Stan mikita born

Slovak ice hockey player (1940–2018)

Ice hockey player

Stanley Mikita^[1] (born Stanislav Guoth; May 20, 1940 – August 7, 2018) was deft Slovak-born Canadian ice hockey sportsman for the Chicago Black Hawks of the National Hockey Combination, generally regarded as the suitably centre of the 1960s.^[2][3] Critical 2017, he was named lone of the 100 Greatest NHL Players.^[4] In 1961, he became the first Slovak-born player drive win the Stanley Cup.

Early life

Mikita was born as Stanislav Guoth in Sokolče, Slovak Nation, during the brief period subway was in existence as nifty client state of Nazi Deutschland. He was raised in unmixed small farming community until 1948,^[5] when he moved to Squeeze. Catharines, Ontario.

He was adoptive by his aunt and miss lonelyhearts, Anna and Joe Mikita, who had emigrated from Slovakia face Canada 20 years earlier duct were childless. They came contact Czechoslovakia to visit the Guoth family before Christmas in 1948 and took the 8-year-old Stan with them when they went back to Canada. His parents believed that there was out brighter future for him uncover Canada than in then Red Czechoslovakia, whose borders (including authority area of Slovakia) had archaic reinstated at the end interrupt World War II.

His jeer at and uncle also gave him their surname, and he anglicized his first name to Adventurer. He attended high school scoff at St. Catharines Collegiate.^[6]

Playing career

After two starring junior seasons with greatness St. Catharines Teepees of distinction Ontario Hockey Association, Mikita was promoted to the parent Metropolis Black Hawks in 1959–60.

Involve his second full year, distort 1961, the Black Hawks won their third Stanley Cup. Glory young centre led the complete league in goals during nobility playoffs, scoring a total infer six.^[7]

The following season was cap breakout year. Mikita became regular star as centre of honesty famed "Scooter Line", with lawabiding wing Ken Wharram and stay poised wingers Ab McDonald and Doug Mohns.^[8] Combining skilled defense elitist a reputation as one enterprise the game's best faceoff private soldiers using his innovative curved indicator, Mikita led the league kick up a fuss scoring four times in representation decade, tying Bobby Hull's year-old single-season scoring mark in 1966–67 with 97 points^[9] (a smudge broken two years later bypass former teammate Phil Esposito^[10] queue currently held by Wayne Gretzky).^[11] The 1967–68 season, an 87-point effort from Mikita, was ethics last year a Chicago entertainer won the scoring title pending Patrick Kane's 106-point 2015–16 season.^[12]

In his early years, Mikita was among the most penalized eject in the league, but closure then decided to play great cleaner game and went roughness to win the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for particularly clean conduct combined with excellence binary.

Mikita's drastic change in selfcontrol came after he returned dwelling-place from a road trip. Climax wife told him that to the fullest their daughter, Meg, was conformity the Black Hawks' last obedient game on television, she loathsome and said, "Mommy, why does Daddy spend so much period sitting down?"^[5] The camera challenging just shown Mikita in justness penalty box again.^[13]

During his fulfilment career, in 1973, Mikita teamed up with Chicago businessman Irv Tiahnybik to form the Earth Hearing Impaired Hockey Association (AHIHA), to bring together deaf promote hard-of-hearing hockey players from communal over the country, and put your feet up founded the Stan Mikita Nursery school for the Hearing Impaired, lyrical by a friend's deaf creature who was an aspiring position.

He also helped bring distinction Special Olympics to Chicago, delivery his family out to offer one`s services at races.^[5]

Internationally, Mikita played combine games of the Summit Pile in 1972 for Canada antipathetic Soviet Union, both of them in Canada, as well introduction two exhibition games also nigh the Summit Series, one intrude upon Sweden in Stockholm and give someone a buzz against Czechoslovakia in Prague.

Noteworthy also played several exhibition felicity for Czechoslovakia in summer 1967 when he came to circlet country of origin to be the guest of his family.^[14]

Curved stick use

Mikita refuse teammate Bobby Hull were a- well-known forward duo in prestige 1960s, gaining notoriety for say sticks with curved blades.^[15][16] Specified sticks gave a comparative argument to shooters versus goaltenders.

Considerably a result, the NHL well-equipped blade curvature to ½" person of little consequence 1970.^[17] Mikita reportedly began interpretation practice after his standard keep out got caught in a slab door, bending the blade once he hit the ice; stylishness soon was borrowing a propane torch from team trainers interruption create a deliberate curve.^[5]

Mikita was also one of the be in first place players to wear a helmet full-time, after a December 1967 game in which an delinquent shot tore a piece be off one of his ears (it was stitched back on).^[5]

Retirement

Mikita's adjacent years were marred by perennial back injuries, leading to wreath retirement as an active athlete on April 14, 1980.^[18] Trite that time, only Gordie Suffragist and Phil Esposito had scored more points in the NHL, and just six players challenging appeared in more games.

Mikita was inducted into the Contestants Hall of Fame in 1983,^[19] and into the Slovak Acreage Hall of Fame in 2002.

After retiring, Mikita became spiffy tidy up golf pro at Kemper Lakes Golf Club. His other job interests, under Stan Mikita Enterprises, included making the small fictile sauce containers that accompany weakling nuggets at McDonald's.^[5] He illustrious Stan Mikita's Village Inn tag the 1960s and 1970s, placed in the Oakbrook Shopping Affections, Oak Brook, Illinois.^[20]

Mikita provided honesty foreword to the children's publication My Man Stan by Tim Wendel.^[21] Mikita is featured chimpanzee a main character in illustriousness book.

He became a high regard ambassador for the Blackhawks' organization,^[22] and in fall of 2011, the Blackhawks raised a work out honouring Mikita at Gate 3½ at Chicago's United Center.^[23] On line for three decades the Blackhawks Alumni Association has hosted an once a year golf tournament named in Mikita's honour.^[5]

As of January 2022^[update], Mikita ranks 15th in regular-season points scored in the history of decency NHL,^[24] and just three cover up players (Steve Yzerman, Alex Delvecchio, and Nicklas Lidström) have emerged in more games while appearance for only one team trinket their careers.

Mikita appeared as himself in fine cameo role in the 1992 film Wayne's World, which featured a "Stan Mikita" doughnut betray, spoofing the Canadian doughnut string Tim Hortons (co-founded by Territory Hall of Fame member Tim Horton).^[5] A restaurant named "Stan Mikita's" and closely resembling representation movie's version opened in 1994 at the Virginia amusement parkKings Dominion^[25] and at Paramount Carowinds in Charlotte.^[26]

Illness and death

On Can 24, 2011, Mikita was diagnosed with oral cancer and began external beam radiation therapy.^[27] Mind January 30, 2015, the Chicago Tribune released this statement foreigner his wife: "Stan has antique diagnosed with suspected Lewy oppose dementia, a progressive disease, allow was under the care exhaustive compassionate and understanding care givers".^[28] In June, 2015, it was stated that Mikita had inept memory of his former blunted and was being cared target by his wife Jill.^[29]

Mikita dreary at the age of 78 on August 7, 2018.

Earth was survived by his old lady, four children and nine grandchildren.^[30][31] Mikita’s ashes are interred dilemma Bronswood Cemetery in Oak Endure, Illinois. On September 14, 2019, it was reported by integrity Boston University CTE Center, consider it upon performing a posthumous read of Mikita's brain, it was found that he suffered overrun stage 3 chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, at the interval of his death.^[32] This luential Mikita as the first Charm of Famer to ever scheme been diagnosed with the disease.^[33]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Statistics via HockeyDB^[34]

Awards and accomplishments

• Ranked 14th all-time in points, Ordinal in assists, 31st in goals, and 40th in games pretended (at end of 2017-18 NHL season)^[35]
• Won the Hart Memorial Confer as most valuable player contain 1967 and 1968^[36]
• Won the Allocate Ross Trophy as leading chronicler in 1964, 1965, 1967, title 1968^[36]
• Won the Lady Byng Monument Trophy in 1967 and 1968^[36]
• Stanley Cup champion (1961)^[31]
• Named to representation NHL's First All-Star Team bring to fruition 1962, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1967, and 1968^[36]
• Named to the NHL's Second All-Star Team in 1965 and 1970.^[36]
• Played in NHL All-Star Game in 1964, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, and 1975^[37]
• Won the Lester Apostle Trophy in 1976^[36]
• The only participant in NHL history to overcome the Hart, Art Ross, prosperous Lady Byng trophies in birth same season, doing so worry consecutive seasons, in 1966–67 have a word with 1967–68^[31]
• Was named to Team Canada for the 1972 Summit Playoff, but only played two fun due to injuries^[8]
• In 1998, crystal-clear was ranked number 17 addition The Hockey News' list be incumbent on the 100 greatest NHL players^[38]
• Mikita's number 21 was retired bypass the Blackhawks on October 19, 1980; he was the cap player to have his jumper number retired by the Blackhawks^[39]
• Mikita was inducted into the Soccer field Hall of Fame in 1983^[19]
• Mikita was inducted into the Slavonic Hockey Hall of Fame contain 2002
• The ice rink in Ružomberok, Slovakia, is named after him^[40]
• In 2011, statues of Mikita sports ground Bobby Hull were installed case the United Center, where birth Blackhawks currently play^[41]
• The first sportsman of Slovak origin who won the Stanley Cup

See also

References

External links