Roman Lyashenko

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Roman Lyashenko
Born (1979-05-01)May 1, 1979
Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Died July 5, 2003(2003-07-05) (aged 24)
Antalya, Turkey
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 189 lb (86 kg; 13 st 7 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Right
Played for Torpedo Yaroslavl
Dallas Stars
New York Rangers
National team  
NHL Draft
 52nd overall,
1997
Dallas Stars
Playing career 1995–2003

Roman Yurievich Lyashenko (

1997 NHL Entry Draft
.

Lyashenko represented Russia internationally at both the junior and senior levels, capturing three medals (gold, silver and bronze) at the

World Junior Championships and a silver medal at the World Championships. Lyashenko committed suicide
while on vacation with his family on July 5, 2003.

Playing career

Lyashenko spent three seasons playing with

1997 NHL Entry Draft by the Dallas Stars.[2] Leading up to the draft, scouts described him as a defensive forward with good character and leadership skills.[3] He was considered an atypical Russian prospect due to his attention to defensive play. One source had him ranked as a first round prospect.[4]
He signed with the Stars in July 1999.[5]

Lyashenko made his NHL debut with the Dallas Stars during the

Michigan K-Wings, notching five points in nine games.[1] During his rookie season in the NHL, Lyashenko played center on the Stars second line, earning praise from coach Ken Hitchcock, "His game has risen beyond his years. He's 20 years old in age only. He looks like a real good fit for us."[6] The Stars went to the Stanley Cup Finals that season, but lost to the New Jersey Devils. In the Stars' first round playoff series against the Edmonton Oilers, Lyashenko scored the winning goal in the first game of the series.[7] During the 2000 Western Conference final against the Colorado Avalanche, Lyashenko scored the series clinching goal in game seven.[8] Lyashenko played in 16 playoff games for the Stars.[1] During the playoffs in his rookie season, Hitchcock was happy with Lyashenko's play, saying, "He's an exceptional defensive player -- his offensive skills have improved as the season's gone on."[7]

During the 2000–2001 season, Lyashenko again split time between the Stars and the Utah Grizzlies, who were the Stars' new IHL affiliate. At the end of the season, Lyashenko had played 60 games with the Stars and recorded nine points. At the IHL level, he played in six games and had one assist.[1] Lyashenko was popular with his teammates in Dallas, at one point his teammates lobbied Hitchcock to get him more playing time.[9]

On March 12, 2002, Lyashenko and

Hartford Wolfpack of the American Hockey League (AHL).[1] In his last season of professional hockey, Lyashenko played two games with the Rangers, and 71 with the Wolfpack. He put up the best numbers of his career in North America, with 23 goals and 35 assists.[1] He played in the 2003 AHL All-Star Game, despite having asked for a release midway through the season to return to Russia. The request was denied by the Rangers, but his agent, Todd Diamond, said there were other teams interested in the forward's services; "Several teams were interested in him because they knew he wasn't a fourth-line guy."[9]

International play

Medal record
Representing  Russia
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1997 Geneva
Silver medal – second place 1998 Helsinki
Gold medal – first place 1999 Winnipeg
World Championships
Silver medal – second place
2002 Gothenburg

Lyashenko represented Russia internationally at both the

World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.[11]

Lyashenko played in a single tournament at the senior international level, representing Russia at the

2002 World Championships. He left his AHL team, the Hartford Wolf Pack, during their playoff run to join Russia at the tournament. Wolf Pack general manager Al Coates was disappointed to lose Lyashenko from his club, but understood the decision: "Everyone wants to play for his country, and he shouldn't be portrayed as a bad guy. He's a good guy and a good player."[12] In nine games, he recorded two assists and 14 penalty minutes.[2]
Russia captured a silver medal at the tournament after a shocking loss to Slovakia in the final.

Death

While on vacation in Antalya, Turkey with his mother and sister, Lyashenko was found dead in his hotel room the morning of July 6, 2003.[13][14] His death was initially reported to be a suicide.[15] Reports by Turkish police confirmed this, stating that Lyashenko had left a suicide note and attempted to cut his arms and wrists before hanging himself. A Turkish police officer, speaking anonymously, said that Lyashenko apologized for killing himself in the note.[16] New York Rangers general manager Glen Sather said of Lyashenko, "Roman was a quality individual who had a positive impact on everyone he touched, both on and off the ice."[15] Dallas Stars general manager Doug Armstrong expressed similar sentiments: "Roman was a quality young man who we were privileged to have in our organization for three years."[15] Lyashenko was buried in Yaroslavl on July 12, 2003.[17]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season
 Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1995–96 Torpedo Yaroslavl-2 RUS-2 52 6 4 10 12 — — — — —
1996–97 Torpedo Yaroslavl RSL 42 5 7 12 16 9 3 0 3 6
1996–97 Torpedo Yaroslavl-2 RUS-3 2 1 1 2 0 — — — — —
1997–98 Torpedo Yaroslavl RSL 46 7 6 13 28 7 2 0 2 14
1998–99 Torpedo Yaroslavl RSL 42 10 9 19 51 9 0 4 4 8
1999–00
 Dallas Stars NHL 58 6 6 12 10 16 2 1 3 0
1999–00
Michigan K-Wings
 IHL 9 3 2 5 8 — — — — —
2000–01 Dallas Stars NHL 60 6 3 9 45 1 0 0 0 0
2000–01 Utah Grizzlies IHL 6 0 1 1 2 — — — — —
2001–02 Dallas Stars NHL 4 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2001–02 New York Rangers NHL 15 2 0 2 0 — — — — —
2001–02 Utah Grizzlies AHL 58 11 25 36 37 — — — — —
2001–02 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL — — — — — 4 1 1 2 2
2002–03 New York Rangers NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2002–03 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 71 23 35 58 44 2 1 1 2 0
RSL totals 130 22 22 44 95 25 5 4 9 28
NHL totals 139 14 9 23 55 17 2 1 3 0

International

Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
1997 Russia EJC 6 4 2 6 8
1997 Russia WJC 6 1 2 3 4
1998 Russia WJC 7 0 3 3 6
1999 Russia WJC 7 3 2 5 0
2002 Russia WC 9 0 2 2 14
Junior totals 20 4 7 11 10
Senior totals 9 0 2 2 14

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Roman Lyashenko". Hockeydb.com. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d "Roman Lyashenko". National Hockey League. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
  3. ^ "SLAM! 1997 NHL Draft Prospect Profiles: Roman Lyashenko". SLAM! Sports. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved January 6, 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ^ Duhatschek, Eric (June 21, 1997). "1997 Entry Draft: The Top 20". Calgary Herald. p. E5.
  5. ^ "Billington dealt to Caps". Toronto Star. July 17, 1999. p. 1.
  6. ^ "NHL Notebook: Sheppard a Panther; Florida signs veteran winger to one-year deal". The Windsor Star. November 16, 1999. p. D3.
  7. ^ a b Brownlee, Robin (April 13, 2000). "New face produces familiar result: Stars' rookie gets Cup defence started in style". Calgary Herald. p. D1.
  8. ^ Kennedy, Aaron (November 13, 2001). "AHL matinee goes today". New Brunswick Telegraph Journal. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  9. ^ a b Graves, Gary (September 18, 2003). "Questions over suicides linger". USA Today. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
  10. ^ "Manny Malhotra". TSN. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
  11. ^ Podnieks, Andrew (ed.). IIHF Media Guide and Record Book 2011. Moydart Press. p. 248.
  12. ^ Berlet, Bruce (April 26, 2002). "Swanson Back At Home In Hamilton". Hartford Courant. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
  13. ^ Diamos, Jason (July 8, 2003). "HOCKEY; Rangers' Lyashenko Found Dead In Turkey". The New York Times. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  14. ^ "Lyashenko dead at 24". Sports Illustrated. July 7, 2003. Retrieved January 18, 2014.
  15. ^ a b c "N.Y. Ranger is found dead in hotel room ; Lyashenko on vacation in Turkey Cause of death reported to be suicide". Toronto Star. July 8, 2003. p. E02.
  16. ^ "Lyashenko's death a suicide, police say". Edmonton Journal. July 10, 2003. p. D6.
  17. ^ "PLUS: HOCKEY; Rangers' Lyashenko Is Buried in Russia". The New York Times. July 13, 2003. Retrieved January 6, 2011.

External links

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