From Jaromír Jágr and Milan Nový to Radim Rulík – discover the personalities who have shaped the history of hockey in Kladno and those who are writing its newest chapter today. An overview of the greatest legends, champions, world champions, and Olympic gold medalists connected with Rytíři Kladno.
Kladno Players Who Succeeded in the NHL
Jaromír Jágr
(*February 15, 1972)
Jaromír Jágr is widely regarded as one of the greatest ice hockey players of all time and is Kladno’s most famous sporting icon. He made his debut for his hometown club’s first team at just 16 years of age. After being selected in the 1990 NHL Draft, he won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins and went on to become the most successful European player in NHL history, recording 1,733 games, 766 goals and 1,155 assists, making him the second-highest scorer in league history.
With the Czech national team, Jágr won Olympic gold at Nagano in 1998 and captured IIHF World Championship titles in 2005 and 2010. Despite his international success, he has always remained closely connected to his hometown. In 2011, he became the majority owner of Rytíři Kladno and helped lead the club back to the Czech Extraliga as both player and owner. Even after selling his majority stake to businessman Tomáš Drastil, he has remained closely involved with the club. He played what is currently his final professional game on December 21, 2025, at the age of 53.
Tomáš Plekanec
(*October 31, 1982)
Tomáš Plekanec is one of the finest players developed by Kladno’s hockey system. A long-time Czech international, he spent the majority of his NHL career with the Montreal Canadiens, establishing himself as one of the best Czech centres of his generation.
After returning to Kladno in 2018, Plekanec played a key role in helping Rytíři Kladno earn promotion back to the Czech Extraliga and later served as the team’s captain. Following his retirement in 2023, he moved into coaching and celebrated immediate success by helping the Czech national team win the 2024 IIHF World Championship as an assistant coach. Since the 2025–26 season, Plekanec has served as Sporting Director of Rytíři Kladno. He also guided the team to its first playoff appearance in 13 years as interim head coach and currently works as an assistant coach under Radim Rulík.
Marek Židlický
(*February 3, 1977)
Marek Židlický is among the most accomplished players to begin his career in Kladno. An offensively gifted defenceman, he first made a name for himself in Finland before enjoying a successful NHL career, where he appeared in 836 games.
Židlický won the IIHF World Championship with the Czech national team in 2005 and spent many years as one of the country’s key defencemen. After retiring from playing, he moved into coaching. As an assistant coach, he helped the Czech U20 national team win silver at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship before capturing gold with the senior national team at the 2024 IIHF World Championship on home ice in Prague and Ostrava. Since the 2026–27 season, Židlický has been a member of the Rytíři Kladno coaching staff, returning to his hometown club after 14 years.
Ondřej Pavelec
(*August 31, 1987)
Ondřej Pavelec ranks among the most successful goaltenders produced by Kladno. He first gained international recognition in 2005 when he was named Best Goaltender of the IIHF U18 World Championship.
After moving to North America, Pavelec won the Calder Cup in 2008 before establishing himself as the starting goaltender for the Atlanta Thrashers and later the Winnipeg Jets in the NHL. With the Czech national team, he won the IIHF World Championship in 2010 and played a major role in securing the bronze medal at the 2011 World Championship in Bratislava.
Following his retirement, Pavelec became a goaltending coach, helping the Czech U20 national team win World Junior silver before capturing gold with the senior national team at the 2024 IIHF World Championship. Since the 2026–27 season, he has been part of the coaching staff of Rytíři Kladno.
Jakub Voráček
(*August 15, 1989)
Jakub Voráček is one of the most successful players to emerge from Kladno’s renowned hockey academy. The creative forward moved to North America at a young age and was selected seventh overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2008 NHL Draft.
He spent most of his NHL career with the Philadelphia Flyers, where he became one of the team's leading players. Over 1,058 NHL games, Voráček recorded 223 goals and 583 assists.
His greatest international achievement came in 2010, when he won the IIHF World Championship with the Czech national team. A year later, he added a bronze medal at the World Championship. In the spring of 2024, he was forced to end his outstanding playing career due to health issues.
František Kaberle Jr.
(*November 8, 1973)
František Kaberle Jr. is one of the most accomplished defencemen to come out of Kladno. The son of former Czech international František Kaberle Sr., he continued the tradition of one of Kladno’s most celebrated hockey families.
After making his debut for Kladno, Kaberle spent several seasons in Sweden before joining the NHL in 1999. His greatest club achievement came in 2006, when he won the Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes.
His record with the Czech national team is even more remarkable. Between 1996 and 2005, Kaberle won five IIHF World Championship titles, making him one of the most decorated players in Czech hockey history. He also earned two World Championship bronze medals and an Olympic bronze medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.
Tomáš Kaberle
(*March 2, 1978)
As the youngest member of Kladno’s famous hockey family, Tomáš Kaberle proudly carried on the successful tradition established by his father and older brother František. An offensively minded defenceman, he began his career in Kladno before developing into one of the finest Czech blueliners of his generation.
Kaberle spent the majority of his NHL career with the Toronto Maple Leafs, making his debut for the club in 1998. His greatest club success came in 2011, when he won the Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins. Over the course of his NHL career, he played 984 games, recording 87 goals and 476 assists.
Internationally, he won the 2005 IIHF World Championship alongside his brother František and also claimed an Olympic bronze medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Following his retirement in 2016, Kaberle returned to Toronto, where he continues to live with his family.
Michal Kempný
(*September 8, 1990)
Michal Kempný is one of the most successful active Czech ice hockey players of his generation. The experienced defenceman helped the Washington Capitals win the first Stanley Cup in franchise history in 2018.
He has also enjoyed considerable success with the Czech national team, winning bronze at the 2022 IIHF World Championship in Finland before capturing gold two years later at the 2024 IIHF World Championship, hosted in Prague and Ostrava.
After spending one season in Sweden, Kempný returned to the Czech Republic in 2026 and joined Rytíři Kladno. His decision was driven by the club’s ambitious goals and its long-term vision for a new era.
Players and Coaches with International Success
Radim Rulík
(*June 25, 1965)
Radim Rulík is one of the most accomplished coaches in Czech ice hockey. As an assistant coach, he was part of the Czech national team that won IIHF World Championship titles in 2000 and 2005. His greatest club achievement came in 2015, when he guided HC Litvínov to the first Czech championship in the club’s history.
Rulík gained nationwide recognition as head coach of the Czech national team, leading the U20 squad to a silver medal at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship before guiding the senior national team to gold at the 2024 IIHF World Championship on home ice. It was the Czech Republic’s first world title in 14 years. After three seasons behind the national team's bench, a period that also included the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Rulík returned to club hockey. Since the 2026–27 season, he has served as head coach of Rytíři Kladno.
Pavel Patera
(*September 6, 1971)
Pavel Patera is one of the greatest legends in the history of Kladno hockey. The outstanding centre spent 17 seasons with his hometown club and, together with Martin Procházka and Otakar Vejvoda Jr., formed the legendary "Blue Line", one of the most successful forward lines in Czech hockey history.
During his playing career, Patera won league championships in the Czech Republic, Sweden and Russia. His greatest achievements, however, came with the Czech national team. Between 1996 and 2001, he won four IIHF World Championship titles and added two bronze medals. He also secured a permanent place in Czech sporting history as a member of the team that won Olympic gold at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano.
After retiring as a player, Patera moved into coaching and has served as head coach of Karlovy Vary since 2024.
Niko Ojamäki
(*June 17, 1995)
Niko Ojamäki is one of the most accomplished active Finnish players on the Rytíři Kladno roster. The Finnish forward won the IIHF World Championship with Finland in 2019 before achieving the greatest success of his career at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, where Finland claimed its first-ever Olympic gold medal in ice hockey.
At club level, Ojamäki enjoyed an outstanding 2022–23 season with Tappara Tampere, winning both the Champions Hockey League and the Finnish Liiga championship. After spending two seasons in Switzerland, he joined Rytíři Kladno in 2025 and has since become one of the team's key players.
Architects of Kladno Hockey's Golden Era
František Kaberle Sr.
(*August 6, 1951)
František Kaberle Sr. is one of the defining figures of Kladno hockey’s golden era. The outstanding defenceman spent 11 seasons wearing the Kladno jersey and helped the club win five Czechoslovak league championships between 1975 and 1980.
On the international stage, he won two IIHF World Championship titles with Czechoslovakia and added three silver medals. After retiring as a player, Kaberle coached first the club’s youth teams and later the senior team in Kladno. His sons, František and Tomáš, continued the family’s proud hockey tradition on the international stage. In 2010, František Kaberle Sr. was inducted into the Czech Ice Hockey Hall of Fame.
Milan Nový
(*September 23, 1951)
Milan Nový is one of the greatest legends of Kladno hockey and one of the most prolific goalscorers in Czechoslovak hockey history. Since making his debut for Kladno in 1968, he established himself as an exceptional goal scorer and remains the all-time leading scorer in Czech hockey history, with 594 goals for club and country.
One of the defining moments of his career came at the 1976 Canada Cup, where he scored the game-winning goal in a memorable 1–0 victory over Canada. With the Czechoslovak national team, Nový won two IIHF World Championship titles and an Olympic silver medal in Innsbruck.
At club level, he won five Czechoslovak league championships with Kladno, playing a pivotal role in the most successful era in the club’s history. During his career, he also played in the NHL with the Washington Capitals and later competed in Switzerland and Austria. He finished his playing career back in Kladno, where he even shared the ice with a young Jaromír Jágr.
František Pospíšil
(*April 2, 1944)
František Pospíšil is one of the greatest figures in the history of Kladno hockey. The outstanding defenceman was a cornerstone of the club’s most successful era, helping Kladno win four Czechoslovak league championships between 1975 and 1978.
As the long-serving captain of the Czechoslovak national team, Pospíšil led his country to three IIHF World Championship titles and won numerous additional medals at World Championships and Olympic Games.
Following his playing career, he returned to Kladno as head coach and guided the club to what remains its most recent league championship in 1980. He later also served as the club’s general manager. In recognition of his extraordinary achievements, Pospíšil was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 1999.
Václav Sýkora
(*October 24, 1952)
Václav Sýkora is one of the greatest legends in the history of Kladno hockey. As a player, he was part of the club’s golden generation, winning five Czechoslovak league championships between 1975 and 1980.
After retiring from playing, Sýkora embarked on a highly successful coaching career and established himself as one of the leading Czech coaches of his generation. He led Sparta Prague to the Czech Extraliga title in 2002 and guided Pardubice to the championship in 2010.
Sýkora also enjoyed successful coaching spells in Finland and Russia, making him one of the few Czech coaches to build a distinguished international career. After retiring from coaching, he returned to his hometown club, serving as an advisor to Rytíři Kladno until 2026.
Distinguished Figure
Otakar Černý Sr.
(*September 10, 1943 – †February 16, 2021)
Otakar Černý Sr. was one of the most influential figures in Kladno sport. As a journalist, author and long-time television presenter, he became a legend of Czech sports journalism.
Although he never played for Kladno himself, he remained deeply devoted to his hometown throughout his life. He authored several publications documenting the history of Kladno sport and its rich hockey tradition while also serving the club's youth system as a team manager.
In recognition of his outstanding contribution to Kladno sport and ice hockey, Černý was inducted into the Kladno Ice Hockey Hall of Fame.
