Kristiāns Pelšs (9 September 1992 – 11 June 2013) was a Latvian ice hockey player. He was the son of poet and translator Einārs Pelšs. At the time of his death, he played for the Oklahoma City Barons of the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League.
| Kristiāns Pelšs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
9 September 1992 Preiļi, Latvia | ||
| Died |
11 June 2013 (aged 20) Riga, Latvia | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 175 lb (79 kg; 12 st 7 lb) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for |
DHK Latgale Oklahoma City Barons | ||
| NHL draft |
181st overall, 2010 Edmonton Oilers | ||
| Playing career | 2008–2013 | ||
Playing career
editPelšs was selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the 7th round (181st overall) of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. He made his European Elite debut with DHK Latgale of the Belarusian Extraleague during the 2008-09 season. In 2010, he moved to North America and signed to play major junior hockey in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Edmonton Oil Kings.
Pelšs participated at the 2012 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships as a member of the Latvia men's national junior ice hockey team.
On 1 May 2012, it was announced that Pelšs signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Edmonton Oilers.[1]
Death
editOn 11 June 2013, Pelšs drowned in the Daugava River after leaping from the Stone Bridge in Riga, Latvia.[2][3] It was confirmed that Pelšs' death was accidental.[4]
The Oil Kings established the Kristians Pelss Memorial Award in his honour, which is given "to the player who best exemplifies the traits" of Pelss.
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2008–09 | DHK Latgale | LHL | 31 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Dinamo-Juniors Riga | BXL | 46 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Edmonton Oil Kings | WHL | 63 | 14 | 19 | 33 | 31 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2011–12 | Edmonton Oil Kings | WHL | 63 | 28 | 22 | 50 | 95 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 2 | ||
| 2012–13 | Oklahoma City Barons | AHL | 20 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Stockton Thunder | ECHL | 13 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| AHL totals | 20 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| ECHL totals | 13 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| WHL totals | 126 | 42 | 41 | 83 | 126 | 21 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 10 | ||||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Latvia
| ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| IIHF World U18 Championship | ||
 |
2009 Italy | Division I Group B |
| World Junior Ice Hockey Championships | ||
| |
2011 Belarus | Division I Group A |
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Latvia | U18 D1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| 2010 | Latvia | U18 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2011 | Latvia | WJC D1 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 31 | |
| 2012 | Latvia | WJC | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | |
| Junior totals | 21 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 45 | |||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Oilers ink Pelss to three-year entry level contract". Edmonton Oilers. 1 May 2012. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
- ^ Pazudis hokejists Kristiāns Pelšs; aizdomas par noslīkšanu - Latvijā - nra.lv
- ^ "Valsts policija on Facebook". Facebook. Archived from the original on 30 April 2022.[user-generated source]
- ^ ""It was an accident, Kristians just wanted to swim" -- Friends of Kristians Pelss speak up". Edmonton Journal. 28 June 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
 | This biographical article relating to ice hockey in Latvia is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |