Peter Zezel
Encyclopedia
Peter Zezel (April 22, 1965 — May 26, 2009) was a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 centre
Centre (ice hockey)
The centre in ice hockey is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play is the middle of the ice, away from the side boards. Centres have more flexibility in their positioning and are expected to cover more ice surface than any other player...

 who spent 15 seasons in the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 between 1984 and 1999. He was born and raised in Scarborough, Ontario
Scarborough, Ontario
Scarborough is a dissolved municipality within the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Geographically, it comprises the eastern part of Toronto. It is bordered on the south by Lake Ontario, on the west by Victoria Park Avenue, on the north by Steeles Avenue East, and on the east by the Rouge River...

.

Playing career

Zezel was selected 41st overall in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft
1983 NHL Entry Draft
The 1983 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec, on June 8, 1983. The NHL Entry Draft is the primary means by which players arrive in the National Hockey League. The St. Louis Blues did not participate in this draft, shortly after the league blocked the franchise's...

 by the Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

. While he joined the NHL as a skilled offensive player and put up high scoring numbers in his first 8 seasons, he spent the second half of his career primarily as a defensive specialist noted for his strong faceoff skills.

Zezel joined the Flyers' lineup in the 1984–85 at the age of 19 and made an instant impact, finishing 5th in rookie scoring with 61 points and setting a team record 46 assists by a rookie. He was part of an young Flyer team (with 8 regulars under the age of 22, and only Mark Howe
Mark Howe
Mark Steven Howe is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League and 6 seasons in the World Hockey Association . He is the son of Colleen and Gordie Howe, and early in his career was a teammate of his father...

 over the age of 27) which surprised the hockey world by reaching the Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...

 Final, where they were beaten out by the Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....

. The Flyers' head coach at the time was Mike Keenan
Mike Keenan
Michael Edward Keenan is a former head coach in the National Hockey League , most recently with the Calgary Flames, and former General Manager of the Florida Panthers. He is currently working as an analyst for the New York Rangers on MSG Network.Keenan was a player for the St...

, who became one of Zezel's biggest influences, and who would re-acquire Zezel several times later in their careers.

After a 54-point sophomore campaign, Zezel had his best year in 1986–87, registering career highs of 33 goals and 72 points (despite missing 9 games to injury) while continuing to impress with his mature all-around game. That spring, he would again help the Flyers to the Stanley Cup Finals, registering 13 points before the team was again bested by the Oilers.

The Flyers dealt Zezel to the St. Louis Blues midway through the 1988–89 in exchange for Mike Bullard. Zezel played some of the best hockey of his career for the Blues, finishing the season with a career high 49 assists and 70 points. In the playoffs that year, he led the Blues with 6 goals and 12 points in just 10 games. In 1989–90, he had another fine season, posting 25 goals and 72 points.

In 1990 St. Louis dealt him to the Washington Capitals
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...

 for Geoff Courtnall
Geoff Courtnall
Geoffrey Lawton Courtnall is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player in the National Hockey League from 1983 to 2000. He was the head coach of the Victoria Grizzlies of the BCHL as well as the University of Victoria Vikes of the BCIHL.Courtnall was born in Victoria, British Columbia,...

. His stay in Washington was brief, as he appeared in only 20 games before being dealt to his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

 in a deal for Al Iafrate
Al Iafrate
Albert Anthony Iafrate is a retired American professional ice hockey defenseman who played in the National Hockey League between 1984 and 1998. He is perhaps most famous for his rocket slap shot that set the NHL Skills Competition record, which stood for 16 years, at . The record was broken in...

. He finished the 1990–91 season with 40 points in 52 games due to injury. In 1991–92, he recorded 49 points in 64 games in another year hampered by injury.

The hiring of Pat Burns
Pat Burns
Patrick Burns was a National Hockey League head coach. Over 14 seasons between 1988 and 2004, he coached in 1,019 games with the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, and New Jersey Devils...

 as the Maple Leafs' head coach in 1992 represented a turning point in Zezel's career. While he had previously always been given a great deal of offensive responsibility, the defensive-minded Burns employed Zezel almost exclusively as a checking line center, and his numbers plummeted. Additionally, he continued to be plagued by injuries, missing half the 1993–94 season with an ongoing back problems that had bothered him for several years. However, when healthy he was still an effective player, and helped Toronto reach the Western Conference Finals in both 1993 and 1994, including a Game 1 overtime winner in the 1994 Western Finals.

In the summer of 1994, Zezel was awarded to the Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...

 as compensation for the Leafs' signing of free agent Mike Craig
Mike Craig
Michael Craig is a professional hockey player. He currently plays right wing for the EC VSV in the Austrian Hockey League...

. His one season in Dallas was a disappointment, as he was limited to just 30 games and 11 points by a knee injury. For 1995–96, he was signed by the St. Louis Blues and his old coach Mike Keenan.

Dealt to the New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey, United States. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

 in 1997, his career hit a low point in the 1997–98 campaign when he was sent to the minors for the first time in his career. He performed well in the AHL
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...

 with 50 points in 35 games for the Albany River Rats
Albany River Rats
The Albany River Rats were an ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Albany, New York at the Times Union Center.- Founding to 2010 :...

. Brought back from the minors by Keenan, who was coaching in Vancouver
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...

 at the time, Zezel scored a goal on his first shift as a Canuck. He was given a chance to contribute offensively alongside star winger Alexander Mogilny
Alexander Mogilny
Alexander Gennadevitch Mogilny is a former Russian professional ice hockey player, currently the team consultant of the KHL team Amur Khabarovsk. Mogilny was best known for his lightning quick speed and lethal wrist shot in his early years, which led to his career year of 76 goals in the 1992–93...

, and he responded with 17 points in 25 games.

Zezel's career ended abruptly at the trade deadline late in the 1998–99 season. Zezel's niece Jilliann was terminally ill with cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

 in Toronto and he requested a trade from the Canucks (who were far out of the playoff race) to an Eastern Conference team so he could be closer to his family in their time of need. Instead, Vancouver General Manager Brian Burke dealt him to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, the furthest stop from Toronto in the league. Zezel retired from the NHL and returned home, with Burke and Canucks' management receiving criticism from a media and public sympathetic to Zezel's situation and for the callous way they thought he was treated.

He finished his career playing 873 games, scoring 219 goals and 389 assists, with a total of 608 points.

Off-ice

Zezel was a top soccer player in his youth, and played for Canada's U-21 team as a teenager. During off seasons early in his career he continued to play competitively. Zezel was drafted by the Toronto Blizzard
Toronto Blizzard (NASL)
The Toronto Blizzard were a professional soccer club based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that played in the North American Soccer League.-History:The Toronto Metros joined the NASL in 1971. Their home field was Varsity Stadium....

 of the North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...

, and may have appeared in 3 games for them in 1982. He never appeared in an official NASL game. Zezel also played for a short while with the North York Rockets
North York Rockets
The North York Rockets were a professional soccer team that competed in the original Canadian Soccer League during its existence from 1987 to 1992...

 in the CSL.

Zezel had a small role in the 1986 film Youngblood
Youngblood (1986 film)
Youngblood is a 1986 American drama film, starring Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze, Cynthia Gibb, Keanu Reeves and Ed Lauter.-Plots:A 17-year-old farmhand from rural New York state, Dean Youngblood has dreams of playing in the National Hockey League...

.

Retirement and death

Since 1998, Zezel operated the Peter Zezel Hockey and Sports Camps in Etobicoke, Ontario
Etobicoke, Ontario
Etobicoke is a dissolved municipality located within the current city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the western section of the current city, it had an official population of 338,117 as measured by the 2001 Census and 334,491 people as of the 2006 Census. While it only contains 13% of...

. The camps teach and improve the hockey and soccer skills of young players from the ages of 5 to 14 years.

In October 2001, Zezel almost died of the rare blood disorder that eventually claimed his life: hemolytic anemia
Hemolytic anemia
Hemolytic anemia is a form of anemia due to hemolysis, the abnormal breakdown of red blood cells , either in the blood vessels or elsewhere in the human body . It has numerous possible causes, ranging from relatively harmless to life-threatening...

. At the time he made a full recovery, but in 2009 his condition worsened and he was "close to death". Zezel underwent chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....

 and had his spleen
Spleen
The spleen is an organ found in virtually all vertebrate animals with important roles in regard to red blood cells and the immune system. In humans, it is located in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen. It removes old red blood cells and holds a reserve of blood in case of hemorrhagic shock...

 removed as part of his treatment.

Shortly after his splenectomy
Splenectomy
A splenectomy is a surgical procedure that partially or completely removes the spleen.-Indications:The spleen, similar in structure to a large lymph node, acts as a blood filter. Current knowledge of its purpose includes the removal of old red blood cells and platelets, and the detection and fight...

, Zezel began complaining of serious headaches. Roughly 12 hours later, he (once again) went under the knife, during which time surgeons had found hemorrhaging in his brain. He slowly lapsed into a coma, and was placed on life-support once his organs began to fail.

In the nature of his giving spirit, Zezel wanted to donate his organs. Therefore, his family made the decision to remove him from life support that the organs might be preserved.

Zezel died on May 26, 2009, and was buried at the St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church in Mississauga. Zezel never married and had no children.

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season
Season (sports)
In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an...

Team League GP G
Goal (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to...

A
Assist (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal...

Pts
Point (ice hockey)
Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one...

PIM
Penalty (ice hockey)
A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...

GP G A Pts PIM
1982–83 Toronto Marlboros
Toronto Marlboros
The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association and Ontario Hockey League from 1904 to 1989...

OHL
Ontario Hockey League
The Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.The OHL also operates under the Ontario Hockey Federation of Hockey Canada....

66 35 39 74 28 4 2 4 6 0
1983–84 Toronto Marlboros OHL 68 47 86 133 31 9 7 5 12 4
1984–85 Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

65 15 46 61 26 19 1 8 9 28
1985–86 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 79 17 37 54 76 5 3 1 4 4
1986–87 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 71 33 39 72 71 25 3 10 13 10
1987–88 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 69 22 35 57 42 7 3 2 5 7
1988–89 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 26 4 13 17 15
1988–89 St. Louis Blues NHL 52 17 36 53 27 10 6 6 12 4
1989–90 St. Louis Blues NHL 73 25 47 72 30 12 1 7 8 4
1990–91 Washington Capitals
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...

NHL 20 7 5 12 10
1990–91 Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

NHL 32 14 14 28 4
1991–92 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 64 16 33 49 26
1992–93 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 70 12 23 35 24 20 2 1 3 6
1993–94 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 41 8 8 16 19 18 2 4 6 8
1994–95 Kalamazoo Wings IHL 2 0 0 0 0
1994–95 Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...

NHL 30 6 5 11 19 3 1 0 1 0
1995–96 St. Louis Blues NHL 57 8 13 21 12 10 3 0 3 2
1996–97 St. Louis Blues NHL 35 4 9 13 12
1996–97 New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey, United States. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

NHL 18 0 3 3 4 2 0 0 0 10
1997–98
1997–98 AHL season
The 1997–98 AHL season was the 62nd season of the American Hockey League. The AHL shifts teams in their divisions, and the Canadian division reverts to being named Atlantic division. The Northern conference is renamed the Eastern conference, and the Southern conference renamed the Western...

Albany River Rats
Albany River Rats
The Albany River Rats were an ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Albany, New York at the Times Union Center.- Founding to 2010 :...

AHL
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...

35 13 37 50 18
1997–98 New Jersey Devils NHL 5 0 3 3 0
1997–98 Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...

NHL 25 5 12 17 2
1998–99 Vancouver Canucks NHL 41 6 8 14 16
2002–03 Cambridge Hornets
Cambridge Hornets
The Cambridge Hornets were a Senior "AAA" ice hockey team based out of Cambridge, Ontario. They played in the Ontario Hockey Association's Major League Hockey. The new Cambridge Hornets were brought into Southwestern Senior A Hockey League in 1999...

OHASr
Major League Hockey
Allan Cup Hockey is the top tier Canadian Senior ice hockey league in the province of Ontario. As a member of the Ontario Hockey Association and Hockey Canada, the league contends for the famed Allan Cup. The league came to its latest incarnation when it lost several teams leaving it with two...

8 5 4 9 0
2003–04 Cambridge Hornets OHASr 18 7 17 24 16
2004–05 Cambridge Hornets OHASr 4 0 6 6 2
NHL totals 873 219 389 608 435 131 25 39 64 83

External links

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