Kurt Sauer

Position: Defenseman
Shoots: Left
Height: 6' 4"
Weight: 220
Jersey #: 44
Born: Jan 16 '81 (Age 28)
Born in: St. Cloud, MN, United States
Drafted: Colorado's 3rd round choice, 88th overall, in 2000
Acquired: From Anaheim along with a fourth-round pick (Raymond Macias) in the 2005 Entry Draft in exchange for Martin Skoula, Feb. 21, 2004

Kurt Sauer was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche, 88th overall in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. Following the draft, Sauer remained unsigned and continued to play for his junior team, the Spokane Chiefs. In June 2002, Sauer was signed by the Anaheim Ducks. During Sauer's debut NHL year in 2003 with Anaheim, he made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. The following year on February 21, 2004, Sauer was traded to the team that drafted him, the Colorado Avalanche, for Martin Skoula.

Sauer spent the next 4 1/2 years with the Avalanche before leaving as a free agent. This brings us to the Coyotes era; on July 1, 2008, Sauer signed a four-year deal with the Phoenix Coyotes. Kurt comes from a very athletic family. Kurt's younger brother, Michael Sauer is also a defenseman and New York Rangers prospect. His older brother, Kent Sauer, was a draftee of the Nashville Predators. Kent was forced to retire due to knee problems. His oldest brother Craig Sauer played college football at the University of Minnesota and played in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons and the Minnesota Vikings until a foot injury forced him into retirement. Craig was on the Atlanta Falcons team that played in the Super Bowl. His father Curt played for the Minnesota Twins.

Little Known Kurt Sauer Facts:

Pets: Dog named Boone

Favorite Food: Crappie Filets

Favorite TV Show: Whitetail Revolution

Favorite Movie: Dumb and Dumber

Favorite Athlete: Michael Jordan

Superstitions: Put left skate on before right skate

Most Memorable Hockey Moment: Run to the Stanley Cup Finals with Anaheim in 2003

Hobbies: Spending time with family and fishing

Favorite Road City in the NHL: Minneapolis, MN because its close to home

Reason Behind Jersey Number: My number was 34 for so long but it was taken on the Coyotes so I picked 44 which was similar.

Nicknames: Sweets, Tom

Favorite Tech Gadget: Laptop *from the 2008-2009 Official Team Yearbook of the Phoenix Coyotes

What the Coyotes fans have to say about Kurt:

"In the year of the defenseman, Kurt Sauer was not just a pleasant surprise, he was a life saver. With Ballard and Boynton sacrificed to bring in that coveted and much needed #1 centerman (Olli Jokinen), our Kurt Alert has become that quiet,calming presence at the blue line, eating up the gut churning minutes against the opponent's top players. Under rated and viciously under appreciated around the league, Sweets was a bargain. GMDM pulled off the defensive steal of the season by grabbing this diamond-in-the-rough. While you won't often find his name on any scoring sheet, you will find him shutting down top lines w/ Z, layin out big hits like Doan, gettin the puck out of zone on the PK, blocking shots and even fighting if he has to. Leading by example, playing through the pain, the name Sauer conjures up thoughts of the pistols that bear his name, their motto is "Reliability. First time. Everytime." apparently thats Kurt's mottotoo. We only won 4 of the 10 games while he was out. Sounds like a tremendous part of the heart n soul of the Coyotes to me. Oh yeah... that big blonde is a fan charmer and is sure easy on the eyes too. What more could a gal wish for?" -Z4Dfence at Coyotes Hip Check Blog

"Kurt Sauer...What can I say that I have not said all along...he rocks! The Avalanche is my 1B team so I already knew what he was all about...a workhorse of a shutdown D man who does his job so well it's hard to even notice what he really does...until he got injured. The Coyotes and the fans surely missed his presence on the ice but I am VERY glad he is back. Even though he's not quite 100% he's still better than a lot of other healthy D men in the league. Just ask the Maple Leafs...as it was rumored they confused Jeff Finger with Sauer and got the short end of the deal...LOL!http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=16043 As the numbers clearly show, Sauer is the "real" D man." -Q

"Here's my take on Kurt: Here's a guy that goes out on to the ice, knows his job, and gets it done. He and Z are one, if not the, better d-lines on the Phoenix Coyotes." -Dawn

"I was a little leary about our blue line once Ballard and Boynton were traded, but getting Sauer turned out to be a good thing for the Coyotes. He is physical and mans that blue line like no other. He can't shoot on net, but we love him for trying. Although we (ok, I) still miss Ballard, Kurt has done a great job of winning my (our) heart(s)." -hipchecks

"Kurt Sauer is one of the most genuine good souls. He was very accommodating after training camp, in that he stopped and signed what memorabilia we had for him to sign and even asked if we had anything else for him to sign. Then he sauntered away. Let me tell you, that man can saunter away from me any day and anytime he wants. Next to DMo, Kurt Sauer has the most bodacious badunkadunk!" -MissConduct

REFERENCES: Wikipedia, Getty Images,  Team Photo from phoenixcoyotes.com

 

♥ -TThe Diva

Editors Note: Be sure to check out The Diva's site too! We'll hopefully see a bunch more of these before season's end...

Zbynek Michalek is one of the Coyotes best kept secrets. Quietly leading the league in shots blocked, he certainly does not go unnoticed by the Phoenix fanbase.

"Z is probably the most underrated player in the entire NHL. He consistently puts himself between the puck and his goalie. I am sure that boy is covered in puck sized bruises, as he leads the NHL in blocked shots. He isn’t afraid to hop in and play goalie if needed either. He may not get a lot of goals, but the ones he does get usually come at the most needed times. They typically seem to be game winners or at least tie the game up. I don’t know what else to say about Z. His play on ice speaks volumes to the type of player he is. He is quiet but efficient and I wouldn’t have it any other way." -hipchecks

"Z is having the best year of his career. He's been a solid and stable D man and has just about blocked more shots than Bryzgalov!" -Q

How he got here: Z was born in Jindrichuv Hradec, Czech republic on December 23, 1982. Michalek began playing hockey when he was about six years old, and the game came easy to him. Michalek was not drafted in the NHL entry draft. He was acquired by the Coyotes from Minnesota for Erik Westrum and Dustin Wood on August 26, 2005.

Little Known Z Facts:

Favorite food: Steak

Favorite Musician/Band: Coldplay

Favorite TV Show: Survivor and CSI:Miami

Favorite Movie: Eight Below

Favorites Actor/Actress: George Clooney and Jessica Biel

Most Memorable Hockey Moment: 1st NHL game and winning the Calder Cup (AHL) in 2003.

Hobbies: surfing the internet and watching movies

Favorite City in the NHL: San Jose

Reason Behind Jersey Number: picked it when first started playing hockey

Nickname: Z

Best Friend in the NHL: Brother Milan Michalek (plays for San Jose Sharks)

Favorite Tech Gadget: Laptop

Favorite Vacation Spot: Anywhere in Croatia

Person He Would Like to Meet Most: Lance Armstrong
(from the 2008-2009 Phoenix Coyotes Team Yearbook)

What Z has to say: "When I see a shot coming, I just try to block it if I can," Michalek said. "In that moment, there’s no time to think about getting injured. I just do it." "This year, the coaches gave me more of a shutdown defenseman role versus the other teams’ top lines," Michalek said. "It’s been challenging every single night and it’s a tough job because you have to be mentally ready every day and every game because you are playing against the best players on the planet. Blocking shots is just one part of it, but it can help us win games and I’m trying to help us win games. That’s the way I play. I don’t even think about it. It just comes natural to me."

"You have to be careful not to screen your goalie," Michalek said. "You have to realize that you can’t block every shot and on the ones you can’t block you have to make sure the goalie can see the puck. So you have to pick your spots and make sure the timing is right." (from Zbynek Michalek feature at phoenixcoyotes.com)
More on what the fans have to say about Z :

"Zybnek Michalek is one of the best defensemen on the team. He has got to be covered in bruises from head to toe! He blocks shots with his body just like Mathias(Oh how I miss him) Tjarnqvist used to do. He is an excellent penalty killer. HA! That sounds funny! Zybnek Michalek a killer. Hee hee! He also makes me laugh with that windshield wiper-like tongue of his. " -coyotesfanjen

"Zybnek Michalek is a young d-man on the 3rd pairing... I notice that he's not going to burn up the scoring nor does he ever have a lot of penalty minutes. The one thing that does stand out to me is that he seems to have the knack of timely scoring. In other words, its not how much you score or make a big play, it's when you score or make a big play." -Jay Burd

"Zbynek Michalek is like Kim Kardashian’s sister. You may not have heard of Khloe. But she’s smart (comparatively), sexy and poses naked for issues that she cares about.

(On a side note, I would like to encourage most of our hockey players to also pose nude for causes that they care about.) But I digress. Zbynek is like Khloe in that he’s fantastic and hardly anyone is paying attention. He’s blocked 110 shots this year (as of 12/19/08 #1 in the league). If you’re not a numbers person- then know that he’ll sacrifice his body to stop a puck faster than you can say "Jesus Fish." He’s fierce on the power play and cute as a Czech button. So pay attention to this week’s spotlighted player, you might just find that you’ve been missing out on the good stuff.

P.S. My Zbynek fantasy- since he’s so good at stopping pucks, I suspect he’s equally good at stopping cars. So we would spend an afternoon as honorary crossing guards for a local elementary school. And then follow it up with a quick round of hopscotch and a discussion of the childhood games he played in the Czech Republic." -The Virg

 

I'd like to end this player spotlight post with a photo tribute to Z. These photos were all taken by Bleadin' Teal in AZ and highlight some of Z's career here in Phoenix. We love you Z! Thanks for all you do for this team!

 

3.24.2007

 

11.08.2007

 

11.08.2008

11.24.2007  

 

12.18.2008

12.20.2008  

1.02.2009  

 

 ♥ -The Diva CREDITS: PhoenixCoyotes.com AP Photos Yahoo Sports

 

 

I have decided to jazz up my player spotlights a bit by adding a post for each player who earns the honor each week. This week Todd "Fridge" Fedoruk  has earned his place in the spotlight.

Why? On any given day Fridge can be found joking around with teammates or high fiving them as they head back out onto the ice after a game intermission. He isn't afraid to hit, fight, dig, whatever is nessecary to give his team the edge. He provides his teammates with everything from comic relief to major morale boosts. He provides the fans with great hits and hard work. He's even contributed some goals so far this season...

 

Continue reading this post »

Odie, you forgot The Diva's Game Day Preview...

Tonight the Coyotes face Division rivals the LA Kings. The Coyotes and Kings have not seen eachother since the final preseason game back on October 4th when the Coyotes beat the Kings 5-2. The Kings played the Maple Leafs Monday night, losing 3-1. The Coyotes played the Sharks Saturday night, losing 3-2. Neither team wishes to extend their losing streak to 2.

According to the Coyotes website, Goaltender Mikael Tellqvist will return to the net tonight. Tellqvist played Saturday night after Ilya Bryzgalov was pulled from the game during the 1st period. Wayne Gretzky says; "Confidence is a huge part of the game and (Bryzgalov) is lacking a little bit of confidence," Gretzky said. "We know he is an elite goaltender … he is in a down time right now. He’s worked hard. He will work his way out of this."
"Telly has been strong and really good," Gretzky said. Telly has stopped 95 of the last 99 shots he has faced in the past few games. Telly played the last period of the Coyotes & Kings last game, stopping 19 of the 21 shots he faced that night. Bryzgalov played the first two periods, facing only 17 shots and stopping them all. The Coyotes are currently 6-4-1 at home while the Kings are 3-4-0 away.

*Photos by A.H.