Jiří Novotný (born August 12, 1983) is a Czech professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics * Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentri ...

who currently plays for

Motor České Budějovice HC Motor České Budějovice is a professional men's ice hockey club, based in České Budějovice, Czech Republic. It is a member of the Czech Extraliga (ELH) after reforming when the original club, now known as Mountfield HK, moved to Hradec Kr ...

of 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 le ...

(ELH).

Playing career

Novotný was drafted 22nd overall by the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. He spent two seasons with HC České Budějovice in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

before moving on to the Sabres'

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 developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

(AHL) affiliate, the

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League; the team is an owned and operated affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, ...

. He made his NHL debut with the Sabres in a January 12, 2006 game against the Phoenix Coyotes. Novotný's first NHL point came in his second game, when he assisted on a

Daniel Paille Daniel Joseph Paille (born April 15, 1984) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger. He was originally drafted 20th overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft and also played in the National Hockey League with the ...

goal against 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 ...

on January 14, 2006. His first NHL goal came in his sixth game, against the Florida Panthers on February 11, 2006. He was traded on February 27, 2007 to the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...

with a 1st round pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft for

Dainius Zubrus Dainius Gintas Zubrus (born June 16, 1978) is a Lithuanian former professional ice hockey right winger and centre who played in the National Hockey League (NHL), the first Lithuanian to have played 1,000 games in the NHL. Drafted 15th overall in ...

and

Timo Helbling Timo Helbling (born July 21, 1981) is a Swiss former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National League (NL) for HC Davos, Kloten Flyers, HC Lugano, HC Fribourg-Gottéron, SC Bern, EV Zug, SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, Oulun Kärp ...

. At the conclusion of the season, he was not extended a qualifying offer by the Capitals, making him an unrestricted free agent. On July 3, 2007, Novotný was signed by the Columbus Blue Jackets to a two-year contract. On July 2, 2014, he signed a two-year contract with

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Hockey Club Lokomotiv (russian: ХК Локомотив, en, Locomotive HC), also known as Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, is a Russian professional ice hockey team, based in the city of Yaroslavl, playing in the top level Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) ...

, after Lev Praha announced not to participate in

2014–15 KHL season The 2014–15 KHL season was the seventh season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The season started on 3 September with the Opening Cup between defending champions Metallurg Magnitogorsk and Dynamo Moscow, replacing Lev Praha, last year's runne ...

. Having returned to the Czech Republic to begin the 2018–19 season with HC Plzeň of the ELH, on September 20, 2018, one day prior to the start of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

, Novotny was signed to a two-month contract worth CHF 500,000 by

HC Ambrì-Piotta Hockey Club Ambrì-Piotta is a Swiss professional ice hockey club and a member of the National League (NL). The club was founded September 19, 1937, and is also known as "Bianco-Blu" (English: white and blues). Though they have never won the leagu ...

to replace injured Bryan Lerg. Novotny will make CHF 84,000 out of this contract. On October 25, 2018, his CHF 500,000 contract was extended through the end of the 2018–19 season.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Novotny, Jiri 1983 births Living people HC Ambrì-Piotta players Atlant Moscow Oblast players Barys Nur-Sultan players Buffalo Sabres draft picks Buffalo Sabres players Columbus Blue Jackets players Czech ice hockey centres Expatriate ice hockey players in Russia HC Lada Togliatti players HC Lev Praha players KLH Vajgar Jindřichův Hradec players Lokomotiv Yaroslavl players Ice hockey players at the 2014 Winter Olympics Motor České Budějovice players National Hockey League first-round draft picks Olympic ice hockey players of the Czech Republic People from Pelhřimov HC Plzeň players Rochester Americans players Traktor Chelyabinsk players Washington Capitals players Sportspeople from the Vysočina Region