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Mark StreitSwiss professional ice hockey player, defenseman
Date of Birth: 11.12.1977
Country:  Switzerland |
Content:
Biography of Mark Streit
Mark Streit is a Swiss professional ice hockey player, currently serving as the alternate captain of the New York Islanders in the National Hockey League (NHL) and the captain of the Swiss national team. He is one of the few Swiss players in the NHL who can confidently play both as a defenseman and a forward. Streit was born on December 11, 1977, in Englisberg.
Early Career
Streit began his career as a teenager playing for the Fribourg-Gottéron hockey club in the 1995-96 season. The following year, he joined HC Davos and in his third season with the team, he scored 25 points in 44 games during the 1998-99 campaign. After gaining attention from North America, Streit spent most of the 1999-2000 season with the Springfield Falcons in the American Hockey League (AHL) after not being drafted into the NHL.
Success in Switzerland
Following his time with the Falcons, Streit played five seasons with the ZSC Lions in the Swiss National League A. He helped the team win the Swiss championship in 2001 and appeared in the Continental Cup in 2001 and 2002. In the 2003-04 season, Streit had a breakout performance, scoring 36 points (12 goals) in 48 games. Finally, in the 2004 NHL draft, he was selected by the Montreal Canadiens as the 262nd overall pick.
NHL Career
Upon being drafted, Streit returned to play with the ZSC Lions, where he achieved his career-high of 43 points (14 goals + 29 assists) in 44 games. He made his NHL debut with the Montreal Canadiens during the 2005-06 season, recording 11 points in 48 games. On March 16, 2006, Streit became the third Swiss player from the NHL to play in a game against the Carolina Hurricanes. In the following season, he earned 36 points in 76 games, establishing himself as an elite defenseman in the NHL. In the 2007-08 season, Streit finished third in the "Best Defenseman" rankings, behind Nicklas Lidstrom and Sergei Gonchar.
On May 1, 2008, Streit signed a five-year contract worth $20.5 million with the New York Islanders, becoming the second-highest-paid Swiss athlete. In his first season with the Islanders, Streit was selected as a reserve player for the NHL All-Star Game in 2009.
International Career
Streit made his international debut at the 1995 European Junior Championship and subsequently played in the 1996 World Junior Championship. He scored his first goal in one of the five games and his team finished ninth. In 1997, Streit improved his performance by scoring two goals as Switzerland finished in seventh place in the World Junior Championship. In 1998, he made his debut in the first of ten World Championships. In that year, Switzerland finished in fourth place, narrowly missing out on a bronze medal. Streit's best international performance came in 2005, where he scored 7 points in 6 games as Switzerland reached the quarterfinals but lost to Sweden with a score of 2-1.
In addition to the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Streit also represented Switzerland at the 2006 Olympics in Turin. He scored the game-winning goal against the Czech Republic and equalized the score to 1-1 in the first period of the quarterfinal match against Sweden, although the opposing team ultimately won 6-2.
