Thomas Vanek

Thomas Vanek (born January 19, 1984) is an Austrian professional ice hockey left winger currently playing for the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has also played for the Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, and Montreal Canadiens.

Vanek was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres fifth overall in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, making him the highest drafted Austrian in NHL history.

Early life

Vanek was born in Baden bei Wien, Austria, to Slovak mother Jarmila and Czech father Zdeněk, who emigrated from the communist Czechoslovakia to Austria in 1982. He grew up in Zell am See (Salzburg) and in Graz (Styria), where his father played professional ice hockey. In 1998, at the age of 14, he moved to the United States, where he attended and graduated from O'Gorman Catholic High School while playing junior hockey for the Sioux Falls Stampede.

Playing career

Pre-NHL years

After playing junior hockey for the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League (USHL), Vanek joined the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers, leading the team in goals (31), assists (31) and points (62) in the 2002–03 season. In part due to his prolific scoring touch, the Golden Gophers won the 2003 NCAA National Championship. Vanek was named MVP of the Frozen Four tournament, scoring the game-winning goals in both the semifinal against Michigan in overtime and in the final against New Hampshire. He was also named Minnesota's team MVP for 2003, becoming the first freshman to receive the honor. He scored the most points by a Golden Gopher freshman in 2003 since Aaron Broten who scored 72 total points in 1979–80. He was the first freshman to lead the team in scoring since Mike Antonovich in 1969–70. His 31 goals also led all NCAA freshmen in goal scoring, and was fourth in the entire country. He was also the 2003 WCHA Rookie of the Year, the third Golden Gopher to win the award.