Róbert Švehla
Róbert Švehla ( born January 2, 1969 in Martin, Czechoslovakia ) is a former Slovak professional ice hockey player who played during his active career, among others, between 1995 and 2003 in the National Hockey League for the Florida Panthers and Toronto Maple Leafs.
- 2.1 International
- 3.1 International
Career
Švehla began his career in the youth teams of ZŤS Martin, for whom he made his debut in the season 1986/87 in the sub-prime first SNHL. In 1989 he moved into the first division of Czechoslovakia, the first league to Dukla Trenčín. In the following three years he established himself in the league and won with Dukla 1992, the Czechoslovak championship. He also won the Hokejka Zlata, the highest award in the Czechoslovak ice hockey.
During the NHL Entry Draft in 1992 he was selected by the Calgary Flames in the fourth round to 78th place, but remained in Europe and played from then on for the Malmo IF in the highest Swedish league, the Elitserien. With the Malmo IF he won the Swedish Championship in the season 1993/94 and was the best defender of the Elitserien in terms of goals and points scorer. At the end of the following season, he left Sweden and attended five games in the National Hockey League for the Florida Panthers, the NHL had acquired the rights to Švehla in September 1994.
In the following eight years Švehla played exclusively for the Panthers in the NHL and reached with these 1996 final of the Stanley Cup, in which they were subject to the Colorado Avalanche. In the summer of 2002 he was given in exchange for Dmitri Yushkevich to the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he spent his last season as an active athlete. On 4 September 2003, he stepped back from publicly competitive sports. Overall, he completed 655 NHL regular season games in which he reached 335 points scorer.
Since his career end Švehla is still employed with the sport of ice hockey. At the World Championships 2005 he was assistant coach of the Slovak national team. On 14 January 2009, Švehla assistant coach at HC Dukla Trenčín. Since summer 2009 he is chairman of the junior club of HC Dukla Trenčín.
Internationally
Švehla represented Czechoslovakia at the U18 European Championship in 1987, at the World Championships in 1992 and the 1992 Winter Olympic Games in Albertville. After the dissolution of his native country he played for Slovakia at the 1994 Winter Olympics and the B- World Cup in 1995, when he with the Slovak national team in the top division managed to rise and was elected to the All- Star team.
Other missions followed at the World Cup of Hockey in 1996, the 1998 Winter Olympics, the 1998 World Cup and the World Cup 2003.
Awards and achievements
Internationally
Career Stats
Internationally
Represented Czechoslovakia at:
- U18 European Junior Championships 1987
- Olympic Winter Games in 1992
- World Cup 1992
Represented Slovakia at:
- 1994 Winter Olympics
- B- World Cup 1995
- World Cup of Hockey 1996
- 1998 Winter Olympics
- World Cup 1998
- 2003 World Cup
( Key to Career statistics: Sp or GP = Games Played, T or G = goals scored, V or A = achieved assists; Pts or Pts = scored points scorer, SM or PIM = received penalty minutes, / - = Plus / Minus balance sheet; PP = scored majority gates; SH = scored shorthanded goals, GW = achieved victory gates; Play-downs/Relegation 1 )