Milan Kraft

Last updated
Milan Kraft
Born (1980-01-17) January 17, 1980 (age 44)
Plzeň, Czechoslovakia
Height 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight 212 lb (96 kg; 15 st 2 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Right
Played for HC Plzeň
Pittsburgh Penguins
HC Karlovy Vary
Avangard Omsk
HC Slavia Praha
KLH Chomutov
National teamFlag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic
NHL draft 23rd overall, 1998
Pittsburgh Penguins
Playing career 1996–2013

Milan Kraft (born January 17, 1980) is a Czech former professional ice hockey centre. He was drafted in the first round, 23rd overall, by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft.

Contents

Starting his career as a youth with hometown team HC Plzeň (the club for which his father of the same name also played in the 1970s and 80s), [1] Kraft played initially with the Prince Albert Raiders in 1998 after moving to North America. He appeared in 207 games over four seasons with the Penguins, with his most successful season coming in 2003–04 when he scored 19 goals and recorded 21 assists (it was also the only campaign that did not involve him spending some time with the Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins).

This progress was halted by the 2004–05 NHL lockout, during which he returned to the Czech Republic to play for Plzeň and HC Energie Karlovy Vary. He also had a brief stint with Avangard Omsk of the Russian Super League before signing permanently with Karlovy Vary, remaining there until the end of the 2007–08 season and helping them reach the Extraliga finals that year only to be defeated by rivals HC Slavia Praha. He then moved to Slavia and quickly contributed to their winning the 2008–09 regular season Presidential Cup trophy – but they subsequently lost in the play-off finals to Karlovy Vary. Kraft spent the final four years of his career captaining KLH Chomutov (leading the team to promotion in 2012) until announcing his retirement at the conclusion of the 2012–13 season. [2]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
1995–96 HC ZKZ Plzeň CZE U1849544195——————
1996–97HC ZKZ PlzeňCZE U2036261743——————
1996–97 HC ZKZ Plzeň ELH 90112—————
1997–98HC Keramika PlzeňCZE U202422234512—————
1997–98 HC Keramika PlzeňELH16055010000
1998–99 Prince Albert Raiders WHL 684046863214713206
1999–00 Prince Albert RaidersWHL563435694264154
2000–01 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 427714880002
2000–01 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 402123442714127196
2001–02 Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL68881616—————
2001–02 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton PenguinsAHL844810—————
2002–03 Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL31751210—————
2002–03 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton PenguinsAHL401324372862464
2003–04 Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL6619214018—————
2004–05 HC Lasselsberger PlzeňELH172466—————
2004–05 HC Energie Karlovy Vary ELH359101920—————
2005–06 Avangard Omsk RSL 2825714—————
2005–06 HC Energie Karlovy VaryELH19751216—————
2006–07 HC Energie Karlovy VaryELH256392830008
2007–08 HC Energie Karlovy VaryELH298412371941563
2008–09 HC Slavia Praha ELH212462—————
2009–10 KLH Chomutov CZE–2 3815284336166131922
2010–11 KLH ChomutovCZE–2341423371013581312
2011–12 Piráti ChomutovCZE–250233356181949134
2012–13 Piráti ChomutovELH459112012—————
ELH totals2164347901232843777
NHL totals2074141825280002

International

YearTeamEvent GPGAPtsPIM
1998 Czech Republic EJC 65386
2000 Czech Republic WJC 757120
2004 Czech Republic WC 71122
Junior totals131010206

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References

  1. ↑ Milan Kraft [1955], EliteProspects.com
  2. ↑ "Pirates will have a new captain; Milan Kraft ends his career" (in Czech). KLH Chomutov. 2013-07-31. Retrieved 2013-07-31.
Preceded by Pittsburgh Penguins first round draft pick
1998 		Succeeded by
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