Shot Left Role Ice hockey player National team Latvia Height 1.90 m | Playing career Positions Defenseman Name Kaspars Astasenko | |
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Born 17 February 1975
Riga, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union ( 1975-02-17 ) Weight 206 lb (93 kg; 14 st 10 lb) NHL Draft 127th overall, 1999
Tampa Bay Lightning Died November 20, 2012, Riga, Latvia Played for Dinamo Riga, HC CSKA Moscow, Cincinnati Cyclones | ||
R i p kaspars asta enko
Kaspars Astašenko (17 February 1975 – 20 November 2012) was a Latvian professional ice hockey player. Astašenko was born in Riga, Latvia. Astašenko was drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft, 127th overall. Astašenko played parts of two seasons in the National Hockey League with the Lightning.
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Junior
Astašenko began his career in his native Riga with HK Pārdaugava Rīga, competing in both the Latvian top league and later to Russian Superleague before signing with Russian club, HC CSKA Moscow in 1995.
North America
In 1998, Astašenko signed with the Cincinnati Cyclones of the International Hockey League. After a stint with the Cyclones, Astašenko was surprisingly drafted by Tampa Bay and went on to play 23 regular games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Lightning as well as playing for the IHL's Detroit Vipers and Long Beach Ice Dogs. He later played in the American Hockey League for the Springfield Falcons and the Lowell Lock Monsters.
Europe
He would return to Europe in 2003, with stops at Finland's SM-liiga with Ilves and HPK, back in Russia with Khimik Voskresensk, the Slovak Extraliga with HC Slovan Bratislava, Ritten Sport of Italy's Serie A and the United Kingdom's Elite Ice Hockey League for the Belfast Giants as well as brief spells in his native Latvia and the lower leagues in Finland.
International play
Astašenko played for the Latvian national team in the Ice Hockey World Championships in 2001 and 2006, as well as the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Personal life
In 2003, Astašenko was arrested for possession of Heroin in the United States, effectively ending his North American career. On November 20, 2012, after suffering from various addictions, Astašenko died on November 20, 2012.