Although Filip Chlapík became the best hockey player of the season, he was the best scorer and the most productive player in the basic part of the extra league, but he will not play at the World Championships in Finland. Sparta’s forward is missing from the Czech nomination chosen for the championship by Finnish coach Kari Jalonen.
After the Swedish Games, where the selection of coach Jalonen won all three matches, goalkeeper Štěpán Lukeš, defenders Jakub Krejčík with Michal Moravčík and forward Ondřej Beránek, Patrik Zdráhal and Filip Chlapík dropped out of the squad. He will be missing at the second peak of the season after the February Olympic Games in Beijing.
On the other hand, Anaheim goalkeeper Lukáš Dostál is the seventh Czech reinforcement from the NHL. The 21-year-old goalkeeper, without experience from the national A-team, caught mostly on a farm in San Diego during the season.
Eighteen-year-old back David Jiříček from Pilsen remained in the 25-member staff. In addition to Dostál and Jiříček, goalkeepers Karel Vejmelka from Arizona and Marek Langhamer from Ilves Tampere, defender Jan Ščotka from Jyväskylä and forward Jiří Černoch from Karlovy Vary, Petr Holík from Kometa Brno and Petr Kodýtek from Pilsen can make their debut at a major international event.
The attackers Roman Červenka and David Krejčí were at the last Czech medal – bronze in 2012 in Stockholm and Helsinki. Červenka is the 2010 world champion from Mannheim and Cologne and is preparing for the ninth world championship.
At the Olympic Games in Beijing, still under Jalonen’s predecessor Filip Pešán, where the Czechs were missing in the quarterfinals for the first time in history, defenders Tomáš Kundrátek from Třinec, David Sklenička from Kärpät Oulu from Davos, Michael Špaček from Frölunda and Hynek Zohorn from Oskarshamn.
The team also included quarterback David Musil from Třinec, who did not intervene in the game, and forward Matěj Blümel from Pardubice as an unregistered substitute. Filip Hronek from Detroit, Musil, Sklenička and the attackers Blümel, Smejkal, Stránský, Špaček, Jakub Vrána from Detroit and Jakub Flek from Karlovy Vary presented themselves at last year’s championship in Riga.
After today’s arrival from Stockholm, the Czech team will meet again on Tuesday and a day later will fly to Finland. He will enter the tournament on Saturday from 15:20 CEST against Great Britain. Other rivals of Jalonen’s selection in Basic Group B in Tampere are Sweden, Austria, Latvia, Norway, the United States and Finland.
Nomination of Czech hockey players at the World Championships in Tampere and Helsinki (May 13-29):
Goalkeepers: Lukáš Dostál (Anaheim / NHL, San Diego / AHL; 0 national team starts), Marek Langhamer (Ilves Tampere / Fin .; 6), Karel Vejmelka (Arizona / NHL; 2).
Defenders: Tomáš Kundrátek (national team 80 matches / 10 goals), David Musil (both Třinec; 50/0), David Jiříček (Plzeň; 13/2), Filip Hronek (Detroit / NHL; 35/7), Michal Jordán (Khabarovsk / KHL; 92/5), David Sklenička (Kärpät Oulu / Fin .; 68/5), Jan Ščotka (Jyväskylä / Fin .; 22/1), Radim Šimek (San Jose / NHL; 33/5).
Attackers: Jiří Černoch (15/5), Jakub Flek (both Karlovy Vary; 39/8), Matěj Blümel (Pardubice; 33/10), Petr Holík (Brno; 43/15), Petr Kodýtek (Plzeň; 21/2), David Krejčí (Olomouc; 42/9), Roman Červenka (Rapperswil-Jona / Švýc .; 166/42), Tomáš Hertl (San Jose / NHL; 39/5), Dominik Simon (Anaheim / NHL; 38/9), Jiří Smejkal (Pelicans Lahti / Fin .; 42/5), Matěj Stránský (Davos / Švýc .; 42/6), Michael Špaček (Frölunda / Sweden; 29/3), Jakub Vrána (Detroit / NHL; 19/8 ), Hynek Zohorna (Oskarshamn / Sweden; 53/7).
–
