| Helmuts Balderis | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Balderis in 2014 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born |
31 July 1952 Riga, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Right Wing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shot | Left | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Played for |
Dinamo Riga CSKA Moscow Minnesota North Stars | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team |
 Soviet Union and Latvia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NHL draft |
238th overall, 1989 Minnesota North Stars | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career |
1973–1985 1989–1996 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Helmuts Balderis-Sildedzis (born 31 July 1952) is a former Latvian professional ice hockey player.[1][2] He played on the right wing and participated at the 1980 Winter Olympics, where the Soviet team unexpectedly lost to the United States. He played part of a single season in the National Hockey League after being drafted in 1989 by the Minnesota North Stars, becoming the oldest player to be drafted by an NHL team at the age of 36. In 1998, he was inducted into International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
- ^ "Visi Latvijas olimpieši; Helmūts Balderis-Sildedzis" (in Latvian). Latvian Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
- ^ "Helmut Balderis". NHL.com. National Hockey League. Retrieved 14 January 2017.