Steve Ludzik
| Steve Ludzik | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
April 3, 1961 Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for |
Chicago Black Hawks Buffalo Sabres | ||
| NHL Draft |
28th overall, 1980 Chicago Black Hawks | ||
| Playing career | 1981–1993 | ||
Stephen Paul Ludzik (born April 3, 1961 in Etobicoke, Ontario) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and coach who has worked as a television analyst for The Score television network.
Biography[]
As a youth, Ludzik played in the 1974 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Toronto.[1]
He had a distinguished junior career with the Niagara Falls Flyers of the Ontario Hockey League, amassing 125 goals and 233 assists, for a total of 358 points. This broke the career point total record for the Flyers, which still stands today. He was subsequently named to the Flyers' All-Time Five Man All-Star Team.
He was drafted 28th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft. After one more year of junior hockey, Ludzik turned pro in 1981-82. He split that season between the Blackhawks and the American Hockey League's New Brunswick Hawks. The next season, he became a Blackhawk regular.
Ludzik played with the Blackhawks until the 1988-89 season. Except for 11 games with the Buffalo Sabres in 1989-90, he spent the rest of his playing career in the minors. He played in a total of 424 NHL games and scored 46 goals and 93 assists.
Coaching[]
After retiring as player Ludzik turned to coaching, starting in the IHL with the Muskegon Fury and then the Detroit Vipers, where he won the 1996-97 Turner Cup with General Manager Rick Dudley. He then spent two years as head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning, but was let go after the 2000-01 season. He subsequently went to the OHL as head coach of the Mississauga IceDogs, and then to the AHL, where he ended his coaching career in 2004-05 with the San Antonio Rampage.
NHL coaching career[]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Post season | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | Division rank | Result | ||
| TB | 1999–2000 | 82 | 19 | 47 | 9 | 7 | 54 | 4th in Southeast | Missed Playoffs |
| TB | 2000–01 | 39 | 12 | 20 | 5 | 2 | (59) | 5th in Southeast | (fired) |
| Total | 123 | 31 | 67 | 14 | 9 | ||||
Other leagues[]
| Team | Year | League | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | Finish | W | L | Win% | Result | |||
| MUS | 1993–94 | CoHL | 64 | 35 | 24 | 5 | — | 75 | 2nd in West | 0 | 3 | .000 | Lost in Quarterfinals |
| MUS | 1994–95 | CoHL | 74 | 42 | 27 | 5 | — | 89 | 2nd in West | 10 | 6 | .625 | Lost in Colonial Cup Final |
| DET | 1996–97 | IHL | 82 | 57 | 17 | — | 8 | 122 | 1st in North | 15 | 6 | .714 | Won Turner Cup |
| DET | 1997–98 | IHL | 82 | 47 | 20 | — | 15 | 109 | 1st in Northeast | 14 | 9 | .609 | Lost in Turner Cup Final |
| DET | 1998–99 | IHL | 82 | 50 | 21 | — | 11 | 111 | 1st in Northeast | 6 | 5 | .545 | Lost in Semifinals |
| MIS | 2002–03 | OHL | 68 | 23 | 31 | 11 | 3 | 60 | 4th in Central | 1 | 4 | .200 | Lost in Conference Quarterfinals |
| SA | 2003–04 | AHL | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | — | (17) | named FLA assistant coach | — | — | — | — |
| SA | 2004–05 | AHL | 80 | 27 | 45 | — | 8 | 62 | 6th in West | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
Broadcasting and publishing[]
Since coaching, Ludzik has been a hockey pundit on television, most notably on The Score Television Network. He has also co-authored a book, entitled "Been There, Done That".
Parkinson's disease[]
Ludzik came public in 2012 that he has been suffering from Parkinson's disease since being diagnosed in 2000.[2]
References[]
- ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ Cory Smith, QMI Agency. "Former NHLer opens up about battle with Parkinson's". Toronto Sun. Retrieved November 10, 2012.
External links[]
- Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- Official website
- 1961 births
- Living people
- Buffalo Sabres players
- Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Austria
- Canadian ice hockey coaches
- Canadian ice hockey centres
- Canadian people of Polish descent
- Canadian television sportscasters
- Chicago Blackhawks draft picks
- Chicago Blackhawks players
- EK Zell am See players
- Florida Panthers coaches
- Ice hockey people from Ontario
- Mississauga IceDogs coaches
- Montreal Canadiens scouts
- New Brunswick Hawks players
- Niagara Falls Flyers players
- Rochester Americans players
- Saginaw Hawks players
- Sportspeople from Etobicoke
- Tampa Bay Lightning coaches