One of the best hockey players ever, Karlis Skrastins [Kārlis Skrastiņš] was a captain of the Latvian team known as the NHL Iron Man who played continuous 495 games, a devoted Latvian patriot, special and outstanding person, model for the Latvian hockey image.
Born on 9 July 1974 in Riga, he died on 7 September 2011 in Yaroslavl. During his career, Skrastins [Skrastiņš] played 832 games at National Hockey League Clubs: Nashville Predators, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers and Dallas Stars. As part of the Latvian team, Skrastins [Skrastiņš] participated in the Olympic Games as well as in nine World Cups having played 151 game together with the team. For many years, Karlis Skrastins [Kārlis Skrastiņš] had held the Iron Man title for the record number of consequential NHL games that is to say 495 games with no break.
He was married to Zane Skrastina [Zane Skrastiņa] and has 3 children: Karoline [Karolīna], Laurena [Laurēna] and Vivien [Viviena].