Jaroslav Jiřík (10 December 1939 – 11 July 2011)[1][2] was a Czech professional ice hockey right winger. He became the first player that an Eastern Bloc country released to play in the National Hockey League[3][4] when he appeared in three games with the St. Louis Blues in the 1969–70 season.[5]

Jaroslav Jiřík
Born (1939-12-10)10 December 1939
Vojnův Městec, Bohemia-Moravia
Died 11 July 2011(2011-07-11) (aged 71)
Brno, Czech Republic
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Left Wing
Shot Left
Played for Sokol Kladno (Cze-1)
Rudá hvězda/ZKL Brno (Cze-1)
St. Louis Blues (NHL)
National team  Czechoslovakia
Playing career 1957–1975
Medal record
Ice hockey
Representing  Czechoslovakia
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1968 Grenoble
Bronze medal – third place 1964 Innsbruck
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 1965 Finland
Silver medal – second place 1966 Yugoslavia
Bronze medal – third place 1959 Czechoslovakia
Bronze medal – third place 1963 Sweden
Bronze medal – third place 1969 Sweden

Playing career

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Jiřík played seventeen seasons in the Czechoslovak Extraliga, scoring 300 goals in 450 games.[3] Jiřík was named an all-star at the 1965 World Championship in Finland,[6] and he was a member of the Czechoslovak national team that won the bronze medal at the 1964 Winter Olympics and the silver medal at the 1968 Winter Olympics.[5][7] He scored 83 goals in 134 international games for Czechoslovakia.[5]

Jiřík was first noticed by St. Louis Blues assistant general manager Cliff Fletcher in 1969. Fletcher actually signed three Czechoslovak players: Jiřík, Jan Havel, and Josef Horešovský, all of whom were given permission to transfer to North America by the Czechoslovak government. However, the government changed its mind about Havel and Horesovský, because they were still in their twenties. Jiřík, 30 at the time, was the only player allowed to go.[4]

Jiřík spent most of the 1969–70 season with St. Louis's minor-league affiliate, the Kansas City Blues of the Central Hockey League.[5] He played well in Kansas City, scoring 35 points in 53 games.[1] St. Louis called him up late in the season, and he played three games with the club, going scoreless. He was invited to remain with the organization for the 1970–71 season; however, Jiřík decided to return to Czechoslovakia instead.[4]

Post-playing career

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After his playing career, Jiřík coached several Czechoslovak clubs and ran the Swiss national team from 1977 to 1980.[5]

On 11 July 2011, Jiřík, an experienced pilot, died in a plane crash near Brno.[2][5]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1956–57 HC Kladno CZE 4 0 0
1957–58 HC Kladno CZE 22 14 0 14
1958–59 HC Kladno CZE 22 16 0 16
1959–60 HC Kladno CZE 22 14 0 14
1960–61 HC Kladno CZE 24 23 0 23
1961–62 Rudá hvězda Brno CZE 31 28 11 39
1962–63 ZKL Brno CZE 28 22 10 32
1963–64 ZKL Brno CZE 6 3 0 3
1964–65 ZKL Brno CZE 30 23 13 36
1965–66 ZKL Brno CZE 35 26 13 39
1966–67 ZKL Brno CZE 34 16 8 24
1967–68 ZKL Brno CZE 28 16 15 31
1968–69 ZKL Brno CZE 32 36 7 43
1969–70 St. Louis Blues NHL 3 0 0 0 0
1969–70 Kansas City Blues CHL 53 19 16 35 11
1970–71 ZKL Brno CZE 31 25 12 37 8 6 0 6
1971–72 ZKL Brno CZE 22 12 6 18 34
1972–73 ZKL Brno CZE 26 13 2 15 16
1973–74 ZKL Brno CZE 34 9 4 13
1974–75 ZKL Brno CZE 15 4 4 8
CZE totals 446 300
NHL totals 3 0 0 0 0

International

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Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
1959 Czechoslovakia WC 8 6 2 8
1960 Czechoslovakia OLY 5 1 3 4 2
1963 Czechoslovakia WC 7 4 3 7 9
1964 Czechoslovakia OLY 7 3 1 4 6
1965 Czechoslovakia WC 7 8 4 12 6
1966 Czechoslovakia WC 7 4 1 5 2
1967 Czechoslovakia WC 6 5 3 8 2
1968 Czechoslovakia OLY 4 3 3 6 0
1969 Czechoslovakia WC 5 2 3 5 0
Senior totals 56 36 23 59 27

References

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  1. ^ a b Jaroslav Jiřík career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
  2. ^ a b Charvát, Martin (2011-07-11). "První Čech v NHL Jiřík zemřel při pádu sportovního letadla" (in Czech). Czech Radio. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  3. ^ a b "Legends of Hockey -- NHL Player Search -- Player -- Jaroslav Jirik". HHOF.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2017. Retrieved June 9, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c International Hockey Legends: Jaroslav Jirik
  5. ^ a b c d e f "Jaroslav Jirik dies at 71". ESPN. Associated Press. July 11, 2011. Retrieved July 11, 2001.
  6. ^ World Hockey Championships first-team all stars[usurped]
  7. ^ Olympics History - espn.com
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