Jeffrey Thomas Farkas (born January 24, 1978) is an American former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

. He was drafted in the third round, 57th overall, by the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. He played 11 games in the NHL for the Maple Leafs and

Atlanta Thrashers The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League (NHL) on June 25, 1997, and became the League's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL sea ...

between 2000 and 2003, mainly playing in the minor

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

, before a spinal injury during a game forced his early retirement. Internationally Farkas played for the American national junior team at three World Junior Championships, winning a silver medal in

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

Playing career

After playing four seasons of college hockey for

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

, Farkas joined the Maple Leafs' roster for the

2000 Stanley Cup Playoffs The 2000 Stanley Cup playoffs, was the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL), that began on April 12, 2000, and concluded on June 10. The New Jersey Devils defeated the reigning champion Dallas Stars in a six-game series to win ...

. He appeared in three games during that postseason, recording one goal. Despite his playoff success, Farkas appeared in only eight games for the Maple Leafs over the next two seasons, and three more for the

during the 2002–03 season. While playing for the

Chicago Wolves The Chicago Wolves are a professional ice hockey team based in Rosemont, Illinois. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena ...

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, Farkas was pushed from behind, and fell headfirst into the boards during a game against the

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Rochester, New York. They are the American Hockey League affiliate of the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home g ...

. He suffered a fractured fifth

cervical fracture A cervical fracture, commonly called a broken neck, is a fracture of any of the seven cervical vertebrae in the neck. Examples of common causes in humans are traffic collisions and diving into shallow water. Abnormal movement of neck bones or pie ...

and, according to medical reports, came within millimeters of being rendered

quadriplegic Tetraplegia, also known as quadriplegia, is defined as the dysfunction or loss of Motor control, motor and/or Sense, sensory function in the Cervical vertebrae, cervical area of the spinal cord. A loss of motor function can present as either weak ...

. The injury forced Farkas' early retirement from the sport. In 2014 Farkas was inducted into the Boston College Varsity Club Hall of Fame.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farkas, Jeffrey Thomas 1978 births Living people American men's ice hockey centers AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Atlanta Thrashers players Boston College Eagles men's ice hockey players Chicago Wolves players Manitoba Moose players Sportspeople from Williamsville, New York Ice hockey people from Erie County, New York People with tetraplegia St. John's Maple Leafs players Toronto Maple Leafs draft picks Toronto Maple Leafs players