Jiříček’s three-year-older brother David, also a defender, got stuck overseas after a rocket start and did not break this state even after being traded from Columbus to Minnesota. He’s still teetering on the edge between the NHL and the lower AHL.
Adam is currently on the rise. He confirmed this at the recent U20 World Championship, where he helped the Czech Republic to silver and the organizers declared him the best back of the tournament.
The Czech campaign for the fourth medal in a row also had other heroes, perhaps even bigger ones. Winger Vojtěch Čihař became the most valuable player of the championship, defender Tomáš Galvas broke into the media All star team…
Jiříček now has the upper hand in terms of individual potential. In the latest ranking of the world’s greatest under-23 talents by the online newspaper The Athletic, he finished highest among the Czechs, one place ahead of another defender, Radim Mrtka. Overall, he took the 55th position.
In the last season, however, there were reasonable concerns.
As a result of a long recovery from a serious injury to his left knee, Jiříček entered the regular season of the elite Canadian junior OHL team late, only in November. And when he finally played, after a few games he injured the same knee again.
It wasn’t as serious as the first time, he made a comeback before the end of the calendar year. However, it was difficult for him to get to the right pace. Combined with the playoffs, he only averaged a point in about every third game.
But if he disappointed then as a fresh sixteen in the draft, now he amply makes up for it.
For junior Brantford, where forward Adam Benák and defender Vladimír Dravecký junior also play from the Czech Republic, he scored 35 points (13+22) in 31 games this season. He belongs to the most productive backs in the entire competition and stands out in other activities as well.
Bosses in St. Louis was downright excited. “He’s having an incredible year,” said assistant general manager Tim Taylor.
“He does absolutely everything well,” he continued. “He’s scoring every night, he’s on the puck, he’s very competitive, he’s giving up points. Just a complete player. I see him as a number one guard. He might end up as a two or three, but either way, I’m very excited about his future on our team.”
Independent observers are naturally more cautious, but even they see the student from Pilsen as a back in the first two defensive pairs in the NHL.
“Jiříček is a 190-centimeter-tall right-handed player who skates relatively well, plays to the body and fights for pucks. He doesn’t stand out offensively, but he has solid hands and distributes the puck effectively,” started hockey talent expert Corey Pronman. “His type of defenseman, reliable and capable on both ends of the floor, tends to play a lot of games in the NHL. He’s specifically counted among the team’s top four backs.”
The Czech defense desperately needs the establishment of new faces, including Adam Jiříček. In the current NHL season, only two domestic defenders regularly start – 28-year-old Filip Hronek and seven years older Radko Gudas.
Worth a look
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