Eagles Fighting Forward, Filipic, Retires
Published on September 17, 2010 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release
WINDSOR, Colo. - The Colorado Eagles announced today that the first player signed by the franchise, Fraser Filipic, is retiring. The forward was best-known for his fisticuffs -- including two knockout fights on home ice -- during his seven seasons in Northern Colorado.
"It's not easy seeing Fraser step away from the game," said team president, general manager and head coach, Chris Stewart, "but his body has taken quite a toll in recent years and I understand and respect his decision. I'll miss his friendship personally, and our team will miss his toughness and tenacity on the ice. He was a true professional who brought his best to the rink every night."
The 5-foot-9-inch, 182-pound pugilist retires as the franchise's all-time leader in penalty minutes with 1,464 (only one other player in team history has more than 1,000 -- Greg Pankewicz's 1,130). The majority of Filipic's penalty minutes came as a consequence of his 122 career fights.
Last year, his epic knockout fight against Oklahoma City's Graham Dearle in the 2007 playoffs was ranked as the 4th-best fight of the past decade at any level of professional hockey on Yahoo! Sports' Puck Daddy blog. The video of that fight has received more views -- by far -- than any other highlight in Eagles history (over 184,000). His one-punch knockout of Odessa's Jean Bourbeau is the second-highest viewed (over 63,000).
"Fraser was excellent at knowing when to drop the gloves and when his team and our fans needed a spark. His ability to get the crowd on its feet and give us a boost cannot be understated or undervalued. He played not only an important role on our roster, but he brought great entertainment value as well."
Filipic's fighting -- he backed down from no one, and usually came out on top no matter his opponent's size or pedigree -- overshadowed his underlying offensive skills. He ranks 11th on the team's all-time points list with 124 (44-80-124) and set single-season highs in 2005-06 with 44 points (19-25-44) in 63 games. In a pivotal Game 7 playoff matchup in 2008, Filipic was inserted onto the top line in place of Pankewicz and responded with two assists (on the opening and game-winning goals) in a 3-2 win that propelled Colorado to the President's Cup Finals.
"Fraser was the first player I got under contract with the Eagles over seven years ago, and I can honestly say that he consistently improved each and every year," continued Stewart. "But as I've said several times, 'It's not what you lose, it's what you have coming back,' and signing Brad MacMillan earlier in the summer will help tremendously. There's only one Fraser Filipic, and we can't replace the person, but MacMillan will go a long way toward filling Fraser's role on our team, and I have no doubt that Brad and his family will quickly be embraced by our fans and the Northern Colorado community as well."
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