The Czech U18 men’s national team announced the 24-man roster that it plans to use at this summer’s Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Edmonton. It also includes a list of 15 reserves who will practise with the team and be ready to join the roster if need be.

Among the notable names is Adam Benák, a highly-rated prospect for the 2025 NHL Entry Draft and the only returning player from last year’s silver-medal team at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup. Radim Mrtka and Tomáš Poletín both played in this spring’s IIHF U18 World Championship and 16-year-old Adam Novotný, who only missed due to injury and isn’t eligible to be drafted until 2026.

But, as Hokej.cz’s Martin Voltr reports, the most interesting name on the list is probably 16-year-old defenseman Vladimír Dravecký Jr. The son of former Slovak national team player Vladimír Dravecký (who still plays in the Czech Extraliga), he holds both Czech and U.S. passports and played for the Slovak U18 national team in some exhibition games last season.

“I have lived in the Czech Republic since I was six years old. It’s the country in which I have spent the largest part of my life, the country where I learned to play hockey, where I feel at home and where I have the most friends,” said Dravecký. “I was born in the USA, so I also have an American passport, but I don’t feel at home in the United States, even though it is my native country.”

He continued, “Due to my roots, I was offered a chance to represent Slovakia. I also played for them several times in youth categories, and at one point I seriously considered the possibility. For this reason, I also spent the past year in Slovakia, so that one day I would have the opportunity to make a free choice. I want to play international hockey, and in Slovakia at the moment I don’t feel that much interest in my services, which of course I fully respect.”

Before the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, the team will travel to Davos, Switzerland in late July to play a couple of exhibition games against the Swiss U18 team before flying overseas on July 31. The Czechs play a pre-tournament game against Canada on August 3 before starting the Hlinka Gretzky Cup two days later against the United States.

Roster:

Goaltenders (2): Ondřej Štěbeták (Jihlava), Michal Oršulák (Karlovy Vary).

Defensemen (8): Jakub Seidl (Liberec), Tomáš Mikel (Zlín), Radim Mrtka, David Lukas Holub (both Třinec), Rostislav Šilhavý (Mladá Boleslav), Tomáš Malínek (Sparta Prague), Štěpán Černý (Hradec Králové), Vladimír Dravecký (Rögle, Sweden).

Forwards (14): Vít Záhejský, Vojtěch Čihař (both Karlovy Vary), David Rozsíval (Liberec), Robin Švančara (Třinec), Matouš Jan Kucharčík, Viktor Šámal (both Slavia Prague), David Hrubý (Sparta Prague), Adrien Bartovič (Malmö, Sweden), Matěj Pekař (Ambri-Piotta, Switzerland), Adam Novotný (Hradec Králové), Šimon Fasner (Vítkovice), Dominik Pavlík (Kärpät Oulu, Finland), Adam Benák (Plzeň), Tomáš Poletín (Lahti, Finland).

Reserves:

Goaltenders: Martin Fajmon (Ilves Tampere, Finland), David Skácel (Třinec), Matěj Tuláček (Pardubice). Defensemen: Radoslav Cichoň (Sparta Prague), Kryštof Dyk, Matěj Pelikán (both Karlovy Vary), Max Pšenička (Slavia Prague), Jakub Winkelhöfer (Litvínov), Filip Zimovčák (Ambri-Piotta, Switzerland). Forwards: Jakub Lev (České Budějovice), Matyáš Úbl, Antonín Klatovský (both Škoda Plzeň), Petr Věchet (Lukko Rauma, Finland), David Krčál, Vít Macek (both Pardubice).

Team Staff:

Manager: Michal Vondrka
Head Coach: David Čermák
Assistant Coaches: Jaroslav Nedvěd, Radek Bělohlav
Goaltending Coach: Michal Neuvirth
Conditioning Coach: Michal Hamršmíd
Video Coach: Vladimír Mizera
Physicians: Dr. Tomáš Madrý, Dr. Josef März
Athletic Trainer: David Matoušek
Equipment Managers: Vlastimil Pospíšil, Jakub Vais