Oleg Tverdovsky
Oleg Fedorovych Tverdovsky (Russian: Олег Федорович Твердовский; born 18 May 1976) is a Russian former professional ice hockey defenceman.[1]
Oleg Tverdovsky | |||
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Donetsk, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union | 18 May 1976||
Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
Weight | 211 lb (96 kg; 15 st 1 lb) | ||
Position | Defence | ||
Shot | Left | ||
Played for |
Krylya Sovetov Moscow Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Winnipeg Jets Phoenix Coyotes New Jersey Devils Avangard Omsk Carolina Hurricanes Los Angeles Kings Salavat Yulaev Ufa Metallurg Magnitogorsk | ||
National team | Russia | ||
NHL Draft |
2nd overall, 1994 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | ||
Playing career | 1992–2013 |
Playing career
Early years
Tverdovsky was born and raised in the mining city of Donetsk, Ukraine. In his earlier years, the city had no artificial ice surfaces so his introduction to the game was through street hockey. In 1983 Tverdovsky began his interest in hockey at the city's only fully functioning skating arena. Though this was originally intended for figure skating, low turnout compelled city officials to create a year-round hockey school. Open tryouts were held and 7-year old Tverdovsky finally had a chance to learn the sport, but his inexperience with skating initially held him back. He recalls "I tried everything, even holding my hands on the boards, but the progress was slow."[2] The team coach identified the problem being weakness in his ankles, and put him on a training regimen which included running on beach sand and stones barefoot.
In 1991, the system which froze the ice at his local arena became permanently broken and his amateur career in hockey was potentially over. By this time he was one of the best players, as well as the best skater on his team. "I was a defenseman all my career and I always loved rushes," he says. "It didn't take a lot of stickhandling for me to score lots of goals - I just skated around the opponents." This talent did not go unnoticed, as Yan Kaminsky, the coach of the Dynamo Moscow junior team at the time, noticed Tverdovsky and invited him to come to Moscow. Kamentsky soon left Dynamo and accepted a job with Krylya Sovetov, also in Moscow. His mother, Alexandra, did not want her 15-year-old son to leave home, but his father, Fedor, convinced her that it would be for the best.
"It wasn't an easy time for me. I lived in a dormitory, missing my family, especially my 7-year-old sister (Anna)," Oleg recalls.
Russia
Though missing his home in Ukraine, Oleg made a lot of progress to his game while in Russia. He and his teammate from Donetsk, Yuri Litvinov (later drafted by the New York Rangers), practiced eight hours a day, four times a week. Igor Dmitriyev, the coach of the senior Krylya Sovetov team signed the 16-year-old defenseman to a contract with the professional club, despite the fact that Oleg never played for the junior team.
"When I saw him for the first time I was amazed by his skating ability," says Dmitriyev, then the head coach of the Russian National Team. "He carried the puck so well, he had so much confidence that I decided to give him a chance."
For two years, he lived in the team's training camp facility, which was located on the outskirts of Moscow. Without a car, Oleg was forced to spend most of his time at the facility itself.
NHL
Tverdovsky was drafted second overall by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft. When Oleg arrived in Anaheim, Mighty Ducks players already had a nickname for him - "Double O," as in Oleg Orr. In 1996, Tverdovsky was traded to the Winnipeg Jets as part of a trade that included Teemu Selänne. He would be traded back to Anaheim in 1999 for Travis Green and a first-round selection.
He was then sent to the Devils in the summer of 2002 along with teammate Jeff Friesen in a seven player trade that sent Petr Sykora to Anaheim. As fate would have it, the two teams would battle one another in the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals nearly a year later.
Tverdovsky has won the Stanley Cup twice in his career - once while a member of the New Jersey Devils in 2003 and once as a member of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006.[3] On 29 September 2006, Tverdovsky and Jack Johnson were traded to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Éric Bélanger and Tim Gleason.
KHL
Tverdovsky played the 2007–08 season in Russia for Salavat Yulayev Ufa, where he played for the next five seasons. When he left the NHL, Tverdovsky was still under contract with the Los Angeles Kings. This was able to happen because there was no transfer agreement between the NHL and the Russian Hockey Federation.
He was also selected as a reserve by Team Russia for the 2010 Winter Olympics should an injury occur during the tournament.[4]
He was traded to Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the 2011–12 season, and played part of the next season with that club before retiring.
Personal life
Tverdovsky lives with his second wife in the United States. Together they are raising five kids. [5]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
1992–93 | Krylya Sovetov Moscow | IHL | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
1992–93 | Krylya Sovetov–2 Moscow | RUS.2 | 29 | 11 | 14 | 25 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1993–94 | Krylya Sovetov Moscow | IHL | 46 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
1994–95 | Brandon Wheat Kings | WHL | 7 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1994–95 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 36 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1995–96 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 51 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 35 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1995–96 | Winnipeg Jets | NHL | 31 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
1996–97 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 82 | 10 | 45 | 55 | 30 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
1997–98 | Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 9 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1997–98 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 46 | 7 | 12 | 19 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | ||
1998–99 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 82 | 7 | 18 | 25 | 32 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
1999–2000 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 82 | 15 | 36 | 51 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2000–01 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 82 | 14 | 39 | 53 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2001–02 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 73 | 6 | 26 | 32 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2002–03 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 50 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 22 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
2003–04 | Avangard Omsk | RSL | 57 | 16 | 17 | 33 | 58 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
2004–05 | Avangard Omsk | RSL | 48 | 5 | 15 | 20 | 65 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 35 | ||
2005–06 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 72 | 3 | 20 | 23 | 37 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
2006–07 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 26 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2006–07 | Manchester Monarchs | AHL | 14 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 2 | 14 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 14 | ||
2007–08 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | RSL | 43 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 58 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 10 | ||
2008–09 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | KHL | 48 | 8 | 19 | 27 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
2009–10 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | KHL | 42 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 38 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | ||
2010–11 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | KHL | 40 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 20 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 12 | ||
2011–12 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | KHL | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2011–12 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | KHL | 24 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
2011–12 | Toros Neftekamsk | VHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2012–13 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | KHL | 25 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
RSL totals | 148 | 27 | 43 | 70 | 181 | 38 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 47 | ||||
NHL totals | 713 | 77 | 240 | 317 | 291 | 45 | 0 | 14 | 14 | 6 | ||||
KHL totals | 191 | 29 | 51 | 80 | 132 | 32 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 18 |
International
Medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Representing Russia | ||
Ice hockey | ||
Winter Olympics | ||
2002 Salt Lake City | ||
World Championships | ||
2009 Switzerland | ||
World Junior Championships | ||
1994 Ostrava |
Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1993 | Russia | EJC | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | ||
1994 | Russia | WJC | 7 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 6 | ||
1994 | Russia | EJC | 5 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 22 | ||
1996 | Russia | WC | 4th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
1996 | Russia | WCH | SF | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
2001 | Russia | WC | 6th | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | |
2002 | Russia | OG | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | ||
2004 | Russia | WC | 10th | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
2004 | Russia | WCH | QF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
2009 | Russia | WC | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | ||
Junior totals | 18 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 28 | ||||
Senior totals | 38 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 14 |
Note:
- 2010 - Winter Olympics (reserve)
Awards and achievements
Award | Year | |
---|---|---|
NHL | ||
All-Star Game | 1997 | |
Stanley Cup (New Jersey Devils) | 2003 | |
Stanley Cup (Carolina Hurricanes) | 2006 | |
RSL | ||
Champion (Avangard Omsk) | 2004 | |
MVP | 2004 | |
Champion (Salavat Yulaev Ufa) | 2008 | |
KHL | ||
Gagarin Cup (Salavat Yulaev Ufa) | 2011 |
References
- Archived 23 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- "WebCite query result". Geocities.com. Archived from the original on 25 October 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
- "Devils trade Sykora to Ducks for 3 players". New York Times. 7 July 2002. Retrieved 7 July 2002.
- Archived 25 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- "Твердовський завершив ігрову кар'єру". XSPORT.ua. 19 December 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
Awards and achievements | ||
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Preceded by Paul Kariya |
Anaheim Ducks first round draft pick 1994 |
Succeeded by Chad Kilger |