On July 1, 2011, he signed as a free agent with the Dallas Stars. On July 1, 2016, he signed as a free agent with the New Jersey Devils. On February 4, 2017, the New Jersey Devils traded him to the Nashville Predators in return for a fourth-round draft selection. He played two games for the Predators before being waived on February 7, 2017.
Vernon Fiddler is one of only six players who have won an Olympic gold medal as a player and a coach (the others are Bob Allen, Rod Brind'Amour, Pat Burns, Alain Vigneault, and Scott Stevens). The only other player to win both an Olympic gold medal as a player and as a coach is Leland Irving of Canada; he won silver at the 1968 Olympics before winning gold at the 1972 Games.
He has also been nominated for the Jack Adams Award which is given to the best coach in the NHL. If he wins this award, it will be his first career Coach of the Year Award nomination.
Fiddler was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the sixth round of the 1986 NHL Draft. He played four seasons with the University of Maine Black Bears before turning pro. In 1990-91, he led the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League (AHL) in scoring with 132 points (38G, 94A). That same season, he helped the Canadian national team win the gold medal at the World Championships.
On July 1, 2016, New Jersey signed him as a free agent. On February 23, 2019, New Jersey traded him to Dallas in exchange for Connor Carrick and Dallas' third-round selection in the 2019 NHL Draft. He made his debut with the Stars that night against the Vancouver Canucks.
Lovejoy first came into the league in 2008 as a rookie with the Boston Bruins. He played three seasons there before being bought out by Boston on May 24, 2011. The following day he signed with Hamburg Freezers of the German Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). In 2012, he helped the Freezers win the DEL Championship. Lovejoy stayed with Hamburg until 2014 when he moved to North America and joined the Chicago Blackhawks. He spent one season with Chicago before signing with New Jersey in 2015.
Lovejoy is known for his defensive play and penalty killing ability. He is a +20 player throughout his career.
He has won two Stanley Cups with the Boston Bruins in 2010 and 2013. Before joining the Bruins, Lovejoy played four seasons with the University of Maine Black Bears. During that time, he was nominated for the Hobey Baker Award after finishing second in voting for the National Collegiate Hockey Conference's top player.
Lovejoy was born on January 4, 1984 in Caribou, Maine.
On July 3, 2012, Dallas signed him as a free agent. Kladno (CzRep) signed him as a free agent on September 16, 2012. Dallas traded Lane MacDermid, Cody Payne, and Boston's first-round selection (Jason Dickinson) to Boston on April 2, 2013. The Bruins sent Dallas' second-round pick (56th overall) and a third-round pick either in 2014 or 2015 to Boston.
Jagr played only 10 games for Boston before being bought out of his contract on January 5, 2014. He returned to the NHL after an 11-year absence when he signed with Dallas on February 27, 2014.
He won the Stanley Cup in 1999 with the New Jersey Devils and in 2000 with the Czech Republic at the Winter Olympics. The following season, he became the first player to score 50 goals in a season when he scored 51 goals. He has also been named MVP of the NHL three times (2001-02, 2002-03, and 2003-04). Jagr currently plays center for the Dallas Stars. His wife is American and they have two children. Jagr was born in Czechoslovakia and is a dual citizen of the United States and the Czech Republic. He has represented the United States at the Winter Olympics and World Championships but remains loyal to the Czech national team.
Barrett Heisten was dealt by the New York Rangers to the Dallas Stars on March 12, 2002, in exchange for Roman Lyashenko and Martin Rucinsky. The Columbus Blue Jackets claimed him off waivers from the Dallas Stars on November 21, 2003. Ljubljana signed him as a free agent on October 8, 2004. (Slovenia).
The Stars acquired Manny Malhotra from the Vancouver Canucks for future considerations on July 1, 2005. Malhotra had 30 goals and 63 points in 82 games for Vancouver this past season. He'll provide some much-needed offense for a Stars team that finished last in the Western Conference this year.
Malhotra was born on January 4, 1976 in Montreal, Quebec. He's a Canadian right winger who plays for the Vancouver Canucks. He graduated from Bishop's High School in Sherwood Park, Alberta in 1995. Before turning pro, he attended McGill University where he played four seasons with the Redmen hockey team. In 1997-98, he led the team with 88 points while being named a first-team all-American. That same season, he helped lead his team to its first ever national championship when they defeated Denver 4-3 in overtime of the finals.
He was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche in the second round (38th overall) of the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. However, he never played for them due to an injury suffered during his final season at McGill.
Smith signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the Dallas Stars on March 25, 2012, foregoing his last year at Miami. He appeared in three games with the Stars to close off the 2011-12 season. Smith played for Dallas' American Hockey League (AHL) club, the Texas Stars, during the 2012-13 NHL lockout.
He was drafted by the Stars in the second round (39th overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft. Before turning pro, he spent four seasons with Miami (OH) University of Miami (UM). As a freshman, he helped UM win the NCAA National Championship. He scored 15 goals and added 20 assists for 35 points in 39 games as a freshman. As a sophomore, he led all college hockey players in scoring with 156 points (78 goals, 78 assists). He was named to the All-America team and All-Conference team after scoring 26 goals and adding 42 assists for 68 points in 38 games. As a junior, he finished third in the nation in scoring with 167 points (83 goals, 84 assists). He was selected to the All-America team again and won the Hobey Baker Award, given to the best player in college hockey. The Stars invited him to participate in their training camp before the start of the 2012-13 season.
Smith is the son of former NHL forward Dave "Tiger" Smith. He has two brothers, one older and one younger. The younger brother, Taylor, plays football for Ohio State University.
Copyright © 2020 - 2023 Sportsmanist Inc.
