Milan Hnilička (born June 25, 1973) is a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

former ice hockey goalie who played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

for the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

Atlanta Thrashers The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League (NHL) on June 25, 1997, and became the League's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 seaso ...

and the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

and politician. He was a member of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

since 2017, but resigned in January 2021 after attending a party in breach of coronavirus restrictions. He was drafted 70th overall by the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

in the

1991 NHL Entry Draft The 1991 NHL Entry Draft was the 29th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 22 at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York. A total of 264 players were drafted. The worst team in the previous 1990–91 season, the Quebec Nordiques, was give ...

. In 2000, Milan won the

Calder Cup The Calder Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the playoff champions of the American Hockey League. It was first presented in 1937 to the Syracuse Stars. The cup is made of sterling silver mounted on a base of Brazilian mahogany. In its curr ...

while playing for the

Hartford Wolf Pack The Hartford Wolf Pack are a professional ice hockey team based in Hartford, Connecticut. A member of the American Hockey League (AHL), they play their home games at the XL Center. The team was established in 1926 as the Providence Reds. After a ...

. He last played in the

Czech Extraliga The Czech Extraliga ( cs, Extraliga ledního hokeje, ELH) is the highest-level ice hockey league in the Czech Republic. It was created by the 1993 split of the Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League following the breakup of Czechoslovakia. The leag ...

for Bílí Tygři Liberec. He announced his retirement in August 2010. Internationally Hnilička represented the Czechoslovakian national junior team and the Czech national senior team at multiple tournaments, including the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second t ...

, where he won a bronze medal.

Playing career

Hnilička played for

Poldi SONP Kladno Poldi or Poldy may refer to: __NOTOC__ People Nickname * Prince Leopold of Bavaria (born 1943), Bavarian prince and former race car driver * Leopold Bentley, born Leopold Bloch-Bauer, a co-founder of what became Canfor, a Canadian integrated forest ...

in the

Czechoslovak Extraliga The Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League was the elite ice hockey league in Czechoslovakia from 1936 until 1993, when the country split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Slovak Extraliga and Czech Extraliga formed from the split. History ...

for several years. At the

he was selected 70th overall by the

, and moved to North America in 1992, spending one season in

major junior Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

with the

Swift Current Broncos The Swift Current Broncos are a junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League. Founded during 1967 in Swift Current, Saskatchewan, the Broncos played seven seasons before relocating to Lethbridge from 1974 to 1986 as the Lethbridge Broncos ...

of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

, helping them reach the 1993 Memorial Cup. He then spent 2 seasons in the minor leagues before returning to the

, where he played a further 4 seasons. Signed by the

of the

in 1999, he made his NHL debut on October 14, 1999 against the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

. He played 2 games for the Rangers, spending the majority of the season with their

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

affiliate the

, winning the

with them as AHL champions. Signing as a free agent with the

, he would spend 3 seasons with them, before being traded to the

in 2003. Hnilička mainly played for the Kings' AHL affiliate, the

Manchester Monarchs Manchester Monarchs may refer to: *Manchester Monarchs (AHL) (2001–2015) *Manchester Monarchs (ECHL) The Manchester Monarchs were a professional ice hockey team in the ECHL which began play in the 2015–16 season. Based in Manchester, New ...

, appearing in 2 games for the Kings. He returned to the Czech Republic in 2004 and played 5 seasons with Bílí Tygři Liberec, as well as briefly playing for

Salavat Yulaev Ufa Hockey Club Salavat Yulaev (russian: Хоккейный клуб «Салават Юлаев», Hokkejnyj klub «Salavat Julajev»; ba, «Салауат Юлаев» хоккей клубы, «Salawat Yulayev» xokkey klubı), commonly referred ...

of the

Russian Superleague The Russian Superleague (russian: Чемпионат России Суперлига, ''Russian Championship Superleague''), commonly abbreviated as RSL, was the highest division of the main professional ice hockey league in Russia. It was consi ...

in 2007–08. Hnilička's last games were in 2009–10 when he played 3 games for

Slavia Praha Sportovní klub Slavia Praha – fotbal (Sports Club Slavia Prague – Football, ), commonly known as Slavia Praha or Slavia Prague, is a Czech professional football club in Prague. Founded in 1892, they are the second most successful club in t ...

. He holds the Atlanta Thrashers/Winnipeg Jets franchise record for saves in one game with 53 on December 18, 2001 against the Boston Bruins.

International play

Hnilička played his first game for the Czechoslovak junior team in 1990 at the 1990 European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal. He played again for the Czechoslovakian junior team at the 1991 World Junior Championships, again winning bronze. He was named to the Czechoslovakian senior team for both the

1991 Canada Cup The 1991 Labatt Canada Cup was a professional international ice hockey tournament played in August and September 1991. The finals took place in Montreal on September 14 and Hamilton on September 16, and were won by Canada. The Canadians defeated ...

and 1991 World Championships, but did not play in either tournament. Hnilička's final tournament for Czechoslovakia was the 1992 World Junior Championships, where the team finished fifth. With the

dissolution of Czechoslovakia The dissolution of Czechoslovakia ( cs, Rozdělení Československa, sk, Rozdelenie Česko-Slovenska) took effect on December 31, 1992, and was the self-determined split of the federal republic of Czechoslovakia into the independent countries o ...

he began to represent the Czech national team, playing in 7

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

and the

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

and

(though he did not play in 1998). He won gold at the

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

, and 2005 World Championships, as well as a silver in

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

and bronze in both

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

and

.He is world champion from 1999,2001 and 2005. lng=CZ&webid=472&view=hrac_info&idh=136 Stats at hokej.cz

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hnilicka, Milan 1973 births Living people People from Litoměřice ANO 2011 MPs Atlanta Thrashers players Chicago Wolves players Czech ice hockey goaltenders Denver Grizzlies players Expatriate ice hockey players in Russia Hartford Wolf Pack players HC Bílí Tygři Liberec players Rytíři Kladno players HC Slavia Praha players HC Sparta Praha players Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics Ice hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics Los Angeles Kings players Manchester Monarchs (AHL) players Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 2006 Winter Olympics Members of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic (2017–2021) New York Islanders draft picks New York Rangers players Olympic bronze medalists for the Czech Republic Olympic gold medalists for the Czech Republic Olympic ice hockey players of the Czech Republic Olympic medalists in ice hockey Richmond Renegades players Salavat Yulaev Ufa players Salt Lake Golden Eagles (IHL) players Swift Current Broncos players