Miroslav Fryčer

Miroslav Fryčer (27 September 1959 - 27 April 2021) was a Czech ice hockey forward who played eight seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Quebec Nordiques, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, and Edmonton Oilers from 1981 to 1989. After retiring, he served as head coach of Orli Znojmo in the Austrian-based Erste Bank Hockey League. He was often referred to by his nicknames of Mirko or Miro.
Fryčer played hockey in Czechoslovakia until he defected in 1981. He was signed by the Quebec Nordiques and made his NHL debut that same year, before being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. He spent seven seasons with that organization, making one All-Star appearance in 1985 and leading the team in points one year later. After a public spat with head coach John Brophy, Fryčer was traded to the Detroit Red Wings at the end of the 1987–88 season. He was then dealt to the Edmonton Oilers in January 1989, before returning to Europe.
==Early life==
Fryčer was born in Ostrava, Czechoslovakia, on 27 September 1959. He played for Vitkovice from 1977 until 1981. He defected to Canada via Bern, Switzerland, in 1981 when he was with the Czechoslovakian national team from the team hotel, together with his parents, his then-wife and their 10-month old daughter. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Quebec Nordiques before the 1981–82 season.
==Professional career==
===Nordiques and Maple Leafs (1981–1988)===
Fryčer started his NHL career with the Quebec Nordiques in 1981. In his Colisée de Québec debut, he scored a hat-trick in a 6–4 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. This, along with his 20 goals in 49 games, drew the interest of the Leafs. Fryčer was subsequently traded to that franchise on 9 March 1982, for Wilf Paiement. He played a key role in keeping the Leafs in contention for the playoffs that year, coming on as an extra attacker with less than a minute remaining and scoring the game-winning goal against the St. Louis Blues. He finished his debut season with the second-most hat-tricks in the league with five.
Fryčer hit 20 or more goals in his first three full NHL seasons (1982, 1983, and 1985). He was named to his only All-Star Game in 1985, and was the only player from the Leafs to be selected. He went on to lead the franchise in points with 75 the following season. He scored four of the Leafs' eleven goals in a 11–9 win over the Edmonton Oilers in January 1986. This was the highest scoring game at the Maple Leaf Gardens. The Leafs advanced to the Stanley Cup playoffs, where they eliminated the Chicago Blackhawks in an upset, before bowing out in the Division Finals to the Blues in seven games. He finished third in the NHL in hat-tricks (3) that year.
The Leafs brought in John Brophy in 1986 to replace Dan Maloney as head coach. Fryčer, who had hoped that the latter would stay on for an additional season, was stripped of the alternate captaincy and clashed publicly with Brophy over the next two seasons. Brophy attempted to goad Fryčer during one practice by slashing him on his surgically repaired knee, thus re-injuring it. After a defeat at the New York Islanders, the pair engaged in a physical altercation that saw Fryčer grab Brophy by the throat. At the conclusion of the 1987–88 season, in which the Leafs won only 21 games, both Fryčer and Börje Salming pointed the finger at Brophy for the team's dismal performance. Fryčer, requested to be traded, contended that 90 percent of the players "despise working for the coach" and he vowed to never play under Brophy again. About a month after the outburst, new Leafs general manager Gord Stellick confirmed that Fryčer would not be returning to the team the following year. He was subsequently traded to the Detroit Red Wings on 10 June 1988 for Darren Veitch.
===Red Wings and Oilers (1988–1989)===
During the first half of the 1988–89 season, Fryčer scored 7 goals and added 8 assists in 23 games for the Red Wings. In his second game back at the Maple Leaf Gardens in December 1988, he scored two goals in an 8–2 win for his new team. Fryčer celebrated by flashing the middle finger at Brophy while skating past the Leafs bench. He stated after the game that he hoped to get Brophy fired, adding that "he deserves it"; and Brophy was indeed dismissed as head coach that same month. Fryčer was traded mid-season to the Edmonton Oilers on 3 January 1989. He played 14 games for the franchise (contributing 5 goals and 5 assists), before opting to play in Europe during the 1990 Stanley Cup playoffs. He consequently missed out being part of the Oilers' Stanley Cup-winning team that year. He went on to play two seasons in Freiburg for EHC Freiburg and a season with HC Brunico, playing in Italian Serie A and in Alpenliga.
===International===
Fryčer played for the Czechoslovak national team at the 1980 Winter Olympics. He finished the tournament with one goal and two assists and the team placed fifth overall.
==Post-playing career==
After retiring from professional hockey, Fryčer served as head coach of HC Vítkovice, and coached in the Czech Republic and in Italy. He was later the coach of Czech-based ice hockey team Orli Znojmo for the 2018-19 and 2019–20 seasons.
==Personal life==
Fryčer was married three times. His first two marriages ended in divorce.
Fryčer was sentenced to 14 days' imprisonment in 1986, after being convicted for a second time of impaired driving. He later released an autobiography in 2018 titled My Wild Hockey Life, which detailed his defection and his struggle with health problems partly brought on by alcohol abuse early in his career. He underwent a liver transplant in 1999, and a kidney transplant in 2018.
Fryčer died on 27 April 2021 in his hometown of Kobeřice, Czech Republic. He was 61, and had reportedly been hospitalized for a blood disorder.
==Career statistics==
Sources: 
===Regular season and playoffs===
 	 	 		Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season		Playoffs	Playoffs	Playoffs	Playoffs	Playoffs
Season 	Team 	League 		GP 	G 	A 	Pts 	PIM 		GP 	G 	A 	Pts 	PIM
1977–78 	TJ Vítkovice 	CSSR 		34 	12 	10 	22 	24 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1978–79 	TJ Vítkovice 	CSSR 		44 	22 	12 	34 	— 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1979–80 	TJ Vítkovice 	CSSR 		44 	31 	15 	46 	78 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1980–81 	TJ Vítkovice 	CSSR 		34 	33 	24 	57 	26 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1981–82 	Quebec Nordiques 	NHL 		49 	20 	17 	37 	47 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1981–82 	Fredericton Express	AHL 		11 	9 	5 	14 	16 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1981–82 	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL 		10 	4 	6 	10 	31 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1982–83 	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL 		67 	25 	30 	55 	90 		4 	2 	5 	7 	0
1983–84 	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL 		47 	10 	16 	26 	55 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1984–85 	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL 		65 	25 	30 	55 	55 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1985–86 	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL 		73 	32 	43 	75 	74 		10 	1 	3 	4 	10
1986–87 	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL 		29 	7 	8 	15 	28 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1987–88 	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL 		38 	12 	20 	32 	41 		3 	0 	0 	0 	6
1988–89 	Detroit Red Wings 	NHL 		23 	7 	8 	15 	47 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1988–89 	Edmonton Oilers 	NHL 		14 	5 	5 	10 	18 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1989–90 	EHC Freiburg 	GER 		11 	4 	13 	17 	19 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1990–91 	EHC Freiburg 	GER 		33 	18 	23 	41 	48 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1991–92 	EV MAK Bruneck 	ITA 		17 	19 	15 	34 	16 		6 	0 	2 	2 	12
1991–92 	EV MAK Bruneck 	AL 		18 	9 	24 	33 	21 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1992–93 	ESV Königsbrunn 	GER-3 		— 	— 	— 	— 	— 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
NHL totals	NHL totals 	NHL totals		415 	147 	183 	330 	486 		17 	3 	8 	11 	16
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
===International===
Year 	Team 	Event 	 	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1977 	Czechoslovakia	EJC 	 	6 	2	5	7 	12
1978 	Czechoslovakia	WJC 	 	6 	2	1	3 	2
1979 	Czechoslovakia	WC 	 	1 	0	0	0 	2
1979 	Czechoslovakia	WJC 	 	6 	1	0	1 	8
1980 	Czechoslovakia	OG 	 	6 	1	2	3 	7
1981 	Czechoslovakia	WC 	 	8 	1	2	3 	0
Junior totals	Junior totals 	Junior totals	 	18	5	6	11 	22
Senior totals	Senior totals 	Senior totals	 	15	2	4	6 	9
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
==References==
== External links ==
* 
Category:1959 births
Category:2021 deaths
Category:Czech ice hockey coaches
Category:Czech ice hockey right wingers
Category:Czechoslovak ice hockey right wingers
Category:HC Vítkovice players
Category:Detroit Red Wings players
Category:Edmonton Oilers players
Category:EHC Freiburg players
Category:Fredericton Express players
Category:Ice hockey players at the 1980 Winter Olympics
Category:National Hockey League All-Stars
Category:Olympic ice hockey players of Czechoslovakia
Category:Quebec Nordiques players
Category:Toronto Maple Leafs players
Category:Undrafted National Hockey League players