Christian Dvorak

Christian Dvorak
Dvorak with the London Knights in 2016
Born (1996-02-02) February 2, 1996 (age 29)
Palos, Illinois, U.S.
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 187 lb (85 kg; 13 st 5 lb)
Position Center
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 Montreal Canadiens
Arizona Coyotes
National team  United States
NHL draft 58th overall, 2014
Arizona Coyotes
Playing career 2015–present

Christian Dvorak (born February 2, 1996) is an American professional ice hockey center for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected in the second round, 58th overall, by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2014 NHL entry draft.

Playing career

Junior

Dvorak started his playing career with the Chicago Mission U16 and U18 teams.[1] After his impressive seasons in Chicago, he was chosen sixth overall in the United States Hockey League (USHL) Futures Draft, as well as in the eighth round of the 2012 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Priority Selection draft. He played the 2012–13 season with the Chicago Steel in the USHL, but decided the following year to move to Canada to join the London Knights of the OHL.[2]

Following the 2013–14 season, he was selected in the second round of the annual NHL entry draft by the Arizona Coyotes,[3] who also previously drafted his former Knights teammate Max Domi the year prior.[4]

His rise to stardom began in the 2014–15 season, where he was second on the team with a staggering 109 points, only behind linemate Mitch Marner. On April 18, 2015, Dvorak signed his first professional contract, agreeing to a three-year, entry-level deal with the Arizona Coyotes.[5] He was assigned on an amateur tryout (ATO) to make his professional debut with American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Portland Pirates.[6]

Dvorak was named co-captain of the Knights at the beginning of the 2015–16 season, sharing the honor with Marner.[7] Throughout the season, Dvorak played on the top line alongside the foregoing as well as Matthew Tkachuk.[8] Leading the team with 121 points, surpassing his previous best,[9] he helped London capture the 2016 Memorial Cup at the ENMAX Centrium in Red Deer, Alberta to end his major junior career.[10]

Professional

Arizona Coyotes (2016–2021)

On November 3, 2016, Dvorak scored his first NHL goal on goaltender Pekka Rinne to help clinch a win over the Nashville Predators. He also chipped in an assist on a goal scored by Anthony Duclair to tie the game. It was the first multi-point effort of Dvorak's NHL career.[11]

On October 30, 2017, Dvorak scored his first goal of the 2017–18 season to help the Coyotes defeat the Philadelphia Flyers and avoid setting a new NHL record with a 12th-straight loss to start the season.[12] In August 2018, he signed a six-year contract extension with the team.[13]

Initially sidelined to begin the 2018–19 season due to a pectoral muscle injury, it was subsequently announced that Dvorak required surgery to repair same.[14] Months later, after a brief conditioning stint with the AHL's Tucson Roadrunners,[15] he made his season debut with Arizona on February 26, 2019.[16]

During the course of the 2019–20 season, Dvorak would set career highs in both goals (18) as well as points (38).[17]

Montreal Canadiens (2021–present)

On September 4, 2021, Dvorak was traded by the Coyotes to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2022 first-round pick and a 2024 second-round pick.[18] With the decision made by the Canadiens not to match an offer sheet tendered to 2018 third overall selection Jesperi Kotkaniemi, the team suddenly had a void to fill at the center position. Already subject to trade rumors for an extended period, Dvorak was seen as an ideal candidate to fill the positional in need. Dvorak made his debut for the Canadiens on September 27, 2021 in a pre-season game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he scored a goal and added three assists.[19] The regular season began with major challenges for both Dvorak and the Canadiens, who experienced a historically bad season that led to much of the management brass being relieved of their duties. Dvorak was injured in January and missed two months of play, but saw his output improve on his return under new head coach Martin St. Louis. Collectively, he finished the season with a total of 11 goals and 22 assists in 56 games played.[20][21][22]

After beginning the 2022–23 season with no points through his first seven games, team head coach Martin St. Louis spoke on Dvorak's line, remarking "they have to continue doing what they're doing. All the statistics we have on their game, all the chances they produce, the way they defend, they're very good, they just haven't gotten the results."[23] Two days later, on October 29, Dvorak scored his first career hat-trick in a 7–4 victory over the St. Louis Blues, notching two goals within minutes of the third period and adding an empty netter at the end of the game.[24] Thereafter, he skated in his 400th career NHL game on January 12, 2023,[25] and registered his 200th career NHL point exactly one month later,[26] before sustaining a season-ending knee injury during a 4–3 shootout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in early March.[27]

On January 4, 2024, it was announced that Dvorak would miss the remainder of the 2023–24 season for yet another torn pectoral muscle, marking his second consecutive season-ending surgery after appearing in only 30 games during the course of the campaign.[28] At the time of his injury, his faceoff percentage of 57.77% ranked eleventh across the entire NHL.[29]

During the course of the 2024–25 season, Dvorak played in his 500th career NHL game on January 23, 2025 versus the Detroit Red Wings.[30]

International play

Medal record
Representing  United States
Men's ice hockey
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Finland

Dvorak made his international debut when he played for the United States national junior team as part of the 2016 World Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal. Collectively, he recorded eight points across seven tournament games.[31]

In May 2017, Dvorak was named to the United States men's national team for the annual IIHF World Championships.[32]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2012–13 Chicago Mission HPHL U18 31 19 33 52 4 — — — — —
2012–13 Chicago Steel USHL 9 2 3 5 2 — — — — —
2013–14 London Knights OHL 33 6 8 14 0 — — — — —
2014–15 London Knights OHL 66 41 68 109 24 10 5 8 13 0
2014–15 Portland Pirates AHL 2 1 1 2 4 5 0 1 1 0
2015–16 London Knights OHL 59 52 69 121 27 18 14 21 35 4
2016–17 Arizona Coyotes NHL 78 15 18 33 22 — — — — —
2017–18 Arizona Coyotes NHL 78 15 22 37 22 — — — — —
2018–19 Tucson Roadrunners AHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2018–19 Arizona Coyotes NHL 20 2 5 7 2 — — — — —
2019–20 Arizona Coyotes NHL 70 18 20 38 12 9 2 1 3 0
2020–21 Arizona Coyotes NHL 56 17 14 31 12 — — — — —
2021–22 Montreal Canadiens NHL 56 11 22 33 24 — — — — —
2022–23 Montreal Canadiens NHL 64 10 18 28 6 — — — — —
2023–24 Montreal Canadiens NHL 30 5 4 9 4 — — — — —
NHL totals 452 93 123 216 104 9 2 1 3 0

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2016 United States WJC 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 7 3 5 8 8
2017 United States WC 5th 8 1 0 1 6
Junior totals 7 3 5 8 8
Senior totals 8 1 0 1 6

Awards and honors

Award Year Ref
OHL
J. Ross Robertson Cup champion 2016 [33]
First All-Star Team 2016 [34]
CHL
Memorial Cup champion 2016 [35]
Memorial Cup All-Star Team 2016 [36]

References

  1. ^ Parker Beh (June 5, 2024). "4 Former Chicago Mission Players' Paths to the Coyotes". TheHockeyWriters.com. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  2. ^ "DVORAK COMMITS TO KNIGHTS". London Knights. August 19, 2013. Retrieved January 17, 2025 – via CHL.ca.
  3. ^ "DVORAK & YAKIMOWICZ SELECTED IN 2014 NHL ENTRY DRAFT". London Knights. June 30, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2025 – via CHL.ca.
  4. ^ "AROUND THE NHL: KNIGHTS BATTLING TO MAKE IT". London Knights. September 18, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2025 – via CHL.ca.
  5. ^ "Coyotes sign Christian Dvorak to three-year deal". Sportsnet.ca. April 17, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  6. ^ "DVORAK SIGNS WITH COYOTES; JOINS PIRATES FOR CALDER CUP RUN". London Knights. April 21, 2015. Retrieved January 18, 2025 – via CHL.ca.
  7. ^ "Knights name Marner and Dvorak co-captains". Ontario Hockey League. October 1, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2025 – via CHL.ca.
  8. ^ Ryan Starr (November 4, 2016). "GRADUATION DAY". London Knights. Retrieved January 18, 2025 – via CHL.ca.
  9. ^ Jason Harrison (October 11, 2016). "Arizona Coyotes' Christian Dvorak Impresses, Makes NHL Roster". SB Nation. Retrieved January 18, 2025.
  10. ^ Dhiren Mahiban (May 29, 2016). "Tkachuk, Dvorak lead Knights to Memorial Cup win". The Hockey News. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  11. ^ Jerry Brown (November 4, 2016). "Coyotes defeat Predators in shootout". NHL.com. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  12. ^ Mike Cranston (October 31, 2017). "Coyotes defeat Flyers in OT for first win". NHL.com.
  13. ^ "Dvorak signs six-year contract extension with Coyotes". NHL.com. August 9, 2018. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  14. ^ "Coyotes' Christian Dvorak Sidelined Indefinitely With Torn Pectoral". Sports Illustrated. October 19, 2018. Retrieved January 18, 2025.
  15. ^ "Coyotes Assign Dvorak To Tucson For Conditioning". Tuscon Roadrunners. February 17, 2019. Retrieved January 18, 2025.
  16. ^ Matt Layman (February 26, 2019). "Coyotes C Christian Dvorak will debut Tuesday vs. Panthers". 98.7 FM Arizona's Sports. Retrieved January 18, 2025.
  17. ^ Craig Morgan (February 20, 2020). "The gamer: Christian Dvorak speaks softly and carries a crooked stick". The Athletic. Retrieved January 18, 2025.
  18. ^ "Canadiens acquire forward Christian Dvorak". Montreal Canadiens. September 4, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2021 – via NHL.com.
  19. ^ "Dvorak notches four points for Habs as Canadiens knock off Leafs". Sportsnet.ca. September 28, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  20. ^ Dylan Waugh (August 31, 2022). "Montreal Canadiens 2021-22 Forward Ratings: Christian Dvorak". SB Nation. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
  21. ^ Marco D'Amico (April 29, 2022). "Canadiens Christian Dvorak Quietly Living Up To The Hype". Montreal Hockey Now. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
  22. ^ Arpon Basu (April 8, 2022). "The Martin St. Louis reset has benefitted Christian Dvorak as much as, or more than, any of his Canadiens teammates". The Athletic. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
  23. ^ Arpon Basu (October 28, 2022). "Christian Dvorak and the Canadiens' constant battle between process and results". The Athletic. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  24. ^ "Christian Dvorak has 1st hat trick, Canadiens beat Blues 7-4". CBS News. October 29, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  25. ^ @CanadiensMTL (January 12, 2023). "Bravo @10_CD! 👏 #GoHabsGo" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  26. ^ "MTL@EDM: Game recap". Montreal Canadiens. Retrieved February 13, 2023 – via NHL.com.
  27. ^ "Dvorak to miss rest of season for Canadiens following knee surgery". NHL.com. March 15, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  28. ^ "Dvorak out for season for Canadiens with torn pectoral muscle". NHL.com. January 4, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  29. ^ "NHL Scoring Leaders 2023-2024". QuantHockey.com. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  30. ^ "MTL@DET: Game recap". Montreal Canadiens. January 23, 2025. Retrieved January 24, 2025 – via NHL.com.
  31. ^ Karine Hains (December 26, 2024). "Once Upon A Time At The World Junior Championship: Christian Dvorak". The Hockey News. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  32. ^ "Team USA roster for world championships has 12 NHL players". ESPN.com. April 13, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  33. ^ "LONDON WINS 2015-2016 OHL CHAMPIONSHIP". London Knights. May 13, 2016. Retrieved July 13, 2024 – via CHL.ca.
  34. ^ Josh Sweetland (June 2, 2016). "OHL Announces 2015-16 All-Star Teams". Ontario Hockey League. Retrieved July 13, 2024 – via CHL.ca.
  35. ^ Sarah McLellan (June 9, 2016). "Arizona Coyotes' Dvorak wins junior title, eyes NHL". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  36. ^ Josh Sweetland (June 1, 2016). "2016 MasterCard Memorial Cup Awards & All-Stars". Ontario Hockey League. Retrieved July 13, 2024 – via CHL.ca.