After the IIHF re-affirmed that no players under NHL contract can play in the Beijing Olympics, nations are filling their rosters from the rest of the world’s best leagues.
Thursday, the Czech Republic announced their Olympics roster which includes former Capitals defensemen Jakub Jerabek and Tomas Kundratek.
👥 Takto vypadá nominace #narodnitym pro ZOH 2022 v Pekingu! 🇨🇿🦁#jakolev #zoh2022 pic.twitter.com/sh2uiSWUzG
— Hokejový nároďák (@narodnitym) January 13, 2022
Jerabek, who was one of three Caps’ Czechs to lift the Stanley Cup in 2018, currently plays for Spartak Moscow in the KHL. The Capitals originally acquired Jerabek at the 2017-18 trade deadline from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2019 fifth-round pick. The rearguard got into 11 regular season games for the Caps, recording four points during that time. He then played the first two games of the Capitals’ first-round series against the Columbus Blue Jackets before being scratched in favor of Christian Djoos.
Kundratek, a longtime Hershey Bears player, got his first look from the Capitals during the 2011-12 season where he played five NHL games. The next season, under head coach Adam Oates, he saw his role increase and got into 25 more games. He recorded seven points in those 30 NHL games and hasn’t been back in the league since. Kundratek currently plies his trade for Trinec Ocelari in the Czech Extraliga.
Other former NHL notables on the roster include David Krejci, Vladimir Sobotka, and Michael Frolik.
Czechs named men's hockey roster for no-NHL Olympics. On the team are former Bruins center David Krejci, longtime NHL forward Michael Frolik and Capitals Stanley Cup champion Jakub Jerabek, along with ex-Washington defenseman Tomas Kundratek and ex-Blues forward Vladimir Sobotka.
— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) January 13, 2022
The ice hockey portion of the Olympics will run from February 9 to February 20.
