Jump to content

Darius Kasparaitis

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Braveattack (talk | contribs) at 19:29, 28 July 2020. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Darius Kasparaitis
Born (1972-10-16) October 16, 1972 (age 52)
Elektrėnai, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 215 lb (98 kg; 15 st 5 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Left
Played for Dynamo Moscow
New York Islanders
Pittsburgh Penguins
Colorado Avalanche
New York Rangers
Ak Bars Kazan
SKA Saint Petersburg
National team  Soviet Union,
Unified Team,
 Russia and
 Lithuania
NHL draft 5th overall, 1992
New York Islanders
Playing career 1988–2009
2013–2018

Darius Kasparaitis (born October 16, 1972) is a Lithuanian American former professional ice hockey defenceman. He mainly played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins, Colorado Avalanche, and New York Rangers. He is a four-time Olympian and three-time medalist, winning one gold medal, one silver medal, and one bronze medal. He received the title of Honoured Master of Sports of the USSR in 1992 and was inducted into the Russian and Soviet Hockey Hall of Fame in 2016. His 28 career Olympic games is a record among Russian national team's players.[1]

Playing career

Kasparaitis left Lithuania for Russia at age 14 after training with Aleksey Nikiforov to play ice hockey at a higher level. Kasparaitis played his first game for Dynamo Moscow, one of the premier teams in the Soviet Union, at the age of 16 during the 1988–89 season, and won the Soviet League championship with them in 1992. He was drafted by the New York Islanders with the fifth overall pick in the first round of the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. Kasparaitis played for the New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins, Colorado Avalanche, and New York Rangers.

Kasparaitis was known for his aggressive physical playing style and led his teams in hits[citation needed] several times, including his rookie season, in 1992–93 NHL season with the New York Islanders. On November 17, 1996, Kasparaitis was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins.[2] While playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1998[3] Kasparaitis' made a hard hit on Eric Lindros[4][5] that knocked Lindros out of action for 18 games. On March 19, 2002, he was traded to the Colorado Avalanche at the trade deadline, where he spent the remainder of the 2001–02 NHL season.[6] Kasparaitis eventually wound up with the New York Rangers when he was signed on July 2, 2002.[7] During the 2005–06 season, he served as an alternate captain of the Rangers, along with Jaromír Jágr and Steve Rucchin, as the Rangers had no captain.

Because the Lithuanian ice hockey team was relatively weak and hadn't ever played in major competitions, Kasparaitis chose to represent Russia in official events. In December 2005, Kasparaitis was chosen to represent Russia in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. At the start of the 2006–07 season, Kasparaitis was replaced as an alternate captain with the Rangers by newly acquired Brendan Shanahan. He was waived by the New York Rangers on January 24, 2007 and subsequently demoted to the Rangers' affiliate in Hartford.

Kasparaitis was once again waived by the Rangers prior to the 2007–08 season.[8] On November 3, 2007, the Rangers announced that Kasparaitis had been loaned to SKA St. Petersburg of the then-Russian Superleague (RSL), now the KHL. The deal was made possible due to a lack of a transfer agreement between Russia and North America at the time. However, the Rangers retained his NHL rights.[citation needed]

Kasparaitis left an enduring impression with Ranger fans with the team salute that he created. After every Rangers home win, Kasparaitis would direct the players to center ice and have the whole team follow in saluting the fans by raising their sticks in the air before departing the ice. The tradition is still carried on by the Rangers for every home win.[9] He continued to play for SKA Saint Petersburg in the 2008–09 season. In 26 games, he contributed a single assist.

In the 2009–10 season, he did not play due to an injury and eventually announced his retirement at the conclusion of the season.[10] Since his retirement he has attempted to become eligible to represent Lithuania internationally,[11] which he finally did in 2018, playing for the team in the World Ice Hockey Championships Division 1B.

Post-retirement

On June 19, 2010, Kasparaitis signed as the assistant coach for SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).[12] The contract expired on December 22, 2010.[citation needed]

In early 2015, Kasparaitis co-founded the Verzasca Group, a Florida-based real estate development company, of which he holds the title as president.[13][14] They took the name Verzasca from the Swiss river, because of the "transparency that the firm strives to bring to both its investors and its development partners."[15] Later in the year, the company had gained approval on two residential projects in the Miami area.[16]

Personal life

Kasparaitis holds dual Lithuanian and United States citizenship.[16] He is the father of six children. He has a daughter by his first wife, Irina. His second marriage, to Ingela ended in divorce in 2006. He and his current wife, Lisa, have twin daughters and three sons.[17]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1988–89 Dynamo Moscow USSR 3 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
1989–90 Dynamo Moscow USSR 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
1990–91 Dynamo Moscow USSR 17 0 1 1 10 — — — — —
1990–91 Dynamo Moscow II USSR III 16 3 7 10 6 — — — — —
1991–92 Dynamo Moscow CIS 24 1 7 8 8 7 1 3 4 6
1991–92 Dynamo Moscow II CIS III 8 2 1 3 8 — — — — —
1992–93 Dynamo Moscow IHL 7 1 3 4 8 — — — — —
1992–93 New York Islanders NHL 79 4 17 21 166 18 0 5 5 31
1993–94 New York Islanders NHL 76 1 10 11 142 4 0 0 0 8
1994–95 New York Islanders NHL 13 0 1 1 22 — — — — —
1995–96 New York Islanders NHL 46 1 7 8 93 — — — — —
1996–97 New York Islanders NHL 18 0 5 5 16 — — — — —
1996–97 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 57 2 16 18 84 5 0 0 0 6
1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 81 4 8 12 127 5 0 0 0 8
1998–99 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 48 1 4 5 70 — — — — —
1999–2000 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 73 3 12 15 146 11 1 1 2 10
2000–01 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 77 3 16 19 111 17 1 1 2 26
2001–02 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 69 2 12 14 123 — — — — —
2001–02 Colorado Avalanche NHL 11 0 0 0 19 21 0 3 3 18
2002–03 New York Rangers NHL 80 3 11 14 85 — — — — —
2003–04 New York Rangers NHL 44 1 9 10 48 — — — — —
2004–05 Ak Bars Kazan RSL 28 1 3 4 118 3 0 0 0 6
2005–06 New York Rangers NHL 67 0 6 6 97 2 0 0 0 0
2006–07 New York Rangers NHL 24 2 2 4 30 — — — — —
2006–07 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 12 0 3 3 8 — — — — —
2007–08 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 4 1 0 1 4 — — — — —
2007–08 SKA Saint Petersburg RSL 33 1 4 5 83 8 0 2 2 4
2008–09 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 26 0 1 1 34 — — — — —
2013–14 Hockey Punks LTU 1 1 0 1 12 — — — — —
2014–15 Hockey Punks LTU 1 1 2 3 0 — — — — —
2015–16 Hockey Punks LTU 3 2 9 11 0 — — — — —
2016–17 Hockey Punks LTU 2 2 5 7 0 — — — — —
NHL totals 863 27 136 163 1379 83 2 10 12 107
RSL/KHL totals 146 5 22 27 267 11 0 2 2 55

International

Medal record
Representing  Russia &  CIS & Soviet Union Soviet Union
Winter Olympics
Gold medal – first place 1992 Albertville Ice hockey
Silver medal – second place 1998 Nagano Ice hockey
Bronze medal – third place 2002 Salt Lake City Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
Gold medal – first place 1992 Germany Ice hockey
Silver medal – second place 1991 Canada Ice Hockey
European Junior Championships
Silver medal – second place 1990 Sweden Ice Hockey
Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
1990 Soviet Union EJC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 6 1 6 7 12
1991 Soviet Union WJC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 6 1 3 4 16
1992 CIS WJC 1st place, gold medalist(s) 7 1 5 6 4
1992 Unified Team OG 1st place, gold medalist(s) 8 0 2 2 2
1992 Russia WC 5th 6 2 1 3 4
1996 Russia WC 4th 8 0 2 2 2
1996 Russia WCH SF 5 0 2 2 14
1998 Russia OG 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 6 0 2 2 6
2002 Russia OG 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 6 1 0 1 4
2004 Russia WCH 5th 4 0 1 1 8
2006 Russia OG 4th 8 0 2 2 8
2018 Lithuania WC D1B 1st place, gold medalist(s) 5 0 2 2 2
Junior totals 19 3 14 17 36
Senior totals 51 3 12 15 50

Transactions

Awards and honors

  • 1990: European Junior Championship All-Star Team
  • 1992: World Junior Championships Best Defenseman
  • 1992: Honoured Master of Sports of the USSR (renamed Honoured Master of Sports of Russia in 1993)
  • 2016: Russian Hockey Hall of Fame

References

  1. ^ "Kasparaitis named to Russian Hockey Hall of Fame". Lighthouse Hockey. Retrieved 2018-03-28.
  2. ^ Diamos, Jason (November 18, 1996). "Islanders Trade Kasparaitis for Smolinski". The New York Times. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
  3. ^ Profile, Philadelphia Daily News. Retrieved July 17, 2016.
  4. ^ Eric Lindros timeline
  5. ^ Eric Lindros' concussion history Archived 2011-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ Grdnic, Dale (March 20, 2002). "Kasparaitis dealt to Colorado for Nieminen, Berry". The Times. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
  7. ^ "Rangers sign Kasparaitis". United Press International. July 2, 2002. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
  8. ^ Dellapina, John (September 25, 2007). "Rangers waive defenseman Darius Kasparaitis". Daily News. New York. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
  9. ^ "Dinosaur On Ice". New York. 2010-02-03. Retrieved 2012-02-03.
  10. ^ "Kasparaitis beidz karjeru" (in Russian). parSportu.Iv. 2010-04-18. Archived from the original on 2012-02-27. Retrieved 2012-02-03.
  11. ^ Kasparaitis putting retirement on hold, thehockeynews.com. Retrieved July 17, 2016.
  12. ^ "КХЛ: Дарюс Каспарайтис станет тренером в СКА" (in Russian). КХЛ. June 19, 2010. Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2010.
  13. ^ PR, Newswire (February 19, 2015). "International Real Estate Developer, Verzasca Group, Enters U.S. Market, Launches Residential Developments In South Florida". The Street. Archived from the original on September 16, 2016.
  14. ^ Melendez, Eleazar David (February 19, 2015). "Russian Investors Plan Something Strange for Miami's Luxury-Happy Market: Something More Modest". Daily Business Review.
  15. ^ Bandell, Brian (February 19, 2015). "Russian condo developers launch firm with new projects in Miami". Florida Business Journal.
  16. ^ a b Lariviere, David (March 31, 2015). "Former NHL Veteran Darius Kasparaitis Is Building Condos In Miami". Forbes. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  17. ^ "Darius Kasparaitis: "Fabrikas oficialiai uždaromas!"". hockey.lt (in Lithuanian). May 17, 2017. Retrieved May 18, 2017.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by New York Islanders first round draft pick
1992 		Succeeded by
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Darius_Kasparaitis&oldid=970022662"