Michael Raffl

Michael Raffl
Raffl with Leksands IF in 2011
Born	(1988-12-01) 1 December 1988 (age 35) Villach, Austria
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position	Left wing
Shoots	Left
NL team Former teams	Lausanne HC EC VSV Philadelphia Flyers Washington Capitals Dallas Stars
National team	Austria
NHL Draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2006–present

Michael Raffl (born 1 December 1988) is an Austrian professional ice hockey left winger currently with Lausanne HC of the Swiss National League (NL). He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals and Dallas Stars, as well as EC VSV in the Austrian ICE Hockey League (IceHL).

Early life

Raffl was born on 1 December 1988 in Villach, Austria, to a hockey-playing family. ^[1] His father Peter played with the Villacher SV (EC VSV) for 22 years, and served as head coach of the town's under-20 ice hockey team. Raffl and his older brother Thomas spent most of their childhood in the Villacher Stadthalle arena. Raffl said that it was "pretty popular to play hockey" in Villach, "but it wasn't professional", and it was difficult for players to head overseas and play in the National Hockey League (NHL). ^[2] Growing up, he was close friends with future NHL player Michael Grabner, who lived "a two-minute walk" away from the Raffls. ^[3]

Playing career

As a youth, Raffl played in the 2002 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Austria. ^[4]

NHL

Philadelphia Flyers

On 31 May 2013 Raffl signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers. ^[5] He began the 2013–14 season with the Flyers AHL affiliate, the Adirondack Phantoms. ^[6] He was recalled to the NHL on 12 October, ^[7] and he scored his first career NHL goal on 9 December 2013, against Craig Anderson of the Ottawa Senators. ^[8]

Raffl signed a two-year contract extension with the Flyers worth $2.2 million on 22 March 2014. ^[9] Through the second year of his contract with the Flyers in the 2015–16 season, Raffl was signed remain with the organization in agreeing to a three-year deal on February 29, 2016. ^[10]

Raffl's 2016–17 season was riddled with injuries and he only appeared in a career-low 52 games that season. In October 2016, Raffl was placed on injured reserve to recover from an upper-body injury. ^[11] In March 2017, Raffl was injured in a game against the Colorado Avalanche and was set to be out for 6–8 weeks. ^[12]

Raffl signed a two-year contract extension with the Flyers on March 26, 2019. ^[13]

On 3 December 2019, Raffl suffered a broken finger in a 6–1 game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was ruled out for approximately four weeks. ^{[14] [15]}

On November 28, 2020, Raffl was loaned by the Flyers to Villacher SV in the ICE Hockey League until the commencement of the delayed 2020–21 North American season. ^[16] He played four games there before he was recalled to the Flyers.

Washington Capitals

At the NHL trade deadline on April 12, 2021, the Flyers traded Raffl to the Washington Capitals in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick. ^[17] His debut with the team was delayed after suffering an upper-body injury with the Flyers, and he began practicing with the team on April 21. ^[18] Raffl made his team debut the following day, replacing Daniel Sprong in a 1–0 shootout victory against the New York Islanders. ^[19]

Dallas Stars

On July 29, 2021, the Dallas Stars signed Raffl to a one-year, $1.1 million contract. ^[20] In the 2021–22 season, Raffl established himself within the Stars checking-line, making 76 regular season appearance in collecting 7 goals and 16 points. He added 2 goals and 3 points in the playoffs, exiting in a game 7 defeat to the Calgary Flames in the first-round.

Return to Europe

Unable to agree on a contract extension with the Stars, Raffl left as a free agent and returned to Europe in agreeing to a two-year contract with Swiss club, Lausanne HC of the NL on 4 August 2022. ^[21]

International play

Raffl participated at the 2009 and 2011 IIHF World Championship as a member of the Austria men's national ice hockey team, and was also named to team Austria for the 2014 Winter Olympics. ^[22]

Personal life

Raffl's father, Peter, is a former player who spent the entirety of his career in Austria. His brother Thomas currently plays for EC Red Bull Salzburg of EBEL. Raffl is close friends with Flyers' teammate Scott Laughton and assisted Laughton with his proposal to fiancée Chloe. ^[23]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2004–05	EC VSV	AUT U20		12	5	5	10	4		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	EC VSV	AUT U20		26	11	27	38	91		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	EC VSV	EBEL		5	0	0	0	0		3	0	0	0	0
2006–07	EC VSV	AUT U20		21	23	24	47	82		—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	EC VSV	EBEL		43	4	2	6	22		4	0	0	0	0
2007–08	EC VSV	AUT U20		6	5	7	12	28		4	6	6	12	10
2007–08	EC VSV	EBEL		40	3	6	9	24		5	2	0	2	0
2008–09	EC VSV	EBEL		49	9	10	19	77		6	0	2	2	12
2009–10	EC VSV	EBEL		42	25	18	43	54		5	1	0	1	14
2010–11	EC VSV	EBEL		50	26	29	55	62		8	5	4	9	20
2011–12	Leksands IF	Allsv		39	10	13	23	26		6	0	1	1	0
2012–13	Leksands IF	Allsv		49	24	22	46	40		10	3	3	6	4
2013–14	Adirondack Phantoms	AHL		2	1	2	3	0		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		68	9	13	22	28		7	0	1	1	0
2014–15	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		67	21	7	28	34		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		82	13	18	31	30		6	1	0	1	2
2016–17	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		52	8	3	11	20		—	—	—	—	—
2017–18	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		76	13	9	22	28		6	0	1	1	2
2018–19	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		67	6	12	18	32		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		58	8	12	20	14		9	4	1	5	2
2020–21	EC VSV	ICEHL		4	1	2	3	6		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		34	3	5	8	26		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Washington Capitals	NHL		10	1	2	3	7		4	0	0	0	4
2021–22	Dallas Stars	NHL		76	7	9	16	16		7	2	1	3	19
2022–23	Lausanne HC	NL		25	8	6	14	14		—	—	—	—	—
EBEL totals				233	68	67	135	245		31	8	6	14	48
NHL totals				590	89	90	179	235		39	7	4	11	29

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2006	Austria	U18 D1	19th		5	0	1	1	8
2007	Austria	WJC D1	15th		5	1	2	3	8
2008	Austria	WJC D1	12th		5	5	8	13	0
2009	Austria	OGQ	DNQ		3	0	1	1	2
2009	Austria	WC	14th		2	0	0	0	0
2011	Austria	WC	15th		3	0	1	1	0
2013	Austria	OGQ	Q		3	1	1	2	2
2013	Austria	WC	15th		7	2	1	3	0
2014	Austria	OG	10th		4	1	2	3	4
2015	Austria	WC	15th		7	1	2	3	6
2016	Austria	OGQ	DNQ		3	0	1	1	2
2018	Austria	WC	14th		5	4	1	5	4
2019	Austria	WC	16th		6	4	0	4	4
Junior totals					15	6	11	17	16
Senior totals					43	13	10	23	24

References

1. Malinowski, Mark (25 October 2015). "Getting To Know: Michael Raffl". The Hockey News . Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
2. Isaac, Dave (14 October 2013). "Flyers' Michael Raffl does family proud". Delaware Online . Archived from the original on 30 May 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
3. Morgan, Craig (8 November 2018). "Sound of hockey music: Neighbors in Austria, Raffl, Grabner proudly established in the NHL". The Athletic . Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
4. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
5. "FLYERS WIN RAFFL, ALSO ADD LAMARCHE". Philadelphia Flyers.com. 31 May 2013. Archived from the original on 7 June 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
6. "Flyers loan Lauridsen, Raffl to Phantoms". NHL.com. 27 September 2013. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
7. "Flyers recall Tye McGinn, Michael Raffl". NHL.com. 12 October 2013. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
8. "Spezza scores shootout winner, lifts Sens past Flyers". cbssports.com. 9 December 2018. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
9. SanFilippo, Anthony (22 March 2014). "RAFFL SIGNS EXTENSION". Philadelphia Flyers. Archived from the original on 23 March 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
10. "Flyers sign Michael Raffl to multi-year extension". Philadelphia Flyers. 29 February 2016. Archived from the original on 4 January 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
11. Paone, Greg (25 October 2016). "Flyers recall Taylor Leier from Lehigh Valley; Michael Raffl placed on IR". nbcsports.com. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
12. "Michael Raffl of Flyers out 6–8 weeks". NHL.com. 1 March 2018. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
13. "Flyers re-sign LW Michael Raffl". Philadelphia Flyers. 26 March 2019. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
14. O'Connor, Charlie. "Raffl out a month with a broken pinkie. Only bad thing about tonight's game". Twitter. Archived from the original on 4 December 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
15. Flyers, Philadelphia. "Roster move: We have recalled Mikhail Vorobyev from the @LVPhantoms (AHL) and placed Michael Raffl on Long-Term Injury status". Twitter. Archived from the original on 4 December 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
16. Barkowitz, Ed (28 November 2020). "Flyers loan Michael Raffl to Austrian pro league team". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
17. Carchidi, Sam (12 April 2021). "Flyers sign Scott Laughton; trade Michael Raffl to Washington, send Erik Gustafsson to Montreal". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
18. Regan, J. J. (21 April 2021). "Raffl participates in first Caps practice, but debut remains uncertain". NBC Sports Washington . Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
19. Pell, Samantha (22 April 2021). "Capitals open critical series against the Islanders with a shootout victory". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on 30 May 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
20. "Stars sign forward Michael Raffl to one-year contract". National Hockey League. Dallas Stars Communications. 29 July 2021. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
21. "Michael Raffl joins Lausanne HC" (in French). Lausanne HC. 4 August 2022. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
22. Halford, Mike (31 December 2013). "Philly's Raffl named to Austrian Olympic team". NBC Sports. Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
23. Andrea Helfrich (8 April 2021). "EBH Episode 17: Chloe Negri". Everything but Hockey (Podcast). Archived from the original on 30 May 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2021.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  Hockey-Reference.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database