Miroslav Fryčer
Born (1959-09-27)27 September 1959
Opava, Czechoslovakia
Died 27 April 2021(2021-04-27) (aged 61)
Kobeřice, Czech Republic
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Right wing
Shot Left
Played for HC Vítkovice
Quebec Nordiques
Toronto Maple Leafs
Detroit Red Wings
Edmonton Oilers
EHC Freiburg
HC Brunico
National team  Czechoslovakia
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 1979–1991

Miroslav Fryčer (27 September 1959 – 27 April 2021) was a Czech ice hockey forward who played eight seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Quebec Nordiques, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, and Edmonton Oilers from 1981 to 1989. After retiring, he served as head coach of Orli Znojmo in the Austrian-based Erste Bank Hockey League. He was often referred to by his nicknames of Mirko or Miro.[1]

Fryčer played hockey in Czechoslovakia until he defected in 1981. He was signed by the Quebec Nordiques and made his NHL debut that same year, before being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. He spent seven seasons with that organization, making one All-Star appearance in 1985 and leading the team in points one year later. After a public spat with head coach John Brophy, Fryčer was traded to the Detroit Red Wings at the end of the 1987–88 season. He was then dealt to the Edmonton Oilers in January 1989, before returning to Europe.

Early life

Fryčer was born in Opava, Czechoslovakia, on 27 September 1959. He played for Vitkovice from 1976 until 1981.[2][3] He defected to Canada via Bern, Switzerland, in 1981 when he was with the Czechoslovakian national team from the team hotel, together with his parents, his then-wife and their 10-month old daughter.[4][5] He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Quebec Nordiques before the 1981–82 season.[6]

Professional career

Nordiques and Maple Leafs (1981–1988)

Fryčer started his NHL career with the Quebec Nordiques in 1981. In his Colisée de Québec debut, he scored a hat-trick in a 6–4 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.[3] This, along with his 20 goals in 49 games, drew the interest of the Leafs.[3][4] Fryčer was subsequently traded to that franchise on 9 March 1982, for Wilf Paiement.[6] He played a key role in keeping the Leafs in contention for the playoffs that year, coming on as an extra attacker with less than a minute remaining and scoring the game-winning goal against the St. Louis Blues.[3][7] He finished his debut season with the second-most hat-tricks in the league with five.[6]

Fryčer hit 20 or more goals in his first three full NHL seasons (1982, 1983, and 1985).[6][4] He was named to his only All-Star Game in 1985,[6] and was the only player from the Leafs to be selected.[3] He went on to lead the franchise in points with 75 the following season.[4][8] He scored four of the Leafs' eleven goals in a 11–9 win over the Edmonton Oilers in January 1986.[8] This was the highest scoring game at the Maple Leaf Gardens.[4] The Leafs advanced to the Stanley Cup playoffs, where they eliminated the Chicago Blackhawks in an upset, before bowing out in the Division Finals to the Blues in seven games.[4][9] He finished third in the NHL in hat-tricks (3) that year.[6]

The Leafs brought in John Brophy in 1986 to replace Dan Maloney as head coach. Fryčer, who had hoped that the latter would stay on for an additional season, was stripped of the alternate captaincy and clashed publicly with Brophy over the next two seasons. Brophy attempted to goad Fryčer during one practice by slashing him on his surgically repaired knee, thus re-injuring it.[4] After a defeat at the New York Islanders, the pair engaged in a physical altercation that saw Fryčer grab Brophy by the throat.[1] At the conclusion of the 1987–88 season, in which the Leafs won only 21 games, both Fryčer and Börje Salming pointed the finger at Brophy for the team's dismal performance. Fryčer, requested to be traded,[1] contended that 90 percent of the players "despise working for the coach" and he vowed to never play under Brophy again.[10] About a month after the outburst, new Leafs general manager Gord Stellick confirmed that Fryčer would not be returning to the team the following year.[11] He was subsequently traded to the Detroit Red Wings on 10 June 1988 for Darren Veitch.[6]

Red Wings and Oilers (1988–1989)

During the first half of the 1988–89 season, Fryčer scored 7 goals and added 8 assists in 23 games for the Red Wings.[6] In his second game back at the Maple Leaf Gardens in December 1988, he scored two goals in an 8–2 win for his new team.[3] Fryčer celebrated by flashing the middle finger at Brophy while skating past the Leafs bench.[1] He stated after the game that he hoped to get Brophy fired, adding that "he deserves it";[12] and Brophy was indeed dismissed as head coach that same month.[13] Fryčer was traded mid-season to the Edmonton Oilers on 3 January 1989. He played 14 games for the franchise (contributing 5 goals and 5 assists),[6] before opting to play in Europe during the 1990 Stanley Cup playoffs. He consequently missed out being part of the Oilers' Stanley Cup-winning team that year.[4] He went on to play two seasons in Freiburg for EHC Freiburg and a season with HC Brunico, playing in Italian Serie A and in Alpenliga.[14]

International

Fryčer played for the Czechoslovak national team at the 1980 Winter Olympics. He finished the tournament with one goal and two assists and the team placed fifth overall.[15]

Post-playing career

After retiring from professional hockey, Fryčer served as head coach of HC Vítkovice, and coached in the Czech Republic and in Italy.[14][3] He was later the coach of Czech-based ice hockey team Orli Znojmo for the 2018-19 and 2019–20 seasons.[16][17]

Personal life

Fryčer was married three times. His first two marriages ended in divorce.[1]

Fryčer was sentenced to 14 days' imprisonment in 1986, after being convicted for a second time of impaired driving.[18] He later released an autobiography in 2018 titled My Wild Hockey Life, which detailed his defection and his struggle with health problems partly brought on by alcohol abuse early in his career.[16] He underwent a liver transplant in 1999, and a kidney transplant in 2018.[1]

Fryčer died on 27 April 2021 in his hometown of Kobeřice, Czech Republic. He was 61, and had reportedly been hospitalized for a blood disorder.[17]

Career statistics

Sources: [6][14]

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1977–78 TJ Vítkovice CSSR 3412102224 —————
1978–79 TJ Vítkovice CSSR 44221234— —————
1979–80 TJ Vítkovice CSSR 4431154678 —————
1980–81 TJ Vítkovice CSSR 3433245726 —————
1981–82 Quebec Nordiques NHL 4920173747 —————
1981–82 Fredericton Express AHL 11951416 —————
1981–82 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 10461031 —————
1982–83 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 6725305590 42570
1983–84 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 4710162655 —————
1984–85 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 6525305555 —————
1985–86 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 7332437574 1013410
1986–87 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 29781528 —————
1987–88 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 3812203241 30006
1988–89 Detroit Red Wings NHL 23781547 —————
1988–89 Edmonton Oilers NHL 14551018 —————
1989–90 EHC Freiburg GER 114131719 —————
1990–91 EHC Freiburg GER 3318234148 —————
1991–92 EV MAK Bruneck ITA 1719153416 602212
1991–92 EV MAK Bruneck AL 189243321 —————
1992–93 ESV Königsbrunn GER-3 ————— —————
NHL totals 415147183330486 17381116

International

Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
1977 Czechoslovakia EJC 6 2 5 7 12
1978 Czechoslovakia WJC 6 2 1 3 2
1979 Czechoslovakia WC 1 0 0 0 2
1979 Czechoslovakia WJC 6 1 0 1 8
1980 Czechoslovakia OG 6 1 2 3 7
1981 Czechoslovakia WC 8 1 2 3 0
Junior totals 18 5 6 11 22
Senior totals 15 2 4 6 9

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Feschuk, Dave (27 October 2018). "Former Maple Leaf Miroslav Frycer just happy to be alive". Toronto Star. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  2. ↑ "Zemřel Miroslav Fryčer, bouřlivák, mistr, legenda" (in Czech). HC Vítkovice. 27 April 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nelson, Andrea (7 October 2012). "Dual Citizenship: Miroslav Frycer". Detroit Red Wings. Archived from the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Hornby, Lance (27 October 2018). "Two transplants and the wild hockey life of Miroslav Frycer". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  5. ↑ "Former Leaf Miroslav Frycer's wild life ends 'too soon' at 61". torontosun. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Miroslav Frycer Stats". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  7. ↑ "March 24, 1982 St. Louis Blues at Toronto Maple Leafs Box Score". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. 24 March 1982. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  8. 1 2 Zwolinski, Mark (27 April 2021). "Miroslav Frycer's wild life included a defection and seven seasons in Toronto". Toronto Star. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  9. ↑ "1985–86 Toronto Maple Leafs Schedule and Results". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  10. ↑ "Leafs Blame Coach". The New York Times. Associated Press. 17 April 1988. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  11. ↑ Kiley, Mike (2 May 1988). "Maple Leafs' GM Won't Kid Around". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  12. ↑ "This Manifesto Takes Aim at His Old Coach". Los Angeles Times. 18 December 1988. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  13. ↑ "John Brophy has been fired as coach". Los Angeles Times. 20 December 1988. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  14. 1 2 3 "Miroslav Frycer Hockey Stats and Profile". HockeyDB. The Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  15. ↑ "1980 Czechoslovakia Men's Olympic Hockey". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  16. 1 2 "Former Maple Leaf Frycer dead at 61". The Sports Network. 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  17. 1 2 Hornby, Lance (27 April 2021). "Former Maple Leaf Miroslav Frycer dies at 61". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  18. ↑ Duhatschek, Eric (18 December 2003). "Drinking, driving in hockey: some traditions die hard". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
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