Tatar reached the 20-goal plateau for the third-straight season in 2016-17, leading the Red Wings in goals (25) and ranking among team leaders with 21 assists (6th), 46 points (3rd), five power-play goals (T1st), five game-winning goals (1st), 166 shots on goal (3rd) and a 15.1% shooting percentage (2nd). He also recorded his first career hat trick last season, doing so in a 6-4 win versus Anaheim on Dec. 17, 2016. A native of Ilava, Slovakia, Tatar also registered three goals in six games for Team Europe at the World Cup of Hockey in Toronto and Montreal in September 2016. The 26-year-old has skated in 345 games with the Red Wings since 2010-11, notching 194 points (99-95-194), a plus-16 rating and 112 penalty minutes. Tatar has also totaled 17 career NHL playoff games with the Red Wings, recording seven points (3-4-7) and 12 penalty minutes.
Originally drafted by the Red Wings in the second round (60th overall) of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, Tatar appeared in 265 games with the American Hockey League's Grand Rapids Griffins from 2009-13, totaling 196 points (87-109-196) and 152 penalty minutes. He was a member of the team's 2013 Calder Cup championship and earned most-valuable player honors in the postseason after logging 21 points (16-5-21) in 24 games. A 2014 Olympian for Slovakia, Tatar has represented his country on multiple occasions, logging 16 points (10-6-16) in 13 games at the 2009 and 2010 IIHF World Junior Championships and totaling 17 points (8-9-17) in 29 games over four appearances (2010, 2012, 2014 and 2015) at the IIHF World Championship. He helped Slovakia to a silver medal in 2012.
