Czechoslovak Players against Canada, NHL, WHA

[DN28]

A month ago, I posted the stats of Czechoslovak players against the Soviet Union on this forum. Today we´re going to look at how the Czechoslovak players did vs. Canadian, NHL and WHA teams for a change. Just as with the previous thread, following stats were counted by @Robert Gordon Orr who deserves full credit for this work. I only re-wrote the data into tables.

Just as with the Soviets, in order to gain meaningful sample of games, we decided to include more than just World Championships, NHL Super-series 1978 and some WHA games. Here is the list of all the games that were included and that Czechoslovakia played against various Canadian teams starting with the post-WW2 and ending with the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1992:

Spoiler

1948.02.06 Kanada-CSSR 0-0 (St.Moritz) OG
1948.02.17 CSSR-Kanada 2-5 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1948.02.19 CSSR-Kanada 3-3 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1949.02.15 CSSR-Kanada 3-2 (Stockholm) WHC
1949.02.25 CSSR-Kanada 3-2 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1952.02.19 Kanada-CSSR 4-1 (Oslo) OG
1954.03.05 Kanada-CSSR 5-2 (Stockholm) WHC
1955.02.20 CSSR-Kanada 3-3 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1955.02.26 Kanada-CSSR 5-3 (Düsseldorf) WHC
1956.01.30 Kanada-CSSR 6-3 (Cortina d’Ampezzo) OG
1958.03.07 Kanada-CSSR 6-0 (Oslo) WHC
1959.03.07 CSSR-Kanada 2-7 (Bratislava) WHC
1959.03.15 CSSR-Kanada 5-3 (Praha) WHC
1960.02.24 Kanada-CSSR 4-0 (Squaw Valley) OG
1960.12.28 CSSR-Winnipeg Maroons 4-4 (Ostrava) Exh./Fr.match
1960.12.30 CSSR-Winnipeg Maroons 2-2 (Bratislava) Exh./Fr.match
1961.02.18 CSSR-Kanada 6-7 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1961.03.09 CSSR-Kanada 1-1 (Lausanne) WHC
1963.02.20 CSSR-Kanada 3-2 (Brno) Exh./Fr.match
1963.02.23 CSSR-Kanada 3-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1963.03.12 CSSR-Kanada 4-4 (Stockholm) WHC
1963.12.17 Big Six League All Stars-CSSR 4-7 (Calgary) Exh./Fr.match
1963.12.18 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Victoria) Exh./Fr.match
1963.12.20 Western International Hockey League All Stars-CSSR 4-1 (Trail) Exh./Fr.match
1963.12.22 Kanada-CSSR 1-3 (Vancouver) Exh./Fr.match
1963.12.23 Edmonton Oil Kings-CSSR 4-5 (Edmonton) Exh./Fr.match
1963.12.26 Winnipeg Maroons-CSSR 5-5 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1963.12.27 Saskatoon Quakers-CSSR 2-2 (Saskatoon) Exh./Fr.match
1963.12.28 Saskatchewan Junior League All Stars-CSSR 4-4 (Regina) Exh./Fr.match
1964.01.02 Ottawa Montagnards-CSSR 2-6 (Ottawa) Exh./Fr.match
1964.01.04 Kanada-CSSR 4-0 (Sudbury) Exh./Fr.match
1964.01.20 CSSR-Kanada 6-0 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1964.02.07 CSSR-Kanada 3-1 (Innsbruck) OG
1964.12.28 Kanada-CSSR 3-4 (Colorado Springs) W.BrownMemorial
1964.12.31 Kanada-CSSR 3-3 (Colorado Springs) W.BrownMemorial
1965.01.03 Kanada-CSSR 4-2 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1965.01.05 Montreal Junior All Stars-CSSR 2-3 (Montreal) Exh./Fr.match
1965.01.07 Ontario All Stars-CSSR 5-3 (London) Exh./Fr.match
1965.01.10 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Toronto) Exh./Fr.match
1965.03.11 CSSR-Kanada 8-0 (Tampere) WHC
1965.12.31 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Colorado Springs) W.BrownMemorial
1966.01.05 Kanada-CSSR 3-3 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1966.01.06 Montreal Junior Canadiens-CSSR 1-5 (Montreal) Exh./Fr.match
1966.01.08 Kanada-CSSR 7-3 (Kitchener) Exh./Fr.match
1966.01.09 Kanada-CSSR 1-5 (Toronto) Exh./Fr.match
1966.02.24 CSSR-Kanada 4-0 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1966.02.25 CSSR-Kanada 4-3 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1966.03.10 CSSR-Kanada 2-1 (Ljubljana) WHC
1967.01.01 Kanada-CSSR 5-3 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1967.03.05 CSSR-Kanada 4-4 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1967.03.07 CSSR-Kanada 2-4 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1967.03.25 CSSR-Kanada 1-1 (Wien) WHC
1967.12.04 CSSR-Kanada 6-2 (Moskva) Izv.
1967.12.06 CSSR-Kanada 7-2 (Moskva) Izv.
1968.01.31 CSSR-Kanada 2-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1968.02.01 CSSR-Kanada 2-4 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1968.02.13 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Grenoble) OG
1968.12.20 Kanada-CSSR 1-3 (Montreal) Exh./Fr.match
1968.12.22 Kanada-CSSR 7-3 (Ottawa) Exh./Fr.match
1968.12.23 Kanada-CSSR 2-5 (Vancouver) Exh./Fr.match
1968.12.25 Kanada-CSSR 6-2 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1968.12.27 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1968.12.30 Kanada-CSSR 3-4 (Fort William) Exh./Fr.match
1969.03.12 CSSR-Kanada 2-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1969.03.15 CSSR-Kanada 6-1 (Stockholm) WHC
1969.03.23 CSSR-Kanada 3-2 (Stockholm) WHC
1969.11.22 CSSR-Kanada 4-4 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1969.11.23 CSSR-Kanada 5-2 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1969.11.25 CSSR-Kanada 6-4 (Bratislava) Exh./Fr.match
1969.11.27 CSSR-Kanada 4-0 (Kosice) Exh./Fr.match
1969.11.29 CSSR-Kanada 5-5 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1969.12.01 CSSR-Kanada 4-0 (Moskva) Izv.
1969.12.28 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1969.12.30 Kanada-CSSR 2-3 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1970.01.01 Kanada-CSSR 0-4 (Toronto) Exh./Fr.match
1970.01.02 Kanada-CSSR 2-2 (London) Exh./Fr.match
1970.01.04 Kanada-CSSR 2-1 (Ottawa) Exh./Fr.match
1972.09.29 CSSR-Kanada (NHL) 3-3 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1974.10.08 CSSR-Kanada (WHA) 3-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1975.09.25 CSSR-Winnipeg Jets (WHA) 6-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1975.09.26 CSSR-Winnipeg Jets (WHA) 3-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1976.08.30 Kanada-CSSR 7-4 (Montreal) Exh./Fr.match
1976.09.09 Kanada-CSSR 0-1 (Montreal) CC
1976.09.13 Kanada-CSSR 6-0 (Toronto) CC
1976.09.15 Kanada-CSSR 5-4 OT (Montreal) CC
1976.12.12 Winnipeg Jets (WHA)-Poldi Kladno 6-5 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1976.12.13 Edmonton Oilers (WHA)-Poldi Kladno 6-4 (Edmonton) Exh./Fr.match
1976.12.14 Calgary Cowboys (WHA)-Poldi Kladno 4-5 (Calgary) Exh./Fr.match
1976.12.16 CSSR-Winnipeg Jets (WHA) 3-2 (Moskva) Izv.
1976.12.17 Minnesoota Fighting Saints (WHA)-Poldi Kladno 3-2 (Saint Paul) Exh./Fr.match
1976.12.20 New England Whalers (WHA)-Poldi Kladno 1-4 (Hartford) Exh./Fr.match
1976.12.22 Indianapolis Racers (WHA)-Poldi Kladno 3-2 (Indianapolis) Exh./Fr.match
1977.04.16 CSSR-Kanada 7-2 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1977.04.18 CSSR-Kanada 4-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1977.04.26 CSSR-Kanada 3-3 (Wien) WHC
1977.05.08 Kanada-CSSR 8-2 (Wien) WHC
1977.09.17 CSSR-Cincinnati Stingers (WHA) 8-2 (Praha) RPCup
1977.09.20 CSSR-Cincinnati Stingers (WHA) 12-3 (Praha) RPCup
1977.12.09 Indianapolis Racers (WHA) – CSSR B 3-5 (Indianapolis) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.11 Quebec Nordiques (WHA)-CSSR B 8-4 (Quebec) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.13 Winnipeg Jets (WHA)-CSSR B 5-1 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.14 Edmonton Oilers (WHA) -CSSR B 6-1 (Edmonton) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.16 New England Whalers (WHA)-CSSR B 5-3 (Hartford) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.18 Houston Aeros (WHA)-CSSR B 3-2 (Houston) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.20 Cincinnati Stingers (WHA)-CSSR B 5-5 (Cincinnati) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.21 Birmingham Bulls (WHA)-CSSR B 5-0 (Birmingham) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.21 CSSR-Quebec Nordiques (WHA) 6-2 (Moskva) Izv.
1977.12.26 New York Rangers (NHL)-Poldi Kladno 4-4 (New York) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.27 Philadelphia Flyers (NHL)-Tesla Pardubice 6-1 (Philadelphia) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.28 Minnesota North Stars (NHL)-Tesla Pardubice 2-4 (Bloomington) Exh./Fr.match
1977.12.31 Chicago Black Hawks (NHL)-Poldi Kladno 4-6 (Chicago) Exh./Fr.match
1978.01.02 Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL)-Poldi Kladno 5-8 (Toronto) Exh./Fr.match
1978.01.02 Detroit Red Wings (NHL)-Tesla Pardubice 5-4 (Detroit) Exh./Fr.match
1978.01.04 Cleveland Barons (NHL)-Poldi Kladno 4-3 (Richfield) Exh./Fr.match
1978.01.04 New York Islanders (NHL)-Tesla Pardubice 8-3 (New York) Exh./Fr.match
1978.04.22 CSSR-Kanada 2-3 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1978.05.04 CSSR-Kanada 5-0 (Praha) WHC
1978.05.12 CSSR-Kanada 3-2 (Praha) WHC
1978.12.17 CSSR-Kanada 4-1 (Moskva) Izv.
1978.12.27 New England Whalers (WHA)-CSSR B 10-4 (Springfield) Exh./Fr.match
1978.12.30 Edmonton Oilers (WHA)-CSSR B 5-1 (Edmonton) Exh./Fr.match
1979.01.01 Winnipeg Jets (WHA)-CSSR B 3-3 (Winnipeg) Exh./Fr.match
1979.01.07 Birmingham Bulls (WHA)-CSSR B 10-2 (Birmingham) Exh./Fr.match
1979.04.15 CSSR-Kanada 4-1 (Moskva) WHC
1979.04.23 CSSR-Kanada 10-6 (Moskva) WHC
1979.09.11 CSSR-Kanada 9-2 (Praha) RPCup
1979.12.16 CSSR-Kanada 10-1 (Moskva) Izv.
1980.02.03 Kanada-CSSR 6-3 (Calgary) Exh./Fr.match
1980.02.08 Kanada-CSSR 1-5 (Montreal) Exh./Fr.match
1980.02.22 CSSR-Kanada 6-1 (Lake Placid) OG
1980.04.19 CSSR-Kanada 6-1 (Goteborg) Sw.Cup
1981.04.18 CSSR-Kanada 7-4 (Goteborg) WHC
1981.04.24 CSSR-Kanada 4-2 (Goteborg) WHC
1981.09.05 Kanada-CSSR 4-4 (Winnipeg) CC
1982.04.16 CSSR-Kanada 6-2 (Helsinki) WHC
1982.04.27 Kanada-CSSR 4-2 (Helsinki) WHC
1983.01.04 CSSR-Kanada 9-2 (Teplice) Exh./Fr.match
1983.04.07 CSSR-Kanada 4-1 (Pardubice) Exh./Fr.match
1983.04.08 CSSR-Kanada 6-2 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1983.04.21 Kanada-CSSR 3-1 (Dortmund) WHC
1983.04.28 CSSR-Kanada 5-4 (Munchen) WHC
1983.12.19 CSSR-Kanada 4-2 (Moskva) Izv.
1984.02.15 CSSR-Kanada 4-0 (Sarajevo) OG
1984.08.25 Kanada-CSSR 5-4 (Halifax) Exh./Fr.match
1984.08.26 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Montreal) Exh./Fr.match
1984.09.08 Kanada-CSSR 7-2 (Calgary) CC
1985.04.14 CSSR-Kanada 6-2 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1985.04.23 CSSR-Kanada 4-4 (Praha) WHC
1985.05.03 CSSR-Kanada 5-3 (Praha) WHC
1985.12.19 CSSR-Kanada 7-2 (Moskva) Izv.
1986.04.22 CSSR-Kanada 3-1 (Moskva) WHC
1986.12.19 CSSR-Kanada 4-1 (Moskva) Izv.
1986.12.29 Kanada-CSSR 3-6 (Calgary) Calg.Cup
1987.04.18 CSSR-Kanada 1-1 (Wien) WHC
1987.05.01 CSSR-Kanada 4-2 (Wien) WHC
1987.08.23 Kanada-CSSR 4-2 (Hamilton) Exh./Fr.match
1987.08.28 Kanada-CSSR 4-4 (Calgary) CC
1987.09.09 Kanada-CSSR 5-3 (Montreal) CC
1987.12.17 CSSR-Kanada 3-1 (Moskva) Izv.
1988.02.27 Kanada-CSSR 6-3 (Calgary) OG
1988.12.20 CSSR-Kanada 4-2 (Moskva) Izv.
1989.04.09 CSSR-Kanada 8-3 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1989.04.24 Kanada-CSSR 4-2 (Stockholm) WHC
1989.05.01 Kanada-CSSR 4-3 (Stockholm) WHC
1989.09.10 CSSR-Calgary Flames (NHL) 4-2 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1989.09.11 CSSR-Calgary Flames (NHL) 4-1 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1989.12.19 CSSR-Kanada 4-5 (Moskva) Izv.
1990.04.11 CSSR-Canada 5-6 (Praha) Exh./Fr.match
1990.04.13 CSSR-Kanada 3-5 (Hradec Kralove) Exh./Fr.match
1990.04.22 Kanada-CSSR 5-3 (Bern) WHC
1990.04.28 CSSR-Kanada 3-2 (Bern) WHC
1990.07.31 Kanada-CSSR 3-2 (Tacoma) GoodwillG.
1990.12.13 CSSR-Kanada 9-4 (Litvinov) Exh./Fr.match
1990.12.16 CSSR-Kanada 1-4 (Moskva) Izv.
1991.04.28 CSSR-Kanada 4-3 (Tampere) WHC
1991.08.26 Kanada-CSSR 5-3 (Saskatoon) Exh./Fr.match
1991.09.07 Kanada-CSSR 6-2 (Montreal) CC
1991.11.02 CSSR-Kanada 3-5 (Liberec) Exh./Fr.match
1991.11.03 CSSR-Kanada 4-6 (Usti nad Labem) Exh./Fr.match
1992.02.02 Kanada-CSSR 3-1 (Stockholm) Sw.Cup
1992.02.14 Kanada-CSSR 5-1 (Albertville) OG
1992.02.21 Kanada-CSSR 4-2 (Albertville) OG
1992.05.03 CSSR-Kanada 5-2 (Praha) WHC
1992.11.06 CSFR-Kanada 7-4 (Stuttgart) Ger.Cup
1992.12.15 CSFR-Kanada 4-4 (Moskva) Izv.

Czechoslovak forwards against Canada / NHL / WHA ranked by the number of points (1948-1992):

Name	Games played	Goals	Assists	Points	Points per game
1. Vladimír Martinec	41	15	21	36	0.88
2. Milan Nový	38	18	15	33	0.87
3. Marián Šťastný	34	17	16	33	0.97
4. Ivan Hlinka	34	16	16	32	0.94
5. Bohuslav Ebermann	34	19	12	31	0.91
6. Václav Nedomanský	48	23	7	30	0.63
7. Peter Šťastný	33	9	21	30	0.91
8. Jaroslav Pouzar	40	18	11	29	0.73
9. Jozef Golonka	44	15	14	29	0.66
10. Josef Černý	58	13	16	29	0.50
11. Jiří Holík	48	20	8	28	0.58
12. Jaroslav Jiřík	34	12	12	24	0.71
13. Jiří Lála	22	16	6	22	1.00
14. Vladimír Růžička	26	16	6	22	0.85
15. Jan Klapáč	34	16	5	21	0.62
16. František Černík	31	10	11	21	0.68
17. Jaroslav Holík	42	9	11	20	0.48
18. Stanislav Prýl	38	11	8	19	0.50
19. Eduard Novák	24	10	6	16	0.67
20. Vlastimil Bubník	22	8	8	16	0.73
21. Vladimír Zábrodský	9	10	5	15	1.67
22. Jiří Doležal	16	9	6	15	0.94
23. Miroslav Vlach	25	9	6	15	0.60
24. Jaroslav Walter	18	6	8	14	0.78
25. Jiří Hrdina	26	4	10	14	0.54
26. Igor Liba	26	3	11	14	0.54
27. Pavel Richter	27	8	5	13	0.48
28. Jiří Novák	30	8	5	13	0.43
29. František Ševčík	33	7	6	13	0.39
30. Dušan Pašek	24	8	4	12	0.50
31. Jiří Šejba	16	7	5	12	0.75
32. Vincent Lukáč	25	6	6	12	0.48
33. Petr Rosol	22	5	7	12	0.55
34. Anton Šťastný	10	9	2	11	1.10
35. Bohuslav Šťastný	23	7	3	10	0.43
36. Jan Havel	16	5	5	10	0.63
37. Josef Cvach	18	8	1	9	0.50
38. Ladislav Svozil	11	6	3	9	0.82
39. Julius Haas	12	6	3	9	0.75
40. Darius Rusnák	18	5	4	9	0.50
41. Jindřich Kokrment	16	3	6	9	0.56
42. Robert Reichel	8	2	7	9	1.13
43. Jan Hrbatý	21	4	4	8	0.38
44. Jiří Kochta	21	3	5	8	0.38

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[DN28]

Czechoslovak forwards against Canada / NHL / WHA ranked by PPG (min. 10 games played):

Name	Games played	Goals	Assists	Points	Points per game
1. Anton Šťastný	10	9	2	11	1.10
2. Jiří Lála	22	16	6	22	1.00
3. Marián Šťastný	34	17	16	33	0.97
4. Ivan Hlinka	34	16	16	32	0.94
5. Jiří Doležal	16	9	6	15	0.94
6. Bohuslav Ebermann	34	19	12	31	0.91
7. Peter Šťastný	33	9	21	30	0.91
8. Vladimír Martinec	41	15	21	36	0.88
9. Milan Nový	38	18	15	33	0.87
10. Vladimír Růžička	26	16	6	22	0.85
11. Ladislav Svozil	11	6	3	9	0.82
12. Jaroslav Walter	18	6	8	14	0.78
13. Jiří Šejba	16	7	5	12	0.75
14. Julius Haas	12	6	3	9	0.75
15. Vlastimil Bubník	22	8	8	16	0.73
16. Jaroslav Pouzar	40	18	11	29	0.73
17. Jaroslav Jiřík	34	12	12	24	0.71
18. František Černík	31	10	11	21	0.68
19. Eduard Novák	24	10	6	16	0.67
20. Jozef Golonka	44	15	14	29	0.66
21. Václav Nedomanský	48	23	7	30	0.63
22. Jan Havel	16	5	5	10	0.63
23. Jan Klapáč	34	16	5	21	0.62
24. Miroslav Vlach	25	9	6	15	0.60
25. Jiří Holík	48	20	8	28	0.58
26. Jindřich Kokrment	16	3	6	9	0.56
27. Petr Rosol	22	5	7	12	0.55
28. Jiří Hrdina	26	4	10	14	0.54
29. Igor Liba	26	3	11	14	0.54
30. Josef Černý	58	13	16	29	0.50
31. Stanislav Prýl	38	11	8	19	0.50
32. Dušan Pašek	24	8	4	12	0.50
33. Josef Cvach	18	8	1	9	0.50
34. Darius Rusnák	18	5	4	9	0.50
35. Pavel Richter	27	8	5	13	0.48
36. Vincent Lukáč	25	6	6	12	0.48
37. Jaroslav Holík	42	9	11	20	0.48
38. Bohuslav Šťastný	23	7	3	10	0.43
39. Jiří Novák	30	8	5	13	0.43
40. František Ševčík	33	7	6	13	0.39
41. Jan Hrbatý	21	4	4	8	0.38
42. Jiří Kochta	21	3	5	8	0.38

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Other interesting forwards but with too small of a sample of games or points:

• Vladimír Zábrodský (9 games / 15 points (10+5) / 1.67)
• Robert Reichel (8 games / 9 points (2+7) / 1.13)
• Stanislav Konopásek (4 games / 4 points (3+1) / 1.00)
• David Volek (9 games / 7 points (6+1) / 0.78)
• Petr Klíma (4 games / 2 points (2+0) / 0.50)
• Richard Žemlička (16 games / 7 points (4+3) / 0.44)
• Jiří Dolana (18 games / 7 points (3+4) / 0.39)
• František Vaněk (18 games / 7 points (2+5) / 0.39)
• Miroslav Fryčer (8 games / 3 points (2+1) / 0.38)
• Richard Farda (19 games / 6 points (3+3) / 0.32)
• Michal Pivoňka (6 games / 0 points (0+0) / 0.00)

 

[DN28]

Elite Czechoslovak defensemen against Canada / NHL / WHA listed alphabetically:

Name	Games played	Goals	Assists	Points	Points per game
Jiří BUBLA	31	10	15	25	0.81
Miroslav DVOŘÁK	36	0	8	8	0.22
Oldřich MACHAČ	44	4	6	10	0.23
František POSPÍŠIL	48	3	11	14	0.29
Jan SUCHÝ	33	8	5	13	0.39

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[DN28]

Czechoslovak goaltenders against Canada / NHL / WHA ranked by SV% (min. 9 games played):

Name	Games played	W-D-L	Goals allowed	GAA	SV%
1. Jiří Holeček	15 (689 min.)	7-2-2	29	2.52	0.920
2. Jaromír Šindel	10 (536 min.)	6-0-3	21	2.35	0.915
3. Vladimír Nadrchal	19 (1061 min.)	7-2-10	69	3.90	0.892
4. Petr Bříza	10 (560 min.)	4-1-5	31	3.32	0.887
5. Vladimír Dzurilla	49 (2683 min.)	21-6-17	127	2.84	0.885
6. Dominik Hašek	19 (1100 min.)	8-2-9	64	3.49	0.885
7. Jiří Králík	19 (1027 min.)	13-1-3	45	2.63	0.879
8. Jiří Crha	9 (470 min.)	2-0-4	40	5.11	0.834

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[DN28]

Couple of comments:

· You can see that the numbers are generally better than against USSR, not a surprise. Basically only Vladimir Zabrodsky climbed over ppg vs. the Soviets out of everyone, and no other player recorded even just a >0.75. Now we have 12 players with >0.80 ppg against Canada (including one d-man) who played at least 10 games.

· The same applies for goalies where not a single Czechoslovak netminder with at least 9 gp posted >0.900 SV% vis-a-vis Soviets. Now with Canada we have two Gs with 0.900+ and a general improvement of the rest with two exceptions: Dominik Hasek and Jiri Kralik surprised me with their stats being the all-time best vs. USSR and now at the same time they are the only ones whose numbers worsened in their games against Canadian opponents.

· And the biggest shock of all these data is probably Jiri Holecek – 0.920 vs. CAN, 0.883 vs. USSR! Sometimes the numbers simply deny the common wisdom. Thinking about this, there is an explanation. Looking back, it was actually the USA team that was more of a nightmare for Holecek at various tournaments. Young Holecek actually did not allow many goals in his early stint with the National team in 1966/1967 (and he played the Canada several times during this two-year period). Then he came back and became a starter in early 1970s once the Canadian National team stopped participating at the Worlds. Before the Canada Cup ´76, Holecek played just those post-Summit Series games and a handful of WHA teams (on European rinks) and each of these match-ups ended up favourably to Czechs. After CC 1976, I don´t think Holecek got to play big minutes at the ´77 WHC and he did play successfully against Canada at his final moment of his career, WHC 1978 (5:0 and 3:2 wins of CSSR vs. CAN). So overall I am not yet convinced we should radically alter the common knowledge about Holecek as a goalie who thrived against Soviets and struggled against North America, but the numbers certainly make you pause.

· Jiri Bubla´s offensive numbers look outstanding and I also think Jan Suchy´s point-record may have suffered from assists under-counting.

· It´s clear that Stastny brothers enjoyed playing Canada even before they emigrated. But who would expect Anton being the one with the highest ppg of all?

· While numbers of Stastnys and of Jiri Lala were underwhelming vs. the Soviets, they now somewhat reversed their reputation with their excellent offensive production against the next powerful opponent.

· PPG of Vaclav Nedomansky and Vlastimil Bubnik exactly mirrors the score they had against the Soviets (0.63). Almost the same with Jozef Golonka (0.66 with CAN, 0.67 with USSR).

· Vladimir Martinec produced well with the North American rivals as well although he didn´t separate himself from the pack as much as against the ”Red Machine”. On the other hand, Martinec does actually come out with the best ppg rate of all players if you ignore the results from WHC and OG games and count only the games from Canada Cups, Summit Series´ and all the NHL/WHA encounters. Martinec would have 17 points (7+10) in 16 games. Which means that Martinec simply didn´t score as much to Canada only when he faced them at WHCs in 1977-1981 time span.

· The same viewpoint would benefit to Milan Novy and Peter Stastny. Novy would lead the group and overtake Martinec´s spot at 1st place with raw number of points (20 p in 20 gp; 9 goals and 11 assists). Peter Stastny would have written down 18 points (6+12) in 17 games. I don´t think this particular point of view is more valid given the low sample sizes but it´s right to point out this phenomenon. Some players such as Martinec, Novy and P. Stastny scored comparatively a bit more to NHL/WHA or Canada Cups teams and less to Teams Canada at the World Championships.

· Players who conversely scored primarily against Canada at the Worlds? Looking at the numbers, that would probably be Jiri Lala (just 1 assist in 4 games vs. CC Canada or NHL teams) and Jiri Bubla (9 p / 16 gp). The rest scored more or less at the same pace or just didn´t play enough CCs and NHL squads.

 

[Theokritos]

Added to the resources & source material sticky.

 

[VanIslander]

Bohuslav Ebermann?

 

[plusandminus]

Couple of comments: ...

Interresting.
My first impression is that this consists of games vs Canadian teams of very different skill, while the USSR thread is vs basically Soviet's best teams?
Wouldn't this affect the stats and the comparisons, so that it is sometimes hard to just compare the Canada stats vs the USSR stats? I mean, some players might have had a higher percentage of their games played against "weak" Canadian teams, than other players had?

(And Ebermann I remember from several tournaments in probably late 1970s (and early 1980s?) as a goal scoring guy to watch out for...)

 

[Namba 17]

I'm not sure if it's a good idea to mixed games vs the best (NHL, WHA, CC teams) and games vs WC/OG Canada teams. The quality of the teams is too different.
It can mislead you.

 

[DN28]

Interresting.
My first impression is that this consists of games vs Canadian teams of very different skill, while the USSR thread is vs basically Soviet's best teams?
Wouldn't this affect the stats and the comparisons, so that it is sometimes hard to just compare the Canada stats vs the USSR stats? I mean, some players might have had a higher percentage of their games played against "weak" Canadian teams, than other players had?

(And Ebermann I remember from several tournaments in probably late 1970s (and early 1980s?) as a goal scoring guy to watch out for...)

I'm not sure if it's a good idea to mixed games vs the best (NHL, WHA, CC teams) and games vs WC/OG Canada teams. The quality of the teams is too different.
It can mislead you.

I understand the point but I didn´t see better alternative. Just to list stats vs. NHL, WHA, CC teams? We´d have to scratch off not only the entire 1950s and 1960s players but there would be no records of even players such as Nedomansky or Suchy. Not a single Czechoslovak player played more 20 games vs. NHL, WHA and CC teams combined. Most of the Czechoslovak star players played them only 10-15 times. So the information value of such stat-line would be non-existent.

The levels of skill of these Canadian or North American teams definitely varied and more so than with the Soviets but I personally think that the various Canadian teams of the three main decades (60s, 70s, 80s) are comparable in terms of their average quality.
People might object to 1960s but the reality was that those teams were stronger than WHA teams. I´ve spoken about this in the HOH Top-100 players of all-time project. Father Bauer´s Canadian National teams of the 1960s were well-structured, organized, disciplined with no issues of missing chemistry since players played together the whole season. More importantly, those Canadian teams had actually a winning record against NHL teams (mainly NY Rangers).

CSSR teams struggled way more with the Canadian Nationals and with those collections of Allan Cup winners or ”Western International Hockey League All Stars” or Montreal Junior Canadiens (enhanced by the likes of Doug Harvey of Jacques Plante) or Ontario Junior All-Stars (where players like young Bobby Orr played) – than with the measly Cincinnati Stingers (WHA) which got spanked 12:3 by the Czechs. From reports I´ve read, even the AVCO Cup winners such as Winnipeg Jets in full force or the Quebec Nordiques were not a serious opponent to the Czechoslovak National team. No need to get caught up with ”amateur” and ”professional” designations. NHL up to 1967 contained only 6 clubs, between 1967-1970 only 12 clubs. With rapid expansion of the 1970s and a talent dillution of the NA professional hockey I view the Golonka generation and the Martinec generation facing comparably skillful teams.

How about the 1980s? Again CSSR clashed with very different types of teams – more frequent encounters with high level Canada Cup teams, games with respectable WHC teams full of NHLers and always a couple of HOFers, but also with lowly Canadian teams assembled for the Olympics with non-NHLers. Fundamentally I see no difference compared the 1970s – high-level competitive CC 76 Canada and SS 72, mid-range WHC and NHL teams, sometimes good sometimes sub-optimal WHA teams.

The only misleading information might come with the 1950s or early 1990s where indeed the quality of Team Canadas did not reach high status. But that only concerns Vladimir Zabrodsky, Vlastimil Bubnik, Jiri Dolezal and Petr Rosol. Both tables only confirms Zabrodsky and Bubnik were the lone players whose offensive capabilities matched the skills of top Canadian teams of that era. No one other was close from this early generation. With regards to Dolezal and Rosol, yes these two players can be ignored. Basically third-liners in the late 80s who turned to first-liners in the early 90s and feasted on some terrible teams in the era when so many high-end Euro players had crossed to NA.

So with that in mind, I / we decided not to speculate and cherrypick which games ”would be worthy” to include and which not because that would have been an endless debate. Instead, essentially everything has been included just as with the CSSR stats vs. the Soviets.

 

[DN28]

Bohuslav Ebermann?

A bit of info on Ebermann:

1) Hlinka, Ebermann, Pospisil
Claude Bédard, sport journalist and commentator for “Le Journal de Québec” and Montreal Television Company TVA, shared his thoughts about certain Czech players and Canadian National Team after WHC 1977 for Gól magazine. He said:

“Hlinka is unique to me, he is the ‘superstar’ reminding me with his elegance for us legendary Jean Beliveau. Ebermann is excellent, I am willing to bet that he would manage to score regularly 40 – 45 goals per season in NHL. Pospíšil would probably be a member of NHL All-Star Team. I genuinely like your team and in a lot of ways it reminds me Montreal Canadiens. It has a spirit. I will never understand what happened to them in the last game… I hope that next year I will arrive to Prague and that I will be commenting even better championship than this year´s. I am optimist, I assume that Canada now is going to understand how difficult tournament the World Championship is, that they are going to prepare long-term and that to Prague – with this point I am sure – they are going to send significantly better, more competitive, more responsible and more intelligent team…”

Yes, Ebermann is always described as the fastest skater of this successful Czechoslovak 70s era generation. Entertaining player to watch, "Express train" I recall he was once called... He never achieved the '1st rate star' status, for which he probably had enough raw talent, but his overall career was very likely negatively influenced by his weak team that he was playing for. Škoda Plzeň was one of those clubs always on the edge of 1st and 2nd CSSR League. 1978-1979 could have been his best season, when he won CSSR´ scoring at the Championship and finished 7th in overall scoring... but he played the whole domestic season in the 2nd League!

Ebermann was one of the best Czech players in his 3-year peak window (1977-1979).

 

[VMBM]

· Vladimir Martinec produced well with the North American rivals as well although he didn´t separate himself from the pack as much as against the ”Red Machine”. On the other hand, Martinec does actually come out with the best ppg rate of all players if you ignore the results from WHC and OG games and count only the games from Canada Cups, Summit Series´ and all the NHL/WHA encounters. Martinec would have 17 points (7+10) in 16 games. Which means that Martinec simply didn´t score as much to Canada only when he faced them at WHCs in 1977-1981 time span.

Martinec did separate himself from some of his long time regular linemates, though, like Jiri Novak and Bohuslav Stastny. One of his (later) regular linemates on the Czechoslovak national team, Bohuslav Ebermann had a somewhat better PPG vs Canada.

I think Ivan Hlinka also deserves a special mention; he has the reputation of having been a big game player, and his stats against both the USSR and Canadian teams seem to support this.

 

[DN28]

Martinec did separate himself from some of his long time regular linemates, though, like Jiri Novak and Bohuslav Stastny. One of his (later) regular linemates on the Czechoslovak national team, Bohuslav Ebermann had a somewhat better PPG vs Canada.

I think Ivan Hlinka also deserves a special mention; he has the reputation of having been a big game player, and his stats against both the USSR and Canadian teams seem to support this.

Absolutely, although Stastny-Novak-Martinec line played internationally primarily between 1973-1976 so Canada, having been out of regular WHC competition, missed to battle with this trio most of the time.

Hlinka was indeed one of the few who maintained high level of production against both of these opponents.