead Bolzano to two Italian Hockey Championships, and would earn himself the place of goaltender for the Italian national hockey team
Italian national ice hockey team
The Italian men's national ice hockey team is the national ice hockey team of Italy, and is controlled by the Federazione Italiana Sport del Ghiaccio , a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation.-2010 World Ice Hockey Championship team:...
, who would go on to compete in the 1994
1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 12 to 27 February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer failed to win the bid for the 1992 event. Lillehammer was awarded the games in 1988, after having beat...
and 1998 Winter Olympics
1998 Winter Olympics
The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...
.
The 1990s and the NHL experience
By the second half of the 1990s the Italian hockey movement had gone through a difficult period, and Rosati moved to GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It was here that Rosati played for Adler Mannheim
Adler Mannheim
Adler Mannheim are an ice hockey team of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, the highest ice hockey league in Germany. The team is from Mannheim, a city in the north of Baden-Wurttemberg...
of the DEL. In 1998, after two seasons of consistent play with Adler Mannheim
Adler Mannheim
Adler Mannheim are an ice hockey team of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, the highest ice hockey league in Germany. The team is from Mannheim, a city in the north of Baden-Wurttemberg...
, Rosati signed with the Washington Capitals
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...
. Rosati was the third goaltender of the team, behind Olaf Kolzig
Olaf Kölzig
Olaf Kölzig is a retired German professional ice hockey goaltender and associate goalie coach for the Washington Capitals. With the exception of 8 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning, he played his entire 14 year career with the Capitals...
and Craig Billington
Craig Billington
-International:-External links:*...
. After the shift to the Portland Pirates
Portland Pirates
The Portland Pirates is a minor professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They are the top affiliate of the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League. They play in the Cumberland County Civic Center in downtown Portland, Maine. The franchise was previously known as the...
farm team
Farm team
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team or nursery club, is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher level at a given point...
, it seemed that Rosati's chances to play in the NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
were fading away, and that he was destined to spend his career in the minor leagues, but the injury of the Craig Billington
Craig Billington
-International:-External links:*...
put him directly on the bench. On November 7, 1998 the incumbent Capitals
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...
goalie, Olaf Kölzig
Olaf Kölzig
Olaf Kölzig is a retired German professional ice hockey goaltender and associate goalie coach for the Washington Capitals. With the exception of 8 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning, he played his entire 14 year career with the Capitals...
, suffered an injury and Rosati made his NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
debut against the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
in a match won by the Capitals
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...
8–5. Rosati played 28 minutes and didn't allow a goal. His NHL saves total stands at 12. He finished the season with the Manitoba Moose
Manitoba Moose
The Manitoba Moose were a Canadian professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba that played in the International Hockey League from 1996 to 2001 and American Hockey League from 2001 to 2011. The team moved to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador in 2011 to become the St...
of the IHL. Despite a less than stellar stint with the Moose, Rosati decided to come back to Mannheim
Mannheim
Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....
where he played four more seasons.
Retirement and coaching
Rosati retired in 2004 while playing for a GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
second division team.
In the 2004–05 season Rosati was the Adler Mannheim
Adler Mannheim
Adler Mannheim are an ice hockey team of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, the highest ice hockey league in Germany. The team is from Mannheim, a city in the north of Baden-Wurttemberg...
assistant coach and worked with Stéphane Richer
Stephane Richer
Stéphane Jean-Jacques Richer is a retired professional ice hockey left winger.-Playing career:Richer was drafted 29th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft. He played in 1,054 career NHL games, scoring 421 goals and 398 assists for 819 points. Richer won the Calder Cup in...
and Helmut de Raaf (who played with Rosati for multiple seasons).
Player career
- 1984–85 St. Michael's BuzzersSt. Michael's College SchoolSt. Michael's College School is a private, all-boys Roman Catholic day school in Toronto, Canada. Currently administered by the Basilian Fathers, it is the largest school of its kind in Canada, with an enrollment of approximately 1,080 students from grades 7 to 12. St...
(OJHLB) - 1986–89 Hamilton SteelhawksNiagara Falls ThunderThe Niagara Falls Thunder was a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League from 1988 to 1996. The team was based in Niagara Falls, Ontario.-History:...
(relocated: Niagara Falls ThunderNiagara Falls ThunderThe Niagara Falls Thunder was a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League from 1988 to 1996. The team was based in Niagara Falls, Ontario.-History:...
) (OHLOntario Hockey LeagueThe Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.The OHL also operates under the Ontario Hockey Federation of Hockey Canada....
) - 1989–90 Erie PanthersVictoria Salmon KingsThe Victoria Salmon Kings were a professional ice hockey team based in Victoria, British Columbia. They were members of the Mountain Division of the Western Conference of the ECHL, debuting in the 2004–05 ECHL season and folding after the 2010–11 ECHL season as the Chilliwack Bruins WHL franchise...
(ECHLECHLThe ECHL is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Princeton, New Jersey with teams scattered across the United States...
) - 1990–96 Hockey Club Bolzano (ItalianItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Serie ASerie A (hockey)Serie A is the name of the top tier of professional ice hockey in Italy, which first began play in 1924. They are conducted under the authority of the Federazione Italiana Sport del Ghiaccio...
) - 1996–98 Adler MannheimAdler MannheimAdler Mannheim are an ice hockey team of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, the highest ice hockey league in Germany. The team is from Mannheim, a city in the north of Baden-Wurttemberg...
(DEL) - 1998–99 Portland PiratesPortland PiratesThe Portland Pirates is a minor professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They are the top affiliate of the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League. They play in the Cumberland County Civic Center in downtown Portland, Maine. The franchise was previously known as the...
(AHLAmerican Hockey LeagueThe American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
) - Washington CapitalsWashington CapitalsThe Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...
(NHLNational Hockey LeagueThe National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
) - 1998–99 Manitoba MooseManitoba MooseThe Manitoba Moose were a Canadian professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba that played in the International Hockey League from 1996 to 2001 and American Hockey League from 2001 to 2011. The team moved to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador in 2011 to become the St...
(IHL) - 1999–03 Adler MannheimAdler MannheimAdler Mannheim are an ice hockey team of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, the highest ice hockey league in Germany. The team is from Mannheim, a city in the north of Baden-Wurttemberg...
(DEL) - 2003–04 Heilbronn Falcons (GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
2. Bundesliga2nd Bundesliga (ice hockey)The 2nd Eishockey-Bundesliga is the second tier of Ice hockey in Germany. It is organised by the DEB, the German Ice Hockey Federation. In the 2007-08 season, it features 14 teams.- History of the 2nd Ice Hockey Bundesliga :...
)