Mārtiņš Dzierkals
| Mārtiņš Dzierkals | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Mārtiņš Dzierkals, 2023 | |||
| Born | 4 April 1997 Riga, Latvia | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) | ||
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| ELH team Former teams | HC Plzeň Toronto Marlies Dinamo Riga Jukurit | ||
| National team |  Latvia | ||
| NHL draft | 68th overall, 2015 Toronto Maple Leafs | ||
| Playing career | 2014–present | ||
Mārtiņš Dzierkals (born 4 April 1997) is a Latvian professional ice hockey forward who plays for HC Škoda Plzeň in the Czech Extraliga (ELH).
Playing career
[edit]In the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, he was selected 68th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs.[1] After two seasons with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, he spent much of the 2017–18 season with the Orlando Solar Bears in the ECHL, before returning to Latvia to play for the Dinamo Riga of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).[2]
On trade deadline day of the 2019–20 NHL season, on 25 February 2020, the Maple Leafs traded Dzierkals rights away in a three-team trade to the Vegas Golden Knights via the Chicago Blackhawks, and gained a 5th-round pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.[3]
After spending the 2019–20 season with Jukurit in the Finnish Liiga, posting 7 goals and 15 points in 39 games, Dzierkals opted to return to his native Latvia by agreeing to a second tenure with Dinamo Riga with a one-year contract on 28 July 2020.[4]
International play
[edit]| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing Latvia | ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Championships | ||
 | 2023 Finland/Latvia | |
He represented Latvia at the 2017 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships[5] and the 2019 IIHF World Championship.[6]
He represented Latvia at the 2023 IIHF World Championship where he recorded two goals and three assists and won a bronze medal, Latvia's first ever IIHF World Championship medal.[7]
Career statistics
[edit]Regular season and playoffs
[edit]| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2012–13 | SK Sāga 18 | LAT U18 | 20 | 28 | 31 | 59 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | SK Sāga 18 | LAT U20 | 23 | 35 | 33 | 68 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Ogre/Sāga97 | LAT | 6 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | HK Rīga | MHL | 32 | 10 | 18 | 28 | 49 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2015–16 | Rouyn–Noranda Huskies | QMJHL | 59 | 24 | 43 | 67 | 42 | 20 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 12 | ||
| 2016–17 | Rouyn–Noranda Huskies | QMJHL | 47 | 21 | 28 | 49 | 44 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 2017–18 | Orlando Solar Bears | ECHL | 51 | 15 | 21 | 36 | 46 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 19 | ||
| 2017–18 | Toronto Marlies | AHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Dinamo Rīga | KHL | 42 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | HK Liepāja | LAT | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Jukurit | Liiga | 39 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Dinamo Rīga | KHL | 52 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | HC Škoda Plzeň | ELH | 49 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 34 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||
| KHL totals | 94 | 15 | 22 | 37 | 71 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| Liiga totals | 39 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
International
[edit]| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Latvia | U18 D1A | 11th | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 16 | |
| 2015 | Latvia | WJC D1A | 13th | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Latvia | U18 | 9th | 6 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 10 | |
| 2016 | Latvia | WJC D1A | 11th | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | |
| 2016 | Latvia | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2017 | Latvia | WJC | 10th | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | |
| 2019 | Latvia | WC | 10th | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2021 | Latvia | WC | 11th | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2021 | Latvia | OGQ | Q | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2022 | Latvia | OG | 11th | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2022 | Latvia | WC | 10th | 7 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 6 | |
| 2023 | Latvia | WC | 3rd | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 27 | |
| Junior totals | 27 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 44 | ||||
| Senior totals | 38 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 33 | ||||
References
[edit]- ^ "Toronto Maple Leafs select Martins Dzierkals 68th overall in 2015 NHL Draft". mapleleafshotstove.com. 27 June 2015.
- ^ Johnston, Mike (2018-08-22). "Martins Dzierkals signs in KHL after asking Maple Leafs for trade". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- ^ "Lehner traded to Golden Knights, Blackhawks get Subban". NHL.com. 2020-02-25. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- ^ "Martins Dzierkals will play in Dinamo" (in Latvian). Dinamo Riga. 28 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ Koshan, Terry (2016-12-27). "Latvia's blowout loss doesn't get Dzierkals down". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- ^ "Nosaukts Latvijas nacionālās hokeja izlases sastāvs pēdējām pārbaudes spēlēm ar Šveici". lhf.lv. 30 April 2019.
- ^ "Latvia wins historic bronze in OT". IIHF.com. 28 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
External links
[edit]- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- Mārtiņš Dzierkals at Olympedia
- Mārtiņš Dzierkals at Olympics.com
- Mārtiņš Dzierkals at the Latvijas Olimpiskā komiteja (in Latvian) (English translation)
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