Jaroslav Bednář is a Czech

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 winger

Winger (ice hockey)

Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...

, who currently plays for HC Lugano in the National League A in Switzerland.

Playing career

Born in Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

, Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...

, Bednář began his career with Slavia Prague in 1994 and stayed there for three years before moving to rivals Sparta Prague. He played just 14 games before moving to Plzeň

HC Lasselsberger Plzen

HC Plzeň 1929 is an ice hockey team in the Czech Extraliga. Their home arena is ČEZ Aréna in Plzeň.- Club names :* 1929 – Hokejový odbor při SK Viktoria Plzeň* 1948 – Sokol Plzeň IV* 1949 – ZSJ Škodovy závody* 1952 – ZSJ Leninovy závody...

 and then returned to play for Sparta for the next season. He then spent the next two seasons playing in Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

's SM-liiga

SM-liiga

The SM-liiga is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. As of March 2008, it is ranked by the IIHF as the second strongest league in Europe. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice...

 with spells at Jyp

JYP

JYP is an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga. They play in Jyväskylä, Finland, at the Synergia-areena.-Team history:JYP was founded in 1977 under the name JyP HT, having been until then the ice hockey section of the sports club Jyväskylän Palloilijat. The current full name of the club is JYP Jyväskylä...

 and HIFK

HIFK (ice hockey)

HIFK is an ice hockey team based in Helsinki, Finland. The team plays at Helsinki Ice Hall. It was founded in 1897...

 where he led the teams in goals and points.

NHL career

Bednář was drafted 51st overall by the Los Angeles Kings

Los Angeles Kings

The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...

 in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft

2001 NHL Entry Draft

The 2001 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 23–24, 2001 at the National Car Rental Center in Sunrise, Florida.-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:-Round five:-Round six:-Round seven:-Round eight:-Round nine:...

, but never managed to recapture the form he had in Finland. He played 37 games for the Kings, scoring 4 goals and 11 assists for 15 points. On November 26, 2002, Bednář, along with Andreas Lilja

Andreas Lilja

Andreas Lilja is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League .-Professional hockey:...

 was traded to the Florida Panthers

Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in Sunrise, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their games at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise and are the...

 for Dmitri Yushkevich

Dmitri Yushkevich

Dmitri Sergeyevich Yushkevich is a retired Russian professional ice hockey defenceman. He ended his career in Kärpät of the SM-liiga.-Playing career:...

, he played 65 games for Florida, scoring 6 goals and 14 assists for 20 points. Overall, Bednář played 102 regular season games, scoring 10 goals and 25 assists for 35 points.

Back in Europe

Bednář moved to Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

 during the cancelled 2004–05 NHL Season and played for Avangard Omsk

Avangard Omsk

Avangard Omsk are a professional ice hockey team from Siberia based in the city of Omsk, Russia. They are members of the Chernyshev Division of the Kontinental Hockey League.-Overview:...

 where he played alongside Jaromír Jágr

Jaromir Jagr

Jaromír Jágr is a Czech professional ice hockey right winger who plays for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League . Jágr formerly played with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals, and New York Rangers, serving as captain of the Penguins and the Rangers...

, Alexander Perezhogin

Alexander Perezhogin

Alexander Perezhogin is a Russian professional ice hockey player currently playing for Avangard Omsk of the Kontinental Hockey League .-Playing career:...

 and Oleg Tverdovsky

Oleg Tverdovsky

Oleh Fedorovych "Oleg" Tverdovsky is a Ukrainian-Russian professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for Salavat Yulaev Ufa of the Kontinental Hockey League .-Early years:...

. In 2005, Bednář returned to Slavia Prague where he has become one of their core players and left the team after four years on 29 April 2009 to sign with Atlant Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League

Kontinental Hockey League

The Kontinental Hockey League is an international professional ice hockey league in Eurasia founded in 2008. As of 2009, it is ranked as the strongest hockey league in Europe....

. In 2010, Bednář signed a one year contract with HC Davos

HC Davos

Hockey Club Davos is a professional Swiss ice hockey club based in Davos, Switzerland. Davos play in the Swiss National League A, which is ranked as Europe's sixth best ice hockey league. The team is usually a strong force in the league and often bolster their roster with Swiss national team...

 from the Swiss NLA where he played alongside with 3 other Czech players: Petr Sykora, Petr Taticek

Petr Taticek

Petr Tatíček is a Czech professional ice hockey centre who played for the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League. He is currently playing for HC Davos in Switzerland's National League A....

 and Josef Marha

Josef Marha

Josef Marha is a Czech professional ice hockey player who currently plays in Switzerland's Nationalliga A for HC Davos.Marha played in the National Hockey League for the Colorado Avalanche, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and the Chicago Blackhawks, playing 159 regular season games goals 21 goals and 32...

. During the 2010-2011 regular season, Bednář scored 35 goals and 15 assists for a total of 50 points in 43 games.

External links