Martin Erat

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Martin Erat bigraphy, stories - Ice hockey player

Martin Erat : biography

August 28, 1981 –

Martin "Marty" Erat () (born August 28, 1981 in Třebíč, Moravia, Czech Republic) is a Czech professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing career

Erat was selected 191st overall, in the 7th round of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. He was selected as the 12th choice of the Nashville Predators.

Erat made a splash in his NHL rookie year (2001–2002) as a member of the "vowel line" which consisted himself on left wing, Vladimír Országh on right wing, and Denis Arkhipov at center. That year he set a Nashville rookie record for games played (80), assists (24), and points (33).

His first National Hockey League point was a game-winning goal against the Calgary Flames on October 11, 2001. His first NHL 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 struggled during his sophomore season (2002–03) and spent the majority of the season with the Predator’s minor league affiliate the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League. After changing his number from 19 to 10 in the offseason, his play improved however in his third season (2003–04). He had career highs with goals (16), assists (33), and points (49). He also ranked second on the team with a +10 rating.

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 Nashville Predators, while tallying 49 points. He also played for the Czech National Team at the Olympics in Turin, where he helped the team secure a bronze medal.

During the 2006–07 NHL season, Erat emerged as a legitimate first line player, tallying 57 points in only 68 games. Most often, Erat teamed with Paul Kariya and David Legwand to form the team’s top unit. Erat missed the final 5 weeks of the season with a torn MCL.

Once again playing for Nashville in 2007–08, Erat posted a career high 23 goals, and added 34 assists to once again reach the 57 point plateau.

Following the 2007–08 season, Erat signed a 7 year, $31.5 million dollar contract with the Predators. He has two career hat tricks, the first against the Edmonton Oilers, and the second versus the Vancouver Canucks on December 8, 2009. Martin has an older brother Roman Erat, who plays hockey in the Czech Extraliga.

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

Awards

  • Named the WHL Eastern Conference Player of the Month for November, 2000.
  • Named the WHL Player of the Week for November 13–19, 2000.
  • Named the NHL Third Star of the Week for November 12–18, 2007.
  • Named the NHL Second Star of the Week for March 12-18, 2012.

Records

  • Games played by a Nashville Predators rookie – 80
  • Assists by a Nashville Predators rookie – 24
  • Points by a Nashville Predators rookie – 33

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 29 30 59 129 10 4 3 7 4
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
NHL totals 732 164 320 484 430 50 8 15 23 40

International

Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
2001 Czech Republic WJC 7 2 1 3 16
2006 Czech Republic Oly 4 1 1 2 4
2006 Czech Republic WC 9 3 5 8 6
2008 Czech Republic WC 6 2 4 6 10
2010 Czech Republic Oly 5 0 1 1 0

International

Erat played for the Czech Republic national team at the World Junior Championships in 2001. He helped the team to win the gold medal. In 2006, Erat played for the bronze medal winning Czech national team at the Turin Olympics. In the same year, Erat was a member of the silver medal winning team from the IIHF World Championships in Riga, Latvia.