Slovak goaltender Patrik Rybár, 31, was placed on waivers by Spartak Moscow and claimed by Kunlun Red Star, the KHL website announced on Friday. Rybár was 7-4-0 with a 3.14 goals-against average and .908 save percentage in 12 games with Spartak this season.
Originally from Skalica, Slovakia, Rybar played for several Slovak clubs and then Mountfield Hradec Králové in the Czech Extraliga before signing as a free agent with the Detroit Red Wings at age 24. He spent the 2018-19 season with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins, posting a 2.49 goals-against average, a .908 save percentage and two shutouts in 37 games, splitting duties with Finn Harri Säteri behind Jimmy Howard and Jonathan Bernier in Detroit’s depth chart.
Rybár returned to Europe after one season, playing two seasons for Kärpät Oulu in Finland before heading to the KHL in 2021 – first with Dinamo Minsk and then to Spartak.
Internationally, Rybár has played for Slovakia at three IIHF World Championships and has been on the roster for two Winter Olympics. He didn’t play as the team’s third goalie in Pyeongchang in 2018 but took over the starting job in the second game of the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, eventually backstopping Slovakia to the bronze medal and earning a spot on the tournament all-star team.
Rybár hasn’t played in a World Championship since then, as KHL players were not permitted on the Slovak national team in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but that policy was reversed in the summer of 2024, perhaps opening the door to future representation.
Rybár joins a Kunlun team that has American goaltenders Jeremy Smith and Kyle Keyser and Nashville Predators prospect Konstantin Volkov under contract. It also has fellow Slovak Tomáš Jurčo and other ex-NHLers Brandon Yip, Adam Clendening, Tyler Graovac and Jake Chelios. The team has also had Nail Yakupov, Rourke Chartier, Ryan Merkley and Hudson Elyniuk under contract this season, but has parted with all of them, usually for financial compensation.
Perhaps coincidentally, Spartak and Kunlun face each other on Friday night in Mytishchi – the suburban Moscow city where Kunlun plays its home games. It’s not clear whether Rybár will be in the lineup.