Martin Erat

Martin Erat
Born (1981-08-28) August 28, 1981
Třebíč, Czechoslovakia
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 201 lb (91 kg; 14 st 5 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shoots Left
KHL team
Former teams		 Avangard Omsk
Nashville Predators
Washington Capitals
Arizona Coyotes
National team  Czech Republic
NHL Draft 191st overall, 1999
Nashville Predators
Playing career 1999–present

Martin Erat (Czech pronunciation: [ˈmarcɪn ˈɛrat]) (born August 28, 1981) is a Czech professional ice hockey player currently under contract to Avangard Omsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).

Playing career

Erat was selected in the seventh round, 191st overall, of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft by the Nashville Predators, the team's 12th choice in the draft

Erat made a splash in his NHL rookie year in 2001–02 as a member of the "vowel line," which consisted himself on left wing, Vladimír Országh on right wing and Denis Arkhipov at center. His first NHL point was a game-winning goal against the Calgary Flames on October 11, 2001. That year, he set a then Nashville rookie record for games played (80), assists (24) and points (33).

Erat, however, struggled during his sophomore season in 2002–03 and spent the majority of the season with the Predators' minor league affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals, in the American Hockey League (AHL). After changing his number from 19 to 10 in the off-season, his play improved in his third season, 2003–04. He notched career highs with goals (16), assists (33) and points (49), also ranking second on the team with a +10 plus-minus rating. Erat's first Stanley Cup playoff point was an assist in the 2004 Western Conference Quarterfinals in a 2–1 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on April 10, 2004.

Erat playing for the Predators in 2010

During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Erat played for HC Zlín of the Czech Extraliga, where he finished eighth in the league in scoring with 20 goals and 23 assists in 48 games.

In 2005–06, Erat scored a career-high 20 goals in his fourth season with the Predators, tallying 49 points. He also played for the Czech national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, where he helped the team secure a bronze medal.

During the 2006–07 season, Erat emerged as a legitimate first line player, tallying 57 points in 68 games. Most often, Erat teamed with Paul Kariya and David Legwand to form the team's top unit. Erat, however, missed the final five weeks of the season with a torn medial collateral ligament (MCL).

In 2007–08, Erat posted a new career-high of 23 goals and added 34 assists to once again reach the 57-point plateau. Following the 2007–08 season, he signed a seven-year, $31.5 million contract extension with the Predators. He has two career hat-tricks, the first against the Edmonton Oilers and the second against the Vancouver Canucks on December 8, 2009.

On April 3, 2013, the Predators traded Erat and Michael Latta to the Washington Capitals at the NHL trade deadline in exchange for prospect Filip Forsberg. Erat requested the trade away from Nashville and waived a no-trade clause in his contract to facilitate the deal.

On November 25, 2013, Erat requested a trade for the second time since being traded to the Capitals, just eight months prior. Erat first asked for a trade in October after being demoted to the team's fourth line. Erat's second request for a trade came after he was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career. Erat has stated he will waive his no trade clause, claiming it is "time to move on."[1]

On the eve of the 2013–14 NHL trade deadline, on March 4, Erat was dealt by Capitals, along with John Mitchell, to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for Chris Brown, Rostislav Klesla and a fourth-round pick in 2015.[2]

After 13 seasons and 881 regular season games in the NHL, Erat left North America as a free agent and signed a one-year contract with Russian club, Avangard Omsk of the KHL on September 17, 2015.[3]

International play

Medal record
Competitor for  Czech Republic
Winter Olympics
2006 Turin
World Championships
2006 Riga
2012 Helsinki
World Junior Championships
2001 Moscow

Erat played for the Czech national team at the World Junior Championships in 2001, helping the team win the gold medal. In 2006, he played for the bronze medal-winning Czech team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. That same year, Erat was also a member of the silver medal-winning team from the 2006 IIHF World Championship in Riga, Latvia.[4]

Erat was called up to replace Vladimír Sobotka on the Czech team for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Personal

Martin has an older brother, Roman, who currently plays for Kometa Brno in the Czech Extraliga.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1997–98 Zlín Jr CZE-Jr 33 26 26 52 11 — — — — —
1998–99 Zlín Jr CZE-Jr 35 21 23 44 11 — — — — —
1998–99 HC Zlín CZE 5 0 0 0 2 — — — — —
1999–00 Saskatoon Blades WHL 66 27 26 53 82 11 4 8 12 16
2000–01 Saskatoon Blades WHL 31 19 35 54 48 — — — — —
2000–01 Red Deer Rebels WHL 17 4 24 28 24 22 15 21 36 32
2001–02 Nashville Predators NHL 80 9 24 33 32 — — — — —
2002–03 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 45 10 22 32 41 6 5 4 9 4
2002–03 Nashville Predators NHL 27 1 7 8 14 — — — — —
2003–04 Nashville Predators NHL 76 16 33 49 38 6 0 1 1 6
2004–05 HC Zlín CZE 48 20 23 43 129 16 7 5 12 12
2005–06 Nashville Predators NHL 80 20 29 49 76 5 1 1 2 6
2006–07 Nashville Predators NHL 68 16 41 57 50 3 0 1 1 0
2007–08 Nashville Predators NHL 76 23 34 57 40 6 1 3 4 8
2008–09 Nashville Predators NHL 71 17 33 50 48 — — — — —
2009–10 Nashville Predators NHL 74 21 28 49 50 6 4 1 5 4
2010–11 Nashville Predators NHL 64 17 33 50 22 10 1 5 6 6
2011–12 Nashville Predators NHL 71 19 39 58 30 10 1 3 4 6
2012–13 Nashville Predators NHL 36 4 17 21 26 — — — — —
2012–13 Washington Capitals NHL 9 1 2 3 4 4 0 0 0 4
2013–14 Washington Capitals NHL 53 1 23 24 22 — — — — —
2013–14 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 17 2 3 5 6 — — — — —
2014–15 Arizona Coyotes NHL 79 9 23 32 48 — — — — —
2015–16 Avangard Omsk KHL 40 5 19 24 16 10 1 7 8 14
NHL totals 881 176 369 545 506 50 8 15 23 40

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
1999 Czech Republic WJC18 5th 6 0 2 2 12
2001 Czech Republic WJC 1st 7 2 1 3 16
2006 Czech Republic Oly 3rd 8 1 1 2 4
2006 Czech Republic WC 2nd 9 3 5 8 6
2008 Czech Republic WC 5th 6 2 4 6 10
2010 Czech Republic Oly 7th 5 0 1 1 0
2012 Czech Republic WC 3rd 5 3 1 4 2
2014 Czech Republic Oly 6th 5 1 0 1 0
Junior totals 13 2 3 5 28
Senior totals 38 10 12 22 22

Awards

References

  1. ↑ "Martin Erat asks Capitals to trade him". Washington Post. 2013-11-25. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
  2. ↑ "Caps trade disgruntled Erat to Coyotes for Klesla, Brown". The Sports Network. 2014-03-04. Retrieved 2014-03-04.
  3. ↑ "Erat strengthens Omsk" (in Russian). Kontinental Hockey League. 2015-09-17. Retrieved 2015-09-17.
  4. ↑ "Erat International Statistics" (in Czech). hokej.cz. 2012-03-04. Retrieved 2012-03-04.

External links

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