Pack Attack takes a look at Polish left wing – Wojciech “Wojtek” Wolski.
The 24 year told forward was born in Zabrze, Poland but moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada in the early 1990’s. Wolski taught himself how to skate at an outdoor ice rink in Toronto. Coming from humble beginnings as a immigrant family not having the money to afford a second pair of skates Wojtek would wear his older brothers ice skates and stuff them with socks and newspapers so that they would fit.
Wolski played for the St. Michael’s Buzzers for the 2001-02 season scoring 16 goals and 33 assist in only 33 games. The following season he joined the Brampton Battalion in the OHL. Seeing 64 games in the 2002-03 season his point production went up to 57 for the regular season and had 5 goals in the play offs.
Currently Wolski still holds the following records for the Brampton Battalion:
Most career points: 328
Most career goals: 130
Most career assists: 198
Most points in a season: 128
Most assist in a season: 81
Most career power play assists: 83
Most career power play points: 141
Most career short-handed goals: 9
Most career game winning goals: 18
Most points in a game: 7
Most goals in a game: 4
Most career playoff games: 31
Drafted 21st overall by his favorite team growing up the Colorado Avalanche in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft Wolski continued to play for the Battalion until the 2005-06 season when he was called up to the Colorado Avalanche. Playing in nine regular season games with the Avalanche he scored 2 goals and 4 assist earning a spot on the playoff roster for 2006 Stanley Cup playoff run. In 8 playoff games (marking Wolski’s first NHL post season appearances) he scored one goal and four assist.
Continuing to play for his favorite childhood team and his idle Joe Sakic until being traded by the Avalanche to the Phoenix Coyotes during the 2009-10 campaign. In 62 games with the Avalanche before the trade he had 17 goals and 30 assist in the 18 regular season games after being traded to the Coyotes he had 6 goals and 12 assist along with playing in all 7 first round play off games against the Detroit Red Wings (Former Avs player playing the Red Wings in a new city for their first playoff appearance since the lock out – what a way to keep up a hatred for a team).
Wolski signed a two-year 7.6 million dollar contract with the Phoenix Coyotes that will keep him in the desert until the end of the 2011-12 season. For the next two season he’ll be a 3.8 million cap hit for the team and remain a restricted free agent numbers from CapGeek .