Sam Ftorek

{{short description|American ice hockey player}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2014}}

{{Infobox ice hockey player

| alt =

| name = Sam Ftorek

| image = Sam Ftorek.JPG

| caption =

| image_size = 230px

| played_for = AHL
Manchester Monarchs
ECHL
Augusta Lynx
Mobile Mysticks
Greensboro Generals
Gwinnett Gladiators
Fresno Falcons
Cincinnati Cyclones
Kalamazoo Wings
Norfolk Admirals
NLA
Kloten Flyers
BISL
Bracknell Bees

| position = Defense

| height_ft = 6

| height_in = 1

| weight_lb = 192

| shoots = Right

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1974|11|30}}

| birth_place = Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.

| draft = Undrafted

| career_start = 1998

| career_end = 2015
2017—2018

}}

Sam Ftorek (born November 30, 1974) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman, who last played with the Norfolk Admirals of the ECHL. He is the son of former NHL player and coach Robbie Ftorek.{{cite web |url=http://www.thesphl.com/view/thesphl/news/news_446568 |title=Ftorek named first head coach in Rail Yard Dawgs history {{!}} SPHL Southern Professional Hockey League |website=www.thesphl.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160502114157/http://www.thesphl.com/view/thesphl/news/news_446568 |archive-date=2016-05-02}}

He played with the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL from 2009 to 2015.{{cite web| url = http://echl.com/stats/player.php?lang_code=en&id=2572 | website = ECHL | date = 2013-04-15 | accessdate = 2013-04-15 | title = Sam Ftorek player profile}} On June 18, 2015, Ftorek announced his retirement from professional hockey after 17 seasons and was announced as an assistant coach with the Kalamazoo Wings.{{cite web| url = http://www.mlive.com/kwings/index.ssf/2015/06/post_33.html | title = Sam Ftorek named Kalamazoo assistant coach | publisher = MLive.com | date = 2015-06-18 | accessdate = 2015-06-18}}

On April 29, 2016, after one season as an assistant coach in Kalamazoo, he was named the first head coach of the Southern Professional Hockey League's Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs.{{cite web |url=http://railyarddawgs.pointstreaksites.com/view/roanokerailyarddawgs/news-1147/news_446567 |title=Ftorek Named First Head Coach In Rail Yard Dawgs History |publisher=Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs |date=April 29, 2016}}

In December 2017, Ftorek was elected to the ECHL Hall of Fame.{{Cite web |last=Walls |first=Dave |date=2017-12-07 |title=Rail Yard Dawgs coach Sam Ftorek named to ECHL Hall of Fame |url=https://wset.com/sports/content/rail-yard-dawgs-coach-sam-ftorek-named-to-echl-hall-of-fame |access-date=2023-01-04 |website=WSET |language=en}} 11 days later, on December 18, 2017, Ftorek was relieved of his coaching duties in Roanoke, in favor of Dan Bremner. Over 74 games in the Rail Yard Dawgs' two seasons, Ftorek's team finished with a record of 22–41–11. {{Cite web |last=Walls |first=Dave |date=2017-12-18 |title=Ftorek relieved of Rail Yard Dawgs coaching duties |url=https://wset.com/sports/content/ftorek-relieved-of-rail-yard-dawgs-coaching-duties |access-date=2023-01-04 |website=WSET |language=en}} He would return to the Norfolk Admirals as a player for 22 games, before retiring again at the end of the '17-'18 season. {{Cite web |title=Sam Ftorek Returns from Retirement, Joins Admirals |url=https://www.norfolkadmirals.com/en/news/2018/2/sam-ftorek-returns-retirement-joins-admirals-6703 |access-date=2023-01-04 |website=www.norfolkadmirals.com |language=en}}