Patrik Elias

Patrik Eliáš (born April 13, 1976) is a Czech professional hockey left winger and alternate captain for the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has garnered much popularity for his puck-handling ability and ability to strike from any place on the ice. A long-time Devil, Eliáš is the franchise's all-time leading scorer, while also holding franchise records for most points in a season (96) and most career game-winning goals (74). Eliáš is also tied with Mats Sundin, Sergei Fedorov, and fellow Czech Jaromír Jágr for the most overtime goals scored in the NHL (15).

Playing career
Eliáš was drafted by the New Jersey Devils 51st overall (2nd round) in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft.

As part of the A Line with Petr Sýkora and Jason Arnott, he helped lead the team to the 1999–2000 Stanley Cup championship. He assisted on Arnott's Cup-clinching goal in double overtime in Game 6 at Dallas. The following year he scored a team record 96 points in the regular season, third best in the league. He also played a key role in helping New Jersey win the 2003 Stanley Cup.

During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, he played hockey in Russia, where he contracted Hepatitis A from the food he ate while there. His bout with the disease severely weakened him, resulting in a weight loss of 30 pounds and being confined to a bed for 4 weeks. It kept him out of NHL action until after the lockout had finished.

Three months into the 2005–06 season, he made his first appearance of the season on January 3, 2006, against the Florida Panthers, resuming his role as an alternate captain (replacing Alexander Mogilny). He picked up where he left off, scoring eight points in his first four games and helping the Devils win his first nine games back with the team. Paired with Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez to form the "EGG Line", Eliáš helped the team instrument a historic comeback and win the Atlantic Division title, despite being 19 points out of first place when he returned in January. In the first game of the 2006 playoffs against the New York Rangers, he became the 10th player to score six points in an NHL playoff game, with two goals and four assists. Eliáš' 2006 postseason campaign was spectacular, even though the Devils were eliminated by eventual Cup champions, Carolina, in the second round. Eliáš scored 6 goals and added 10 assists for an impressive 16 points in just 9 games.

He was named the Devils new captain on October 5, 2006, becoming the seventh captain in team history. The previous captain of the Devils was Canadian born defenceman Scott Stevens, now retired. He is also the first European born captain in the history of the franchise.

At the start of the 2007–08 season, Eliáš was stripped of the captaincy by new coach Brent Sutter. The Devils named Jamie Langenbrunner captain on December 5, 2007.

Sutter later placed Eliáš on a top scoring line which consisted of Dainus Zubrus and Brian Gionta. Eliáš is also known to work well with Devils superstar Zach Parise, with whom he occasionally plays with on "heroes line" and frequently plays with on the power-play unit.

On March 17, 2009, Eliáš became the New Jersey Devils' all-time leading scorer by recording his 702nd regular season point, an assist on Brian Gionta's shorthanded goal. Gionta's goal was the game-winner in a 3-2 win over the visiting Chicago Blackhawks, giving the edge for Martin Brodeur's record-breaking 552nd win as a goaltender to pass Patrick Roy, who held the former record at 551 wins. Chants of "Pa-trik E-li-as" were heard as Devils' PA announcer Kevin Clark confirmed to the crowd that Eliáš had broken John MacLean's record. Eliáš was the second star of the night, only behind Brodeur.

He was the winner of the 2009 Golden Hockey Stick as the world's best Czech hockey player, ending Jaromír Jágr's 4 year run. He scored his 300th career goal on December 12, 2009, against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Patrik Elias has been named as the Captain of the Czech Republic men's national ice hockey team.

Despite a weak first half by the Devils during the 2010–11 season, Patrik Elias was selected to be the Devils sole representative during the 2011 NHL All-Star Game. This is his third all-star appearance, and he was eventually selected by Team Staal in the first ever NHL All-Star draft.

Personal
Eliáš married Petra Volakova in 2007; they currently reside in New Jersey. On November 27, 2010, the couple welcomed daughter Sophia Gabriella.

Awards

 * 1998: World championship Bronze medail, Czech Republic
 * 1997–98: NHL All-Rookie team
 * 1999–00: Stanley Cup champion, New Jersey Devils
 * 1999–00: NHL All-Star Game participant
 * 2000–01: NHL First All-Star team
 * 2000–01: NHL Bud Light Plus/Minus Award (shared with Joe Sakic)
 * 2001–02: NHL All-Star Game participant
 * 2002–03: Stanley Cup champion, New Jersey Devils
 * 2006: Olympic Bronze medal, Czech Republic
 * 2011: NHL All-Star Game participant

Records

 * Eliáš is the only NHL player to be awarded two penalty shots in overtime. Both occurred in separate games versus the New York Islanders, and in both cases, Eliáš missed the penalty shot.
 * Most overtime goals in a season, 4.
 * Most overtime winners, 15 (tied with Mats Sundin, Sergei Federov, and Jaromír Jágr)
 * New Jersey Devils record for most points in one season, 96.
 * New Jersey Devils record for most points in a playoff season, 23.
 * New Jersey Devils all-time leader in playoff goals (40), assists (77), and points (117).
 * New Jersey Devils record for hat tricks, 6 (tied with John MacLean).
 * New Jersey Devils record for career assists, 440.
 * New Jersey Devils record for career points (754), ahead of John MacLean
 * New Jersey Devils record for game winning goals (66).

International play
Eliáš played his first game in the national squad in 1998, and has played 20 times for the national team (as of April 2009).