Czechboy
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Czech Republic: Czechs in North America (NHL, AHL, Junior)
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czechcanadian
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Czechboy
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Here is our top 10 this year. So nice to see Necas up there (4 point night last night). Almost all of these guys are young and have many good years left. Zadina is at 11.
Hajek and Zboril are now NHL regulars.
Vladar got his second start and second victory.
I still think Dostal gets a game in somewhere. I hope Francouz does too. Might be a new record for most Czech goalies in one season to play a game. Rittich, Mrazek, Vanecek, Vladar so far. Mrazek sounds close. No idea what is going on with Francouz.
Zohorna got his second NHL start.
I feel like we might see Lauko at some point this season as well.
Poor Frolik and Simon.. just wasting away.
We had 6 in 2003/2004 (Hašek, Vokoun, Čechmánek, Prusek, Turek, Hnilička)
Czechboy
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That's a good looking crew.. better than this one...
So let's see if this happens:
1. Vanecek
2. Mrazek
3. Vladar
4. Rittich
5. Francouz
6. Dostal
Seems unlikey we get the tie and I can't think of a 7th guy getting a game in ... Skarek, Korenar, Patera, Parik all seem futher away.
Really impressed with our players, especially the young generation which looks promising!
- Necas seems to have fully adapted and is starting to heat up together with Aho
- Zacha has made a huge step this season, especially his playmaking is very nice to watch
- Hronek is gaining more experience day by day and I love the fact that he is getting >20min ice-time in Detroit on a daily basis (which helps our national team in the long run)
- Chytil will be a heck of a player one day; I love his dynamic game
- Vladar pulled off some highlight saves recently; one more Czech goalie that could develop into a regular very soon
- Zboril has played himself into the roster; especially his passing is on another level (finally, another NHL defender that we desperately need for our national team)
- Necas seems to have fully adapted and is starting to heat up together with Aho
- Zacha has made a huge step this season, especially his playmaking is very nice to watch
- Hronek is gaining more experience day by day and I love the fact that he is getting >20min ice-time in Detroit on a daily basis (which helps our national team in the long run)
- Chytil will be a heck of a player one day; I love his dynamic game
- Vladar pulled off some highlight saves recently; one more Czech goalie that could develop into a regular very soon
- Zboril has played himself into the roster; especially his passing is on another level (finally, another NHL defender that we desperately need for our national team)
Czechboy
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I've been saying for awhile that we may have a Bronze Generation coming up... bunch of pissed off Czechs that didn't enjoy their routine 7-0 losses at World Juniors on TSN looking for some revenge. Hopefully they are all eager to play for the national team because we have some good vets like Voracek, Gudas, Krejci and Palat to help lead them.
Offensively, our young guns could be able to compete for more than just bronze in a few years! It's the defense that has been holding us back from the top 5 nations. I haven't been this optimistic in a while with regards to our defensive development. We've got some young defenders that have cracked NHL rosters (Hronek, Zboril, Hajek), older ones that are hanging on quite well (Kempny - our best D if healthy; Simek; Rutta; Gudas) and interesting prospects in the upcoming drafts. We definitely need most of them to pan out though...
At this point a big thank you to you, Czechboy, for keeping us in the loop and constantly providing us with updates regarding Czech hockey!
Czechboy
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I think Jiricek and Svozil will turn some heads! I haven't seen Hamara so won't comment but he sounds promising as well. I'm probably highest on Jiricek personally. If any of those 3 can be another Hronek then we might be good again.
Czechboy
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Some goalie fun.. Vladar would appear to be the number 1 in Boston now. Rask is hurt and Halak, unfortunately, has covid.
Mrazek had a 45 save AHL game and followed that up with a shutout in the NHL. Carolina is a beauty of a darkhorse team to pick for a Cup run. Hope Mrazek maintains his form and can be the playoff starter!
Note: I don't expect the numbers to stay that high!
Mrazek had a 45 save AHL game and followed that up with a shutout in the NHL. Carolina is a beauty of a darkhorse team to pick for a Cup run. Hope Mrazek maintains his form and can be the playoff starter!
Note: I don't expect the numbers to stay that high!
Czechboy
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Czechboy
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Imagine if he gets a start. Another one might be Lukas Jasek who is having a good season and, unfrotunately, Nucks are in a world of trouble as they are out of playoff race and will be playing 4 or 5 times a week to make up for the missed 2 weeks (what an awful outcome for them).
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Francouz out for season with surgery.
Korenar got his first start tonight! 4 goals on a 27 shots but he looked good (Sharks did not).
Vrana is now a Red Wing.. I get he is 1 dimensional but he can skate and shoot like very few people. Hopefully he can get increased minutes and score more with extra PP time! He is RFA so I don't see him coming for the World's but that would be great. I won't lie, I'll be following Detroit much closer next season if he stays there... Seider, Hronek, Zadina and Vrana are all players I can enjoy watching and I've always been a Veleno fan.
Rittich playing for the Leafs was something to behold.. he played well but also lost.
Kaut is on fire in AHL (2 more assists tonight)
Korenar got his first start tonight! 4 goals on a 27 shots but he looked good (Sharks did not).
Vrana is now a Red Wing.. I get he is 1 dimensional but he can skate and shoot like very few people. Hopefully he can get increased minutes and score more with extra PP time! He is RFA so I don't see him coming for the World's but that would be great. I won't lie, I'll be following Detroit much closer next season if he stays there... Seider, Hronek, Zadina and Vrana are all players I can enjoy watching and I've always been a Veleno fan.
Rittich playing for the Leafs was something to behold.. he played well but also lost.
Kaut is on fire in AHL (2 more assists tonight)
Czechboy
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Today? It's Mrazek. His numbers have been outstanding and he is on a stanley cup contender. I get it is all inflated because he had an injury and missed a lot but he's at the top for all categories right now. GAA, Save percentage and Shutouts. He's only played 8 games though and could come crashing down.
Francouz won't play this season so he's out.
I love Rittich but he might end up being the 3G for the Leafs.
Vanecek has been very good and leads all rookies in wins but he may also be a backup to Samsonov.
I love Vladar but Swayman may be better meaning he is number 4 in Boston. Next year I hope they go with Vladar/Swayman as A/B.
Dostal has yet to play in NHL but he's the highest ceiling IMO.
Korenar looks to have earned more starts.
Happy for Tomas Vomacka and a new contract in NHL but I imagine he's a few years out from ever seeeing an NHL game.
It's a crazy amount of 1B's.lol Maybe by the 2022 Olympics it will be clearer. FTR.. I think not playing NHL goalies against best on best rosters is madness. It never works. Czechs have a habit of benching the NHL goalie for the Euro goalie in elimination games and I hate that.
What do you think? Who's number 1 right now?
Well, I think a major problem amongst Czech goalies besides the lack of elite-talent is the lack of consistency.
At the moment, I'd probably agree with you regarding Mrazek. I've always enjoyed watching him in the net and statistically speaking, he might be our best goalie at the moment and should therefore get the nod. He has strong performances at times but I think there seems to be a consistency issue, as he didn't get all the starts in CAR already prior to his injury.
I'm happy for Vanecek getting some regular games in WSH. I haven't followed WSH enough to judge his performance, but .911 SV% on paper looks quite alright for a relatively unexperienced and young goaltender, so maybe I'd put him as our 2nd right behind Mrazek.
Vladar has surprised me too with his effort and it's still a little early to tell, but I think right now - just as you pointed out - he is behind Swayman in the pecking order. Also, he had to endure the terrible 8-1 blowout against WSH when almost the entire Bruins D core was ruled out due to injuries, poor guy! On a side note: even though I appreciate Halak a lot (what a loyal and great team player!), I speculate that the Bruins will move on from him and maybe put Swayman/Vladar right behind Rask for the next season, not least due to cap reasons.
I'm relatively unfamiliar with the remaining goaltenders. I'm not sure how many games Rittich is going to get in TOR; however if there is a goalie who enjoys heated match-ups, it's him. However at the same time, there seems to be a consistency issue with him too.
Really looking forward to seeing Dostal perform in ANA. Let's hope he will be the number one for us in the future, obviously knocking on wood.
Czechboy
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All our goalies seem to be highly emotional... they can steal a game and then, just as easily, blow a game. Neuvirth and Pavelec were similar as well. I know goalies are a bit different but our last steady goalman was Vokoun. He was either good or great most the time. Our current goalies are either amazing or awful it seems.lol
Like you said, in a game 7 eliminationg game, a guy like Rittich could get a shutout. Dostal seems much calmer and technical as does Vladar/Vanecek.
Our most stable was Francouz but I always felt he lacked an upper gear. It is great to have 5 to 6 goalies floating around the NHL.. hopefully one of them catches fire!
Czechboy
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Thought I'd look at our AHL Czechs.. it's really not very good at all:
Lauko continues to impress and might crack the roster next season. Vancouver is in a lot of trouble and has an insane schedule so you never know, Jasek might get a game or 2. I'm not sure how high I am on him having an NHL career. Kaut is in the NHL as a placeholder playing limited minutes. He did get 13 minutes last game but I doubt see him sticking this season (I think he'll be full time next year though, or traded and full time somewhere else). Zohorna is in and out of the Pen's lineup. Reichel seems unlikely to crack the NHL at this point. Jenik started with about 5 points in 5 games and then totally dried up. Safin was on a bit of a streak but then the Oil got back several higher end prospects from other leagues and he was bumped out. Curious if he sticks with Oil or goes back to Europe.
Funny note.. I've been occasionally watching Jihlava vs Kladno and they keep saying Pekar so I assumed it was Matej Pekar of the Sabres.. but it's a different player entirely.lol
The next grouping is even more discouraging...
Simon and Frolik are most likely done in North America (which is a big shame as they were part of a very good top line at the World's for us only 2 years ago). Mysak is struggling. Teply is struggling. Chlapik has already returned to Europe (I feel like Jasek is a comparable to him as far as NHL upside). Frk.. not sure what happened there.
So there is my bummer update!
Lauko continues to impress and might crack the roster next season. Vancouver is in a lot of trouble and has an insane schedule so you never know, Jasek might get a game or 2. I'm not sure how high I am on him having an NHL career. Kaut is in the NHL as a placeholder playing limited minutes. He did get 13 minutes last game but I doubt see him sticking this season (I think he'll be full time next year though, or traded and full time somewhere else). Zohorna is in and out of the Pen's lineup. Reichel seems unlikely to crack the NHL at this point. Jenik started with about 5 points in 5 games and then totally dried up. Safin was on a bit of a streak but then the Oil got back several higher end prospects from other leagues and he was bumped out. Curious if he sticks with Oil or goes back to Europe.
Funny note.. I've been occasionally watching Jihlava vs Kladno and they keep saying Pekar so I assumed it was Matej Pekar of the Sabres.. but it's a different player entirely.lol
The next grouping is even more discouraging...
Simon and Frolik are most likely done in North America (which is a big shame as they were part of a very good top line at the World's for us only 2 years ago). Mysak is struggling. Teply is struggling. Chlapik has already returned to Europe (I feel like Jasek is a comparable to him as far as NHL upside). Frk.. not sure what happened there.
So there is my bummer update!
Czechboy
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On a brighter note.. NHL players are doing well...
Palat is a reigning Cup champion and on a tear. Pastrnak is our big superstar but is a bit off for his standards. I think Voracek leads the team in scoring but gets crapy minutes from the coach. Necas is really establshing himself as the best of the 'core 4' (Kaut, Necas, Zadina and Chytil). Hertl is, to me, our 2nd best forward behind Pastrnak but keeps having injuries. Krejci is picking up now that he has Hall with him (I feel he's made Hall better and not the other way around). Kubalik is doing very well. Vrana got traded to a poor team that is imporving. Zacha leads his team in scoring and is getting a lot of minues. Good in all situations. Hronek is our best D by a country mile. When Detroit improves, people will start noticing him.
Not shown are guys like Chytil and Zadina. The next 10 is pretty decent.
Palat is a reigning Cup champion and on a tear. Pastrnak is our big superstar but is a bit off for his standards. I think Voracek leads the team in scoring but gets crapy minutes from the coach. Necas is really establshing himself as the best of the 'core 4' (Kaut, Necas, Zadina and Chytil). Hertl is, to me, our 2nd best forward behind Pastrnak but keeps having injuries. Krejci is picking up now that he has Hall with him (I feel he's made Hall better and not the other way around). Kubalik is doing very well. Vrana got traded to a poor team that is imporving. Zacha leads his team in scoring and is getting a lot of minues. Good in all situations. Hronek is our best D by a country mile. When Detroit improves, people will start noticing him.
Not shown are guys like Chytil and Zadina. The next 10 is pretty decent.
Czechboy
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Well, in a surprise to me, Karel Vejmelka has been signed for 1 year by the Coyotes! Jaskin is supposed to join their squad as well. Having said that, I dont' think he's going to the NHL but rather the AHL.
Add him to a big list of 1B type goalies in North America next season... Franouz, Rittich, Vanecek, Vladar, Dostal, Korenar and maybe Skarek all look to be battling for backup type spots.
Add him to a big list of 1B type goalies in North America next season... Franouz, Rittich, Vanecek, Vladar, Dostal, Korenar and maybe Skarek all look to be battling for backup type spots.
Czechboy
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Congrats to Jakub Galvas.. signed a 2 year contract with the Hawks.
I have a bit of a pet peeve with how Czech media reports this stuff as they always say the player has signed in the NHL and talk about his max contract.
Eg. Jakub Galvas has signed for almost 1 million a season with the Chicago Blackhawks and will be joining Dominik Kubalik!
Reality is he signed a 2 way contract and he will be making 70K in the AHL next season. Might have a beer with Kubalik in the camp.lol
Having said that... it's another Czech D at least getting a look from the NHL which is encouraging. Kral is another one who is still in the fight for NHL employment in the next 2 years. I still hope Masin returns.
I have a bit of a pet peeve with how Czech media reports this stuff as they always say the player has signed in the NHL and talk about his max contract.
Eg. Jakub Galvas has signed for almost 1 million a season with the Chicago Blackhawks and will be joining Dominik Kubalik!
Reality is he signed a 2 way contract and he will be making 70K in the AHL next season. Might have a beer with Kubalik in the camp.lol
Having said that... it's another Czech D at least getting a look from the NHL which is encouraging. Kral is another one who is still in the fight for NHL employment in the next 2 years. I still hope Masin returns.
