Ľubomír Višňovský

Ľubomír Višňovský
Višňovský with the New York Islanders in 2013
Born (1976-08-11) 11 August 1976 (age 48)
Topoľčany, Czechoslovakia
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 192 lb (87 kg; 13 st 10 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Left
Played for HC Slovan Bratislava
Los Angeles Kings
Edmonton Oilers
Anaheim Ducks
New York Islanders
National team  Slovakia
NHL draft 118th overall, 2000
Los Angeles Kings
Playing career 1994–2016

Ľubomír Višňovský[1] (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈʎubɔmiːr ˈʋiʂɲɔwskiː]; born 11 August 1976) is a Slovak former professional ice hockey defenceman. He began and finished his career with his hometown club, HC Slovan Bratislava. He played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Los Angeles Kings, Edmonton Oilers, Anaheim Ducks, and New York Islanders.

Playing career

Prior to joining the NHL, Višňovský played with HC Slovan Bratislava. He was drafted 118th overall in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft by the Los Angeles Kings as their fourth choice. He made the team for the 2000–01 season and was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team after a 39-point campaign, tops among rookie defencemen. Višňovský remained with the Kings for seven seasons, recording a career-high 67 points in 2005–06 and being named to the 2007 NHL All-Star Game. He returned to play in his home country for the locked out 2004–05 season.

Višňovský with the Edmonton Oilers in 2009

On 29 June 2008, Višňovský was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for forward Jarret Stoll and defenceman Matt Greene, on the day before his no-trade clause would take effect.[2] He was put on the injured reserve on 5 February 2009, after dislocating his shoulder in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks on 3 February.[3] It was later revealed Višňovský required season-ending surgery to repair his labrum.[4]

On 3 March 2010, Višňovský was traded to the Anaheim Ducks for Ryan Whitney and a sixth-round pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.[5] On 4 March 2011, Višňovský scored the first hat trick by a defenceman in Anaheim Ducks history, the third goal coming with four seconds left in overtime.[6]

On 22 June 2012, Višňovský was traded to the New York Islanders for a second round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. Shortly thereafter, Višňovský filed a grievance through the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) seeking to void the trade, claiming that the no-trade clause in his original contract with Los Angeles was still valid, since he never revoked it when Edmonton traded him to Anaheim.[7] An arbitrator ruled against Višňovský in this case and the trade was upheld.[8]

The Islanders suspended Višňovský because he did not report to the team for the start of the NHL season. His agent, Neil Sheehy, said on 26 January 2013, that Višňovský will report to the team by 11 February.[9] Višňovský later signed a two-year extension with the Islanders worth $4.75 million per year.

After parts of three seasons with the Islanders, Višňovský left as a free agent and was unsigned over the summer. On 16 September 2015, he was signed to a professional tryout (PTO) contract with the Chicago Blackhawks.[10][11] Upon his release at the conclusion of training camp by the Blackhawks,[12] Višňovský returned to HC Slovan Bratislava midway into the 2015–16 season, signing a one-year deal on 27 October 2015.[13] Višňovský announced his retirement in March 2016.[14][15]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1994–95 HC Slovan Bratislava Slovak 36 11 10 21 10 9 1 3 4 2
1995–96 HC Slovan Bratislava Slovak 35 8 6 14 22 13 1 5 6 2
1996–97 HC Slovan Bratislava Slovak 44 11 12 23 20 2 0 1 1 2
1997–98 HC Slovan Bratislava Slovak 36 7 9 16 16 11 2 4 6 8
1998–99 HC Slovan Bratislava Slovak 40 9 10 19 31 10 5 5 10 0
1999–00 HC Slovan Bratislava Slovak 52 21 24 45 38 8 5 3 8 16
2000–01 Los Angeles Kings NHL 81 7 32 39 36 8 0 0 0 0
2001–02 Los Angeles Kings NHL 72 4 17 21 14 4 0 1 1 0
2002–03 Los Angeles Kings NHL 57 8 16 24 28 — — — — —
2003–04 Los Angeles Kings NHL 58 8 21 29 26 — — — — —
2004–05 HC Slovan Bratislava Slovak 43 13 25 38 40 14 2 10 12 10
2005–06 Los Angeles Kings NHL 80 17 50 67 42 — — — — —
2006–07 Los Angeles Kings NHL 69 18 40 58 26 — — — — —
2007–08 Los Angeles Kings NHL 82 8 33 41 34 — — — — —
2008–09 Edmonton Oilers NHL 50 8 23 31 30 — — — — —
2009–10 Edmonton Oilers NHL 57 10 22 32 16 — — — — —
2009–10 Anaheim Ducks NHL 16 5 8 13 4 — — — — —
2010–11 Anaheim Ducks NHL 81 18 50 68 24 6 0 3 3 2
2011–12 Anaheim Ducks NHL 68 6 21 27 7 — — — — —
2012–13 HC Slovan Bratislava KHL 32 6 10 16 22 — — — — —
2012–13 New York Islanders NHL 35 3 11 14 20 6 0 2 2 2
2013–14 New York Islanders NHL 24 3 8 11 10 — — — — —
2014–15 New York Islanders NHL 53 5 15 20 8 4 0 2 2 0
2015–16 HC Slovan Bratislava KHL 9 2 8 10 2 4 0 0 0 0
Slovak totals 286 80 98 178 157 67 16 31 47 38
NHL totals 883 128 367 495 373 28 0 8 8 4

International


Višňovský at the 2008 World Championships
Medal record
Representing  Slovakia
Ice hockey
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2003 Helsinki
Gold medal – first place 2002 Gothenburg
Silver medal – second place 2000 St. Petersburg
Inline Hockey
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2008 Bratislava
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
1994 Slovakia WJC C 17th 4 1 1 2 0
1995 Slovakia WJC B 10th 7 1 6 7 4
1996 Slovakia WJC 7th 6 1 5 6 4
1996 Slovakia WC 10th 5 0 1 1 4
1996 Slovakia WCH 7th 1 0 0 0 0
1997 Slovakia WC 9th 8 0 1 1 4
1998 Slovakia OG 10th 3 0 0 0 2
1998 Slovakia WC 7th 4 0 0 0 2
1999 Slovakia WC 7th 6 0 2 2 6
2000 Slovakia WC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 9 0 6 6 2
2002 Slovakia OG 13th 3 1 2 3 0
2002 Slovakia WC 1st place, gold medalist(s) 5 2 1 3 2
2003 Slovakia WC 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 9 4 8 12 2
2004 Slovakia WCH 7th 4 0 0 0 6
2005 Slovakia WC 5th 7 2 6 8 0
2006 Slovakia OG 5th 6 1 1 2 0
2008 Slovakia WC 13th 5 2 7 9 0
2010 Slovakia OG 4th 7 2 1 3 0
2011 Slovakia WC 10th 3 0 2 2 0
Junior totals 17 3 12 15 8
Senior totals 85 14 38 52 30

Awards and honours

Višňovský (shown here in 2006) was named to the NHL All-Star Game in 2007.
Award Year
Slovakia
Best Defenceman in Slovakia 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005
Best Player in Slovakia 2005
NHL
All-Rookie Team 2001
All-Star Game 2007
NHL second All-Star team 2011

References

  1. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Ľubomír Višňovský". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
  2. ^ "Oilers acquire Visnovsky from L.A.; ship Stoll and Greene". Tsn.ca. 29 June 2008. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
  3. ^ "Oilers' Lubomir Visnovsky goes on injured reserve". MSNBC. 5 February 2009. Retrieved 9 February 2009.[dead link‍]
  4. ^ "Visnovsky's 1st season with Oilers over". CBC. 8 February 2009. Retrieved 9 February 2009.
  5. ^ "Capitals, Oilers and Hurricanes busiest teams on deadline day". Tsn.ca. 3 March 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
  6. ^ "Stars vs. Ducks – 03/04/2011 – Anaheim Ducks – Recap". Ducks.nhl.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2011. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
  7. ^ "Report: Visnovsky Files Grievance on Trade to Islanders". 23 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
  8. ^ "VISNOVSKY LOSES ARBITRATION CASE, TRADE TO ISLES COMPLETE". 12 September 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2013.
  9. ^ "Lubomir Visnovsky Will Report To Islanders By Feb. 11". CBS News New York. 27 January 2013. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  10. ^ @ICEHockeyAgent (16 September 2015). "I-C-E Hockey Agency client Lubomir Visnovsky has accepted a professional tryout to attend the 2015 Chicago Blackhawks Training Camp" (Tweet). Retrieved 22 April 2021 – via Twitter.
  11. ^ Powers, Scott (23 September 2015). "Veterans Hejda, Visnovsky attempting to continue careers with Blackhawks". ESPN.com. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  12. ^ Harrison, Doug (28 September 2015). "Lubomir Visnovsky, Tomas Kopecky, Daniel Paille released from PTO deals by Blackhawks". CBC.ca. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  13. ^ "Ľ. Višňovský sa dohodol so Slovanom!". HC Slovan (in Slovak). 27 October 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  14. ^ "Veteran NHL defenseman Visnovsky retires". NHL.com. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  15. ^ Wright, Cory (2 March 2016). "Isles Day-To-Day: Visnovsky Retires". NHL.com. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
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