Dominik Hasek

At 59 years old, Dominik Hasek has this physical status:

Dominik Haek (born January 29, 1965) is a Czech former ice hockey goaltender.

He appeared for the Chicago Blackhawks, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, and Ottawa Senators in his 16-season National Hockey League (NHL) career.

He made a name out of the league's best goaltenders during his time in Buffalo, earning him the nickname "The Dominator."

His good play has been credited with the establishment of European goaltenders in a sport that was previously dominated by North Americans.

He is a two-time Stanley Cup champion, with both the Red Wings. Haek was one of the league's most popular goaltenders of the 1990s and early 2000s.

He received six Vezina Trophies from 1993 to 2001, the most under the award's new system of voting for the best individual goalie.

Early life

As he explains:

Haek joined the Czechoslovak Extraliga, the country's top hockey league, with his hometown team, HC Pardubice, in 1980. At the age of 16, he was the first hockey player to play at a professional level. In 1987 and 1989, he helped win two league titles. He was conscripted in the Czechoslovak Army and played for an army squad called Dukla Jihlava this year. Haek made his name by playing for the Czechoslovak national team and was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 1983. At the time, NHL clubs were wary of drafting players from behind the Iron Curtain, who were often forbidden from participating in NHL by their countries. As a result, Haek was chosen in the 10th round (199th overall) and was the seventeenth goalie selected. Haek didn't know he was not even drafted until several months later.

Hasek competed for the Czechoslovakia team in 1988 Winter Olympics, where the team earned a sixth place finish.

Haek played in his native Czechoslovakia for HC Pardubice and Dukla Jihlava from 1990 to 1990. In 1987, 1989, 1990, and 1990, he earned the Golden Hockey Stick, which was awarded to the Extraliga's most valuable player. For four years, he was named Extraliga's Goaltender of the Year for four years, from 1986 to 1990. He began his American career with the Indianapolis Ice of the International Hockey League (IHL), where he appeared in two seasons. His NHL debut with the Blackhawks came in 1990-91, seven years after the 1983 NHL Entry Draft was released.

Personal life

Michael, Haek's son, and his ex-girlfriend Alena have a son named Michael (born 1990) and Dominika (born 1994). Dominika is the lead singer of We Are Domi, a Czech pop band that represented the Czech Republic in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, finishing in 22nd place. After 23 years of marriage, Haek announced his divorce in November 2012. He divides his free time between squash and inline hockey, where he defends himself. Haek played competitive football as a midfielder and was a junior tennis champion in Eastern Bohemia when he was younger. Martin is also a sport athlete and played for the Czech Republic football team AC Sparta Prague before retiring and then opting to coach. Cousin Ivan Haek played professionally and was captain of the Czechoslovakia national football team in the 1990 FIFA World Cup. Haek says he has been a fan of professional wrestling since his days in Buffalo, and he mostly follows his favorite wrestlers, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Don "The Rock" Muraco.

Haek stands out among Czech sportsmen due to his formal education. He obtained a bachelor degree after studying history and the Czech language in the Faculty of Education at the University of Hradec Králové, which qualified him to teach high school classes. Dominator Clothing, a Haek brand of sportswear, was also launched shortly after the Nagano Olympics in 1998. For a brief time, there were also two locations in Michigan. Despite this, profits were poor, and the Dominator brand was forced out of operation in 2008. Haek's Heroes, a youth hockey team in Buffalo, was established in May 2001 and has raised over $1 million to help underprivileged children in Buffalo play hockey. In 1998, he arranged a charity hockey game in Prague and donated the funds to hospitals in the Czech Republic.

Haek was known to appreciate humor in order to keep team spirits up, and he joked about his resemblance to Cosmo Kramer of Seinfeld. He was in a MasterCard commercial in the late 1990s that praised his adaptability. On November 26, 2006, Mark Parisi's comedy panel off the mark included a comic about Haek's childhood.

Haek was a client of agent Ritch Winter throughout his long career.

Haek was charged with assaulting another player during an inline hockey game on May 18, 2003. When he crossedchecked Martin 'la, he was playing as a defender for Bonfire St.da. Lenka Strnadová, the prosecutor, ruled two months later that there were no signs that Haek intended bodily harm and that the lawsuit be treated as a misdemeanor punishable only by fine rather than a criminal in which jail time might have been a possibility. Lawyer Pavel Jelnek of Haek said in a tweet that media reports of the incident were exaggerated, with la not having sustained any confirmed injuries. Strnadová was not found unlawful by the country's top prosecutor in October 2003, who argued that the decision had not been properly investigated. The Pardubice prosecutor's office reopened the probe and reached the same conclusion as Strnadová.

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NHL career

Haek spent time with the Blackhawks as the back-up to Ed Belfour, and he played only 25 games in the IHL, splitting time between the Blackhawks and the Indianapolis Ice. Haek made his first NHL appearance against the Hartford Whalers on November 6, 1990 wearing the number 34 (31 was worn by backup goaltender Jacques Cloutier that year). He won by 5–3 over the Buffalo Sabres on March 8, 1991, and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 2–0 for their first shutout. Vladislav Tretiak, the team's goaltending coach, was selected in the 1983 draft but was forbidden from playing in the NHL by the Soviet Union. Haek was involved in game 4 of the 1992 Stanley Cup Finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins after Belfour allowed two goals on four shots in the first 6:33 and had 21 saves. Despite the fact that the Penguins won and clinched the Stanley Cup, Hak's success piqued the Sabres' interest, who had considered trading for him earlier this season.

Chicago has chosen Belfour and Jimmy Waite after their Stanley Cup finals appearance. Goalie Stéphane Beautésgard and future plans were traded to the Buffalo Sabres, which then developed into a draft pick used to buy Éric Dazé. He was the backup goaltender in Buffalo and his number 39 was on display, seconding Grant Fuhr. Haek was promoted to starter early in the 1993–94 season and quickly developed into a top-tier goaltender as a result. In 1994, he captured his first Vezina Trophy and presented the William M. Jennings Trophy with Fuhr, who was second runner-up for the Hart Memorial Trophy. Haek's average was 1.95 goals against average (GAA), seven shutouts, and a.930 save percentage. He continued his winning the Vezina Trophy again and then finishing as a Hart finalist in 1994–95.

The success of Haek in the 1996–97 season was overshadowed by a rivalry with then-head coach Ted Nolan. In the Sabres' clubhouse, the feud created a dramatic, clique-like atmosphere. Haek escaped in the second period of the first round series against the Ottawa Senators, and Steve Shields was brought on to help him. Haek's right MCL was sprain, and the team doctor pronounced him day after day. However, the media and a few colleagues speculated that Haek was using his injury to pull out on the team. Jim Kelley, a Buffalo News columnist who wrote a column that delved into Haek's injury and his rivalry with Nolan, was one of those who challenged the goaltender's mental toughness. As Kelley returned to Haek for an interview after losing in game five of the best-of-seven series, Haek assaulted the journalist and received a three-game suspension and a $10,000 (US) fine as a result of the incident. The Sabres fought back against the Senators and took the series in seven games, with Steve Shields in goal. However, Haek did not participate in the five-game loss against the Philadelphia Flyers in the following series.

Despite the fact that General Manager John Muckler was named "Executive of the Year" for his ongoing feuding with Nolan, he was suspended. In an interview with Muckler during the 1997 NHL Awards Ceremony, Haek said that the team would prosper from a swapping Nolan. Despite winning the Jack Adams Award as top coach and being well-known with the Sabres fan base, Nolan was only given a one-year deal extension by replacement GM Darcy Regier. He turned down this because it was too short, and decided to part ways with the company. Many followers were outraged when Nolan was blamed for Nolan's departure after Haek's alleged plot to rid him. He was booed so loudly in the first six weeks of the new season that arena employees would play tapes of a crowd cheering to help balance it out. The booing of Haek slowed as the season progressed, as he announced a record seven shutouts in December and continued to play at an elite level. He retained the Vezina Trophy again, as well as the Lester B. Pearson Award and the Hart Trophy for league MVP. Jacques Plante, Carey Price, Chuck Rayner, Al Rollins, José Théodore, and Roy Worters were among the few goaltenders in NHL history to win the Hart.

In the 1997–98 season, Haek played a career-high 72 games and set a franchise record of 13 shutouts. Six of these shutouts came in December, the first NHL record for most shutouts in a month. He received the Lester B. Pearson Award, the Hart Trophy, and the Vezina Trophy for the first time in NHL history, winning the Hart Trophy twice. Since winning the Pearson Award in 1998 to the Variety Club of Buffalo, he donated the $10,000 award. In the offseason, he signed a three-year, $26 million contract, securing the best goaltender salary contract at that time.

Haek averaged 1.87 GAA and.937 save percentage from 1998-99, his third straight Vezina and fifth overall. He was also a finalist for the Hart and Pearson trophies. Despite the fact that the Sabres did not have a good regular season and ended as the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference, they still defeated the Ottawa Senators, Boston Bruins, and Toronto Maple Leafs in the playoffs, advancing to the best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final against the Presidents' Trophy-winning Dallas Stars. With the decisive sixth game being one of the longest Stanley Cup playoff games in NHL history, the Sabres eventually lost the series four games to two. In a sudden-death triple-overtime duel between Haek and Ed Belfour, respectively, the only time the goal was decided was delayed until Brett Hull scored a controversial Cup-winning goal with his skate in the goal crease came to an end.

Since Hull's skate was not reviewed immediately, officials didn't notice him until minutes later. The Hull's position was still upheld despite video reviews, causing the Sabres to be furious. "Maybe [the video goal judge] was in the toilet," Haek said. It's likely he was asleep. Maybe he doesn't know the rule." Following the season, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced that video replays will no longer be used to determine whether players are in the crease or not, and that it would be a decision call by the officiating crew. Haek considered retirement after the season came, due to a combination of injuries and a desire to be more involved in his family life. Michael Peca and Jason Woolley, among his fellow colleagues, were enthralled with the news.

Haek's 1999-2000 season was marred by a persistent groin injury. For the first time in many years, he missed forty games and failed to win a major NHL award. Despite he recovered in time for the playoffs, the Sabres were disqualified in the first round of five games by the Flyers. In 2000–01, Hank's last season with Buffalo—he set a new age record by winning his sixth Vezina Trophy. He also won his second William M. Jennings Trophy. In the first round of the playoffs, the Sabres defeated Philadelphia, where Haek outplayed his 1998 Olympic back-up Roman echmánek. Haek's shutout against the Flyers came in a tense sixth game. The Sabres participated in a seven-game match against Mario Lemieux's Penguins in the second round, which culminated in the Penguins winning the final game in overtime.

Haek was recalled by the Detroit Red Wings in an attempt to lower the Sabres' payroll and move Haek to a more balanced team before the next season. He was shot and sold for Vyacheslav Kozlov, a first-round pick in the 2002 NHL Draft and Future considerations, which later became Jim Slater's draft pick. Haek won with just 15 losses during his rookie season with Detroit, leading the Red Wings to win the President's Trophy for the second time in the league. In the playoffs, he guided the Wings past the Vancouver Canucks, the St. Louis Blues, the Colorado Avalanche, and ultimately the Carolina Hurricanes to win the Stanley Cup. He was the first goalie to be credited with an assist on an overtime game-winning goal in the post-season after passing the ball to Wings captain Steve Yzerman, who then assisted Fredrik Olausson in scoring the final goal of the third game of the conference series. With six shutouts, he tied for the most shutouts in a post-season, a record that was beaten by Martin Brodeur with seven.

Haek announced his resignation in the summer so he could spend time with his family and other interests. However, after Detroit's first-round loss to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the following season, he's expressed his desire to play again. The Red Wings had two years to prepare for Curtis Joseph's three-year contract, which had a no-trade clause, which put them in a difficult situation. Knowing that the rival Avalanche would be looking for a goalie to replace Patrick Roy after his retirement, Detroit was also under pressure. Detroit now had three potential starting goalies with Manny Legace on the Wings.

After playing just 14 games in the 2003–2004 season, Haek hurt his groin. He and the team decided on January 9 that he would miss his injury for two to four weeks. Haek told general manager Ken Holland that he would not take any money unless he was wounded. He revealed on February 10 that he did not want to play this season, surprising the Red Wings' leadership. He eventually admitted that he would have refused to pay over $3 million of his $6 million salary. He underwent groin surgery in Prague in April 2004 and returned to Pardubice, Czech Republic, to recuperate.

Haek declared that he wanted to play for a Stanley Cup contender following his release from the Red Wings, and specifically named the Ottawa Senators as a possibility. The Senators signed Patrick Lalime to the St. Louis Blues on July 6, 2004, the first time the Senators had traded him to the St. Louis Blues.

Haek toured with the Primus Worldstars during the 2004-2005 NHL lockout. The Primus Worldstars Tour ran in seven countries, including Rome, Latvia; Moscow, St Petersburg, Russia; Bratislava, Switzerland; Bern, Switzerland; and Oslo, Norway; Katowice, Poland; and IMG formed during the 1994-1995 NHL lockout; The tour featured all-star squads or club teams from around the world.

Haek's reputation soared for the Senators from the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. He won 300 career games in his career, and his GAA and saving percentage were the second-best in the league during the season. Haek's equipment was mistakenly left behind in Ottawa upon its transfer to Turin. This led Haek to miss a number of practices with the Czech national team. While making a save in the first qualifying match against Germany, he hurt his right adductor muscle, causing him to leave the game after only 9 minutes and 25 seconds. Despite several rumors that Haek would return in time for the playoffs, he missed the remainder of the season and post-season. He said he would play for a base salary of $500,000 with bonuses if he were to be resigned.

Since the Senators were disqualified in the second round, they decided not to re-sign Haek.

Haek joined the Red Wings for the second time on July 31, 2006. He signed a one-year $750,000 US contract, as well as additional pay if the team made it to the playoffs. While leading the Red Wings to the number one seed in the Western Conference, he had 38 victories and a 2.05 GAA. He also broke his own personal record by going 181 minutes and 17 seconds without allowing a goal. The team announced midway through the regular season that he would not play on consecutive nights due to injury and save Haek for the playoffs. In games 5 and 6 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals, he played his first nights of the season. Both games were successful, clinching the series for Detroit. The Red Wings were on the road and down two games to one in the next round against the San Jose Sharks, but the Sharks were held to three goals in the next three games. His 28-save shutout in game six was his 13th in postseason play, and the Red Wings lost to the Anaheim Ducks in the Western Conference finals. However, the Red Wings and Havoc lost in six games to the Ducks, who then beat the Ottawa Senators for the Stanley Cup.

Haek considered retirement in the 2007 offseason, but the Red Wings' payroll chief, Chris Carter, signed a one-year deal worth $2 million with up to $2 million in bonuses on July 5, 2007, reportedly turning down $5 million for the remainder of the Red Wings' roster.

Haek was recalled by backup Chris Osgood, who had been waived by the Red Wings to make way for Haek before the 2001–02 season. Detroit decided to switch goaltenders in tandem rather than designating either as the backup or as the backup when Haek recovered and got back to his stride. Haek was due to begin in the 2008 playoffs, according to Detroit head coach Mike Babcock. The Red Wings were victorious in their first two games against the Nashville Predators, but they were also in goal for the remainder of the playoffs after a weak start in the first two games. Despite publicly expressing astonishment over his starting position, Haek continued his preparation and continued to support his teammates, with Darren McCarty quoting Haek and Osgood's close friendship. The Red Wings won the Stanley Cup after defeating the Penguins in six games.

Haek, a hockey player who won his second Stanley Cup with the Red Wings on June 9, 2008, said he lacked energy for another year in the NHL. With Osgood, the two were named the William M. Jennings Trophy for the fewest goals against on a team this season.

Career statistics

Bolded numbers indicate season leader

The tournament's leader is expected to appear in a Bolded format, according to Bolded numbers.

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