Jaroslav Jiřík

Jaroslav Jiřík (December 10, 1939 – July 11, 2011)[1][2] was a Czech former 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)December 10, 1939
Vojnův Městec, Bohemia-Moravia
Died July 11, 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
1968 Grenoble
1964 Innsbruck
World Championships
1965 Finland
1966 Yugoslavia
1959 Czechoslovakia
1963 Sweden
1969 Sweden

Playing career

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 Ice Hockey Championships,[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

After his playing career, Jiřík coached several Czechoslovak clubs and ran the Swiss national team from 1977-80.[5]

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

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1957–58 HC Kladno CZE
1958–59 HC Kladno CZE 2216
1959–60 HC Kladno CZE
1960–61 HC Kladno CZE
1961–62 Rudá hvězda Brno CZE 3228
1962–63 ZKL Brno CZE 3223
1963–64 ZKL Brno CZE
1964–65 ZKL Brno CZE 3223
1965–66 ZKL Brno CZE
1966–67 ZKL Brno CZE
1967–68 ZKL Brno CZE 32251237
1968–69 ZKL Brno CZE 3636743
1969–70 Kansas City Blues CHL 5319163511—————
1969–70 St. Louis Blues NHL 30000—————
1970–71 ZKL Brno CZE 36261228
1971–72 ZKL Brno CZE
1972–73 ZKL Brno CZE
1973–74 ZKL Brno CZE 8715
1974–75 ZKL Brno CZE
NHL totals 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

International
Year Team Comp   GP G A Pts PIM
1959 Czechoslovakia WC 8628—
1960 Czechoslovakia Oly 51342
1963 Czechoslovakia WC 74379
1964 Czechoslovakia Oly 73146
1965 Czechoslovakia WC 784126
1966 Czechoslovakia WC 74152
1967 Czechoslovakia WC 65382
1968 Czechoslovakia Oly 43360
1969 Czechoslovakia WC 52350
Senior totals 56 36 23 59 27
Note: Statistics are incomplete. Jiřík scored 300 goals in 450 Czechoslovak league games, and 83 goals in 134 international games.
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References
  1. Jaroslav Jiřík career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
  2. Charvát, Martin (2011-07-11). "První Čech v NHL Jiřík zemřel při pádu sportovního letadla" (in Czech). Czech Radio. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  3. Jaroslav Jiřík biography at Legends of Hockey
  4. International Hockey Legends: Jaroslav Jirik
  5. "Jaroslav Jirik dies at 71". ESPN. Associated Press. July 11, 2011. Retrieved July 11, 2001.
  6. World Hockey Championships first-team all stars Archived 2003-01-19 at Archive.today
  7. Olympics History - espn.com
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