Selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the fourth round (No. 106) of the 1996 NHL Draft, Rozsival made his NHL debut against the Dallas Stars on Oct. 1, 1999, and got his first point in his third game, an assist against the Colorado Avalanche on Oct. 8, 1999. He scored his first goal later that season, against the Carolina Hurricanes on Dec. 15, 1999.
Rozsival played five seasons with the Penguins, then signed with the New York Rangers as a free agent on Aug. 29, 2005. The defenseman had his best offensive seasons with New York. In 2005-06 he tied for the NHL lead with a plus-35 rating. In 2006-07 he scored a personal NHL-best 40 points (10 goals, 30 assists), and in 2007-08 he scored a career-high 13 goals.
Selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the fourth round (No. 106) of the 1996 NHL Draft, Rozsival made his NHL debut against the Dallas Stars on Oct. 1, 1999, and got his first point in his third game, an assist against the Colorado Avalanche on Oct. 8, 1999. He scored his first goal later that season, against the Carolina Hurricanes on Dec. 15, 1999.
Rozsival played five seasons with the Penguins, then signed with the New York Rangers as a free agent on Aug. 29, 2005. The defenseman had his best offensive seasons with New York. In 2005-06 he tied for the NHL lead with a plus-35 rating. In 2006-07 he scored a personal NHL-best 40 points (10 goals, 30 assists), and in 2007-08 he scored a career-high 13 goals.
After six seasons in New York he was traded to the Phoenix Coyotes on Jan. 10, 2011. A free agent after the 2011-12 season, he signed with the Chicago Blackhawks on Sept. 11, 2012.
Providing smart play and veteran leadership, Rozsival averaged more than 19 minutes of ice time per game during the Stanley Cup Playoffs at age 35 to help the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup.
He still was playing a significant role with the Blackhawks during the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs when he broke his ankle during Game 4 of the Western Conference Second Round against the Minnesota Wild but was able to watch the Blackhawks celebrate another Stanley Cup championship.
His playing time diminished in 2015-16 and 2016-17, and he spent all of the 2017-18 season in long-term injured reserve with post-concussion symptoms.
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- WHL East First All-Star Team (1998)
- Signed as a free agent by Trinec (Czech Rep.), September 17, 2004.
- Signed as a free agent by NY Rangers, August 29, 2005.
- Traded to Phoenix by NY Rangers for Wojtek Wolski, January 10, 2011.
- Signed as a free agent by Chicago, September 11, 2012.
