Jiri Tlusty Profile

Jiri Tlusty, LW

Team: HC Rabat Kladno Sr./Jr.

Birthdate: March, 16th, 1988

Birthplace: Slany, Czech Republic

Height: 6'0

Weight: 200 lbs.

Shoots: L

Season Recap: started the season with the Kladno juniors .. Promoted to the senior team in September for a regular duty on the fourth line after just three junior games .. Received only limited ice time during his first month of senior Extraleague play .. Saw his role expand after the injuries hit the team and made the most of his chance .. Progressed in many assets of his play since November and showed a strong level of confidence while playing on the senior level .. Promoted to third line duty since December and started to receive

special units time .. could score his goals in both the finesse way and the hard shot way .. especially since December progressed on his ability to perform on the powerplay units .. played on the second line at the end of the season and established himself as one of the key forwards of the team .. provided consistent performances and avoided off-games .. his strength enabled him to handle the senior opponents without problems occurring with teenage players ..could battle himself into scoring chances thanks to a more explosive acceleration .. outplayed teammate Michael Frolik in direct comparisons in the

battle for the top Czech 2006 eligible prospect .. earned a nomination for the 'Top rookie' award of the 2005-2006 Czech Extraleague as the youngest nominee and ended as a runner-up to Radek Fiala.

Playoffs: rejoined the Kladno junior team for the playoffs since the senior team was already eliminated from postseason play .. played on a line with fellow 2006 eligible prospect Frolik and overager Milan Hluchy and formed the most dangerous offensive unit of the Kladno juniors .. proved his dominancy on the junior level with a gritty two-way play with lots of shooting .. Overpowered the opponents and chipped in offensively .. his heavy accurate shots were unmatched by any junior player during the playoffs .. filled his all-round role of a sniper with a strong defensive awareness with a very good maturity .. a strong

factor during the semifinal series against Vsetin and the final series against Trinec .. used as a penalty-killing specialist .. won a championship title in the junior Extraleague with Kladno in 2005-2006.

International play: registered an okay performance at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial in August with a belligerent two-way play, only particularly hampered by a few inconsistent shifts .. played a decent tournament opener against Sweden with quality shooting and passing .. sidelined with a hip injury for the next game against Switzerland .. did not show his usual belligerence and tenaciousness in the first game against Canada, which was only average for him .. registered a better showing against Russia, hitting the opponents and creating solid plays ..

arguably the best Czech forward who could deal with the physical style of Canada well on a regular basis in the gold-medal game .. participated in the Under-20 Four Nations Tournament in Russia in November .. played an okay tournament ..scored a clutch goal against Sweden .. took part in the 2006 Under-20 WJC in a very limited role .. skated just on the fourth line and had a difficult time adjusting to the pace of the game after sitting long minutes on the bench .. showed flashes of his potential despite the limited ice time with solid shifts at both ends of the ice .. didn't play any international games during the February international break and only practiced with the Kladno senior team.

Under-18 WJC: captain of the Czech Under-18 WJC team .. registered a very good showing as the Czech most dangerous offensive weapon and won the Czech scoring.. scored key goals for his team .. did not show any weakness in his game on this tournament .. was very effective at both ends of the ice with a gritty all-round style .. could score and pass equally well .. useful in the defensive zone with his strength .. well-deserving Under-18 WJC All-star member.

Strengths: very solid skating skills .. a well-balanced skater .. solid

lower-body strength makes from him a player who is very tough to be knocked off the puck .. boasts a powerful stride .. possesses above-average acceleration.. solid agility and top-end speed .. okay passing skills .. capable of finding the open man with a crisp passes .. good stickhandling skills .. makes quick smooth dekes .. maintains possession of the puck in heavy traffic .. covers the puck well .. okay corralling of difficult passes .. impressive variety of shots and likes to shoot .. fires an accurate and hard wrist and snap shot .. solid

hard slap shot .. good defensive awareness .. often returns back to help the defense .. limits the options of opposing forwards and blocks passing lanes well.. decent defensive positioning .. a solid asset on both powerplay and penalty killing units .. willing to throw his weight around and play a belligerent style along the boards .. shows up in traffic regularly and punishes bigger players ..plays a mature game

Weaknesses: Does not have a weakness, which would be really a major one .. a minor drawback is that he tends to take odd off-shifts in terms of battling for the loose pucks and blocking the opposing passing lanes in the neutral zone .. minor inconsistency in determination when things do not go his way on the ice.

Progress in play: registered the most significant progress from all the Czech 2006 eligible prospects especially during the second half of the season ..flourished with a bigger role on the senior team .. gained more strength .. slightly upgraded on his already solid agility .. upgraded on his confidence with the puck and makes smoother moves .. picked up his shooting ability to the level where he is able to beat elite senior level goaltenders regularly ..gained more maturity in his defensive positioning .. makes quicker takeaways .. learned how to become a factor on the senior level and started to make things happen.

Mental Make-up: possesses a phlegmatic nature but it does not prevent him from playing the games with fire .. a silent good-natured guy who does not speak a lot off the ice but likes to lead by example and possesses quality leadership ..possesses a winning attitude .. shows a calm nature and a friendly personality off the ice .. a player determined to reach success in hockey and play the game for his living .. aware of his personal goals .. a solid worker in practice who is willing to work harder than the rest of the team .. keeps the regimen and does not break it, taking advantage of his 'naturally strong' frame, which enables him to gain strength easily .. blessed with a solid level of confidence in his abilities both on and off the ice .. does not let pressure bother him too much .. respects the coaching staff .. is suited for performing in key game situations .. an adequately intelligent player off the ice .. hails from a hockey family where his father is a former player .. possesses acceptable English skills, but still could use further improvement.

Injuries: supinated shoulder ligament (April, 2006)

flu (November, 2005)

hip injury (August, 2005)

squashed nerves (August, 2005)

Previous notable injuries: broken collarbone (2002)

bruised ankle (2004)

Stats: HC Rabat Kladno Sr. 44GP 7G 3A 10P +/- -15 51PIM

HC Rabat Kladno Jr. 12GP 11G 8A 19P +/- +11 8PIM

Agent information: represented by Bobby Orr (The Orr Hockey Group) and Czech representatives Frantisek Kaberle Sr. and Jiri Poner

NHL potential: the most impressive Czech 2006 eligible player .. his style will be translated to North America smoothly and his rapid progress on the senior level during this season indicates considerable pro potential .. should keep a steady development curve given his overall talent and dedication .. fits the mold of a belligerent all-round NHL forward with a solid offensive output .. possesses the potential of a good first-line NHL forward with the bottom potential of playing on the second line .. will be able to fill multiple roles at the NHL level as both a quality scorer and a defensive forward depending on the needs .. should carry a large role on the Kladno senior team next season if he is not signed to a pro contract by his NHL team .. drafted by the OHL's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds but would not have benefited from playing against juniors at this stage of development .. is a lock to be selected in the first round .. would be recommended to select within the first 10 picks .. at this point is most NHL ready from all Czech 2006 eligible prospects.