Lukáš Krajíček (, born March 11, 1983) is a , Czech former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the l ...

. He has previously played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(NHL) for the

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Panthers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team initially played it ...

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. The Canucks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conferenc ...

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. The Lightning compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the ...

and

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

, in the

Kontinental Hockey League The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; ) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs based in Russia (20), Belarus (1), Kazakhstan (1), and China (1) for a total of 23 clubs. It was considered in ...

(KHL) for

HC Dinamo Minsk Hockey Club Dinamo Minsk or HC Dinamo Minsk (; , ''Dynama-Minsk'') is a professional ice hockey club based in Minsk, Belarus. It is a member of the Tarasov Division in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Dinamo has qualified for the KHL playof ...

and for HC Oceláři Třinec of the Czech Extraliga (ELH).

Playing career

Krajíček played

major junior Junior ice hockey is amateur-level ice hockey for 16 to 20 year-old players. National List of members of the International Ice Hockey Federation, Junior teams compete annually for the IIHF World Junior Championship. The United States men's nationa ...

in the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...

(OHL) with the

Peterborough Petes The Peterborough Petes are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. The team has played at the Peterborough Memorial Centre in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, since 1956, and is the oldest continuously operating team in the league. ...

. He posted 35 points in his draft year and was chosen in the first round, 24th overall, by the

in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. He remained with the Petes for another two seasons and improved to 53 points in 52 games in 2002–03, his final year of junior. Krajíček split the 2003–04 season between the Panthers and their

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

(AHL) affiliate, the

San Antonio Rampage The San Antonio Rampage were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League based in San Antonio, Texas. The Rampage was primarily owned by Spurs Sports & Entertainment throughout the team's existence. In 2020, the franchise was so ...

, then played the entirety of 2004–05 with the Rampage due to the NHL lockout. When he returned, he earned a full-time roster spot with the Panthers and posted 16 points in 67 games. In the off-season, Krajíček was involved in a blockbuster multi-player trade that sent him, Roberto Luongo, and a sixth round draft pick in

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

to the

for Todd Bertuzzi, Alex Auld, and Bryan Allen. He matched his 16-point output of the previous season with the Canucks in 2006–07, but had his second season in Vancouver shortened due to injury. On October 6, 2008, Krajíček was traded along with prospect Juraj Šimek to the

for Michel Ouellet and Shane O'Brien. Krajíček signed with the

on January 31, 2010 after being released by Tampa Bay a week earlier. On May 27, 2011, Krajíček signed with

of the

KHL The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; ) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs based in Russia (20), Belarus (1), Kazakhstan (1), and China (1) for a total of 23 clubs. It was considered in ...

and quickly became one of the best defenceman there, forming the first pairing with the young player Dmitri Korobov. He is appreciated for his reliable and smart play in the defensive zone. Krajíček was awarded the title of the best defenceman of the first week of the

2011–12 KHL season The 2011–12 KHL season was the fourth season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The regular season began with the Opening Cup game on 7 September 2011, but because of the 2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash, which occurred during the first per ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Transactions

* June 23,

2001 The year's most prominent event was 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. The United States led a Participan ...

— Drafted by the

in the 1st round, 24th overall. * June 23,

— Traded to the

with Roberto Luongo and a 6th round pick in

for Todd Bertuzzi, Bryan Allen and Alex Auld. * September 8,

— Signed a one-year deal with the Vancouver Canucks. * July 2,

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

— Signed a two-year deal with the Vancouver Canucks as a restricted free agent. * October 6, 2008 — Traded to the

along with Juraj Šimek in exchange for Michel Ouellet and Shane O'Brien. * January 30, 2010 — Signed to an unrestricted free agent contract by the

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Krajicek, Lukas 1983 births Czech ice hockey defencemen Florida Panthers draft picks Florida Panthers players HC Dinamo Minsk players HC Oceláři Třinec players Living people NHL first-round draft picks Norfolk Admirals players Olympic ice hockey players for the Czech Republic Ice hockey players at the 2014 Winter Olympics Ice hockey people from Prostějov Peterborough Petes (ice hockey) players Philadelphia Flyers players San Antonio Rampage players Tampa Bay Lightning players Vancouver Canucks players Czech expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Czech expatriate ice hockey players in Canada Czech expatriate ice hockey players in Belarus 21st-century Czech sportsmen