Libor Hájek

Libor Hájek (born 4 February 1998) is a Czech professional ice hockey defenceman for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning, in the second round, 37th overall, in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

Libor Hájek
Born (1998-02-04) 4 February 1998
Smrček, Czech Republic
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 New York Rangers
HC Kometa Brno
NHL Draft 37th overall, 2016
Tampa Bay Lightning
Playing career 2015–present

Playing career

Hájek made his Czech Extraliga (ELH) debut playing 17 games with HC Kometa Brno during the 2014–15 Czech Extraliga season.[1] In opting to continue his development in the CHL, Hájek was selected second overall in the 2015 CHL Import Draft by the Saskatoon Blades of the WHL.[2]

At the completion of his second season with the Blades, Hájek was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 21, 2017.[3] He immediately joined primary affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL on an amateur try-out to play out the remainder of the 2016–17 season.

On 26 February 2018, Hájek was traded to the New York Rangers, along with Vladislav Namestnikov, Brett Howden, and two draft picks, for Ryan McDonagh and J. T. Miller.[4] Hájek recorded his first career NHL assist off a goal by Mika Zibanejad during the 2019–20 season opener against the Winnipeg Jets on 3 October.[5]

On 13 November 2020, Hájek was loaned to HC Kometa Brno of the Czech Extraliga (ELH).[6]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2013–14 HC Kometa Brno U20 13 0 1 1 10 — — — — —
2014–15 HC Kometa Brno U20 44 1 9 10 62 1 0 0 0 0
2014–15 HC Kometa Brno ELH 17 0 1 1 2 7 0 0 0 0
2015–16 Saskatoon Blades WHL 69 3 23 26 76 — — — — —
2016–17 Saskatoon Blades WHL 65 4 22 26 81 — — — — —
2016–17 Syracuse Crunch AHL 8 1 0 1 4 — — — — —
2017–18 Saskatoon Blades WHL 33 8 17 25 26 — — — — —
2017–18 Regina Pats WHL 25 4 10 14 4 4 1 0 1 12
2018–19 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 58 0 5 5 36 — — — — —
2018–19 New York Rangers NHL 5 1 0 1 6 — — — — —
2019–20 New York Rangers NHL 28 0 5 5 12 — — — — —
2019–20 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 23 1 2 3 14 — — — — —
2020–21 HC Kometa Brno ELH 10 0 2 2 4 — — — — —
NHL totals 33 1 5 6 18 — — — — —

International
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2014 Czech Republic U17 7th 5 0 1 1 4
2014 Czech Republic IH18 5 0 1 1 4
2015 Czech Republic WJC18 6th 5 1 0 1 4
2015 Czech Republic IH18 6th 4 0 1 1 4
2016 Czech Republic WJC18 7th 5 0 2 2 6
2018 Czech Republic WJC 4th 7 1 7 8 6
Junior totals 31 2 12 14 28

References
  1. "HC Kometa Brno 2014–15 statistics". eliteprospects.com. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  2. "2015 CHL import draft". Canadian Hockey League. 5 July 2015. Archived from the original on 5 July 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  3. "Lightning sign Libor Hajek to entry-level contract". Tampa Bay Lightning. 21 March 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  4. "Rangers Acquire Namestnikov, Hajek, Howden, 2018 1st Rd. Pick & 2019 Pick". NHL.com. 26 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  5. @NYRStatsInfo (3 October 2019). "Libor Hajek recorded his first career NHL assist by tallying an assist on Zibanejad's goal. #NYR" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  6. Zajíček, Roman (13 November 2020). "Libor Hájek se vrací do extraligy. Obránce z NHL pomůže domovské Kometě". hc-kometa.cz. Retrieved 15 November 2020.


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