Róbert Švehla
Encyclopedia
Róbert Švehla is a Slovak retired professional ice hockey
defenceman who played in the NHL
for 9 seasons from 1995 until 2003.
in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft
, but he did not play a game for them before moving on to the Florida Panthers
. Švehla played 8 seasons with the Panthers before moving to the Toronto Maple Leafs
for his final season. Švehla played 655 career NHL games, scoring 68 goals and 267 assists for 335 points. His best offensive season was the 1995–96 season when he registered career highs in assists (49) and points (57).
Švehla was also strong defensively and was a willing bodychecker. He led the NHL
in hits on multiple occasions during his time in Florida. Despite this, Švehla was a durable player missing only 6 games during his final 8 seasons in the NHL.
Svehla controversially wore number 67 while a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. It was controversial because the Leafs haven’t won the cup since 1967 and some fans thought he was mocking them. The real reason Svehla chose this number was due to the Maple Leafs organization calling him in the middle of the night while he was at home in Slovakia. The Leafs gave a list of numbers and Svehla chose 67 while half asleep.
and signed a contract as assistant coach.
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...
defenceman who played 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...
for 9 seasons from 1995 until 2003.
Career
Švehla was drafted 78th overall by the Calgary FlamesCalgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...
in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft
1992 NHL Entry Draft
The 1992 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 20 at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. A total of 264 players were drafted.-Selections by round:Club teams are located in North America unless otherwise noted.-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:...
, but he did not play a game for them before moving on to the Florida Panthers
Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in Sunrise, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their games at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise and are the...
. Švehla played 8 seasons with the Panthers before moving to the Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
for his final season. Švehla played 655 career NHL games, scoring 68 goals and 267 assists for 335 points. His best offensive season was the 1995–96 season when he registered career highs in assists (49) and points (57).
Švehla was also strong defensively and was a willing bodychecker. He led 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...
in hits on multiple occasions during his time in Florida. Despite this, Švehla was a durable player missing only 6 games during his final 8 seasons in the NHL.
Svehla controversially wore number 67 while a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. It was controversial because the Leafs haven’t won the cup since 1967 and some fans thought he was mocking them. The real reason Svehla chose this number was due to the Maple Leafs organization calling him in the middle of the night while he was at home in Slovakia. The Leafs gave a list of numbers and Svehla chose 67 while half asleep.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an... |
Team | League | GP | G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to... |
A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal... |
Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one... |
PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,... |
GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1990–91 | Dukla Trenčín HC Dukla Trencín capacity 6100HC Dukla Trenčín is a professional ice hockey team in the Slovak Extraliga, based in Trenčín, Slovakia. They play their home games at Trenčín Zimny Arena.-History:The club was established in 1962 as an army hockey club... |
CS Czechoslovak Extraliga The Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League was the elite ice hockey league in Czechoslovakia from 1930 until 1993, when the country split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Slovak Extraliga and Czech Extraliga formed from the split.-See also:... |
52 | 14 | 8 | 22 | 61 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | Malmö IF | SEL Elitserien Elitserien, is a professional ice hockey league composed of twelve teams in Sweden... |
40 | 19 | 10 | 29 | 86 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Malmö IF | SEL | 37 | 14 | 25 | 39 | 127 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Florida Panthers Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in Sunrise, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their games at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise and are 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... |
5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Malmö IF | SEL | 32 | 11 | 13 | 24 | 83 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | ||
| 1995–96 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 81 | 8 | 49 | 57 | 94 | 22 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 32 | ||
| 1996–97 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 82 | 13 | 32 | 45 | 86 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | ||
| 1997–98 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 79 | 9 | 34 | 43 | 113 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 80 | 8 | 29 | 37 | 83 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 82 | 9 | 40 | 49 | 64 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2000–01 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 82 | 6 | 22 | 28 | 76 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 82 | 7 | 22 | 29 | 87 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League... |
NHL | 82 | 7 | 38 | 45 | 46 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | ||
| NHL totals | 655 | 68 | 267 | 335 | 649 | 38 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 42 | ||||
Coaching career
On January 14, 2009, Švehla joined HC Dukla TrenčínHC Dukla Trencín
capacity 6100HC Dukla Trenčín is a professional ice hockey team in the Slovak Extraliga, based in Trenčín, Slovakia. They play their home games at Trenčín Zimny Arena.-History:The club was established in 1962 as an army hockey club...
and signed a contract as assistant coach.