Goran Bezina

Goran Bezina
Born (1980-03-21) 21 March 1980
Split, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 225 lb (102 kg; 16 st 1 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NL team
Former teams		 Genève-Servette HC
HC Fribourg-Gottéron
Phoenix Coyotes
Medveščak Zagreb
National team   Switzerland
NHL Draft 234th overall, 1999
Phoenix Coyotes
Playing career 1997–present

Goran Bezina (born 21 March 1980 in Split, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia) is a Swiss professional ice hockey defenseman who is currently playing for Genève-Servette HC of the National League (NL). He previously played for the Arizona Coyotes in the National Hockey League (NHL), Medveščak Zagreb of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and HC Fribourg-Gottéron.

Playing career

A product of Monthey-Chablais HC, Bezina made his debut in the Swiss top-flight National League A (NLA) for HC Fribourg-Gottéron during the 1998-99 season and was drafted 234th overall by the Phoenix Coyotes in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. From 2001 to 2004, he played within the Phoenix Coyotes organization with three NHL appearances for the Coyotes and 204 contests for their AHL affiliate, the Springfield Falcons.[1]

Bezina spent most of his professional career with Genève-Servette HC of the National League A (NLA) and left the club after twelve years (ten of those as a captain) upon the conclusion of the 2015-16 season. In the course of his Genève-Servette stint, Bezina appeared in 639 NLA contests, scoring 384 points.[2] In June 2016, he put pen to paper on a contract with Medvescak Zagreb of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL),[3] but returned to Genève-Servette on January 31, 2017.[4] He eventually played 10 games with the team this year, tallying 3 assists. At the end of the season, Bezina was not offered a contract extension, making him a free agent.

On September 1, 2017, a few days before the start of the 2017–18 season, Bezina unexpectedly returned to Geneva on a 1-year deal worth CHF 750,000. He agreed to reduce his salary to play his 14th season with the Grenats.[5] On April 17, 2018, Bezina agreed to a one-year contract extension with Geneva worth CHF 700,000.

International play

Representing the Swiss national team, Bezina played at the 2006 Olympic Games and eleven World Championships.

References

  1. ↑ "Goran Bezina | LNH.com - Joueurs". www.nhl.com. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  2. ↑ "Actualité - Goran Bezina évoluera bel et bien en KHL | Planète Hockey". Planète Hockey. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  3. ↑ "Finally in Croatia - Bezina signs with Medvescak". www.medvescak.com. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  4. ↑ Club, www.gshc.ch, GSHC - Site officiel du Genève-Servette Hockey. "Goran Bezina de retour aux Vernets - Genève-Servette Hockey Club". www.gshc.ch (in French). Retrieved 2017-02-01.
  5. ↑ "Goran Bezina has agreed to terms with Genève-Servette HC". www.swisshockeynews.ch. Retrieved 2017-09-01.


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