Hlozek Leaves LA for New Beginnings

[Bojovnik 487]

PRAGUE, April 4, 2022 (HockeyCZ) – We haven’t really heard much from Jan Hlozek for the past two or three months.

 

Hlozek made a name for himself as a breath of fresh air as a member of the Riga Reign for the first three seasons of his VHL career, although the promise shown by the Czech blueliner was not replicated in team success.

 

With his status up in the air, Hlozek decided ahead of S81 to sign with the Los Angeles Stars in one of the major free agency coups of the offseason.

 

During his time in California, Hlozek certainly impressed. In 144 regular season games, Hlozek tallied more than 170 points as he cemented his status as one of the premier two-way defencemen currently in the

VHL.

 

However, personal success did not correspond with team success. The Stars were dumped out of the playoffs in the wild card stage in S81, and a season of promise in S82 was curtailed in the Western Conference Finals, as the LA side were swept aside by the Vancouver Wolves.

 

A change in management in Los Angeles has signaled the start of a major rebuild, corresponding with the retirements of many top players. As a result, Hlozek gave no indication that he would be willing to re-sign in California.

 

Another season of free agency looked to be on the cards, before the Moscow Menace decided to spring and trade for Hlozek’s negotiation rights. Almost instantly, the two parties agreed on a one-year deal with a team option for what could be the Czech blueliner’s final season in the VHL.

 

“It’s been a great feeling so far, I’m happy to be in Moscow,” Hlozek told HockeyCZ in his first post-trade and signing interview.

 

“Moscow have been a team that has been successful throughout all my time in the VHL. I really like how they play the game and the atmosphere around the team. Of course, they haven’t managed to get over the line over the past three seasons, but there’s an indication that things are changing in the VHL, and that could mean that we’re in a good place to make some good things happen this season,” the Topolna native said.

 

For now, Hlozek is plying his trade with Team Eastern Europe at the World Cup of Hockey, two seasons after he represented Team Mercenaries.

 

The Eastern European side has had a mixed start to the tournament, but Hlozek said that he was proud to represent his region at the highest stage of world hockey.

 

“The World Cup of Hockey truly is a best of the best tournament, and to get the opportunity to represent Eastern Europe is a proud moment for my career. There’s a lot of talent on the team but, at the end of the day, we haven’t started the tournament as successfully we would have liked. There’s still time to turn our fortunes around and it’s great to link up with some familiar faces from my time in Riga,” the Czech blueliner concluded.