Michal Sýkora
Michal Sykora (born 4 July 1973 in Pardubice, Czechoslovakia ) is a former Czech ice hockey player. During his career he played for the San Jose Sharks, Chicago Blackhawks, Tampa Bay Lightning and Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League, as well as the HC Pardubice and HC Sparta Prague in the Czech Extraliga. His younger brother Peter is also a professional hockey player.
Career
Sykora began his career in his native town, where he went through the youth department of the HC Pardubice, before he came to his first stakes in the highest Czechoslovak league in the 1990/91 season at the age of 17 years. For the following season, he made the jump to North America to play in the Western Hockey League for the Tacoma Rockets. After a successful rookie season, he was eventually selected in the NHL Entry Draft in 1992 in the sixth round to 123 instead of the San Jose Sharks. The Czech remained another year at the Tacoma Rockets and doubled with 73 points its yield of the previous year.
For the 1993/94 season, the Sharks submitted the defender his first professional contract and put him first in the Kansas City Blades, their farm team from the International Hockey League. In the course of the season Sıkora also came but to his first 22 missions in the National Hockey League. After he had spent the shortened by the lockout season 1994/95 partly in the IHL, he managed to start the game year 1995/96 the leap into the trunk of the squad Sharks and ran in 79 of the 82 games. The 1996/97 season he started with the team from San Jose, but was delivered by Chris Terreri and Ulf Dahlén to the Chicago Blackhawks, who sent goalkeeper Ed Belfour on the U.S. West Coast in return in January 1997. Sykora finished the season with the Blackhawks though, but did not renew his contract expired. He initially returned to Europe and played a game for his hometown club in Pardubice, but before he could agree with the management of the Blackhawks themselves. At the end of the year, however, he had to switch to the Tampa Bay Lightning. After only ten games for Tampa, he left the club and returned again to his Czech homeland, where he spent two seasons with the HC Sparta Prague in 2000 and was able to celebrate the championship.
For the 2000/01 season Sykora began his second North American commitment, as the Philadelphia Flyers had committed to the free agent for one year. After the one-year return, he ended his North American career again and moved back to the Czech Extraliga, this time for HC Pardubice, where he played until the 2004/05 season hienein before he ended his active career.
Internationally
Sykora won during his career two world titles with the Czech national team in 1996 and 2000. Both years he was also elected to the All-Star Team of the Tournament. In addition, he participated in the World Cup of Hockey in 1996, part of the 2002 Winter Olympics and the 2002 World Cup.
Awards and achievements
- 2000 Czech champion with the HC Sparta Prague
- 2000 Gold medal at the World Championships
- 2000 All- Star Team of the World Cup