Filip Král

Filip Král
Born (1999-10-20) 20 October 1999 (age 25)
Blansko, Czech Republic
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 172 lb (78 kg; 12 st 4 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NHL team (P)
Cur. team
Former teams
Pittsburgh Penguins
WBS Penguins (AHL)
HC Kometa Brno
Toronto Maple Leafs
Lahti Pelicans
NHL draft 149th overall, 2018
Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career 2016–present

Filip Král (born 20 October 1999) is a Czech professional ice hockey player for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted 149th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.[1]

Playing career

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Král began playing hockey in his hometown of Blansko at the age of three.[2] In the Czech Republic Král has played within the system of HC Kometa Brno, and played 27 games with the professional club across two seasons, recording two assists. In 2017, Král was drafted in the second round, 78th overall, during the CHL Import Draft by the Spokane Chiefs. He started the 2017–18 season with HC Kometa Brno, but opted out of his contract four games into the season to play in the Western Hockey League (WHL).[3] He was signed by the Chiefs on 6 October 2017, and committed to play for the team during the 2017–18 season, marking the first time he would play outside of his native country.[4] During his first season in North America, Král put up 35 points in 54 games, second on team scoring for defencemen (behind only Ty Smith, who was also selected during the 2018 NHL Entry Draft).[5]

On 2 April 2020, Král was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract by the Toronto Maple Leafs.[6] On 12 August, Král was assigned by the Maple Leafs to Czech second tier club, HC ZUBR Přerov, on loan until the commencement of the delayed 2020–21 North American season.[7]

Having appeared in two games with the Maple Leafs during the 2022–23 season, Král as a pending restricted free agent was not tendered a qualifying offer by the club and was released as a free agent.[citation needed] Král opted to leave North America and was signed to a one-year contract with Finnish club, Lahti Pelicans of the Liiga, on 14 July 2023.[8]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2016–17 HC Kometa Brno Czech.20 13 4 6 10 10 6 3 7 10 2
2016–17 HC Kometa Brno ELH 23 0 2 2 2 5 0 0 0 0
2016–17 SK Horácká Slavia Třebíč Czech.1 12 1 1 2 6
2017–18 HC Kometa Brno ELH 4 0 0 0 0
2017–18 SK Horácká Slavia Třebíč Czech.1 3 0 0 0 2
2017–18 Spokane Chiefs WHL 54 9 26 35 24 5 0 0 0 0
2018–19 Spokane Chiefs WHL 47 10 26 36 14 12 0 2 2 4
2019–20 Spokane Chiefs WHL 53 12 37 49 8
2020–21 HC ZUBR Přerov Czech.1 7 2 8 10 4
2020–21 HC Kometa Brno ELH 48 6 15 21 12 9 1 5 6 4
2020–21 Toronto Marlies AHL 10 2 0 2 0
2021–22 Toronto Marlies AHL 58 3 18 21 24
2022–23 Toronto Marlies AHL 24 2 4 6 6
2022–23 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 2 0 0 0 2
2023–24 Lahti Pelicans Liiga 46 5 32 37 10 17 1 7 8 8
ELH totals 75 6 17 23 14 14 1 5 6 4
NHL totals 2 0 0 0 2

International

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Medal record
Representing  Czech Republic
Ice hockey
Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament
Gold medal – first place 2016 Czech Republic/Slovakia
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2015 Czech Republic U17 7th 5 0 0 0 0
2016 Czech Republic IH18 1st place, gold medalist(s) 5 0 0 0 2
2017 Czech Republic U18 7th 5 1 1 2 0
2018 Czech Republic WJC 4th 7 1 0 1 2
2019 Czech Republic WJC 7th 5 1 0 1 2
Junior totals 27 3 1 4 6

References

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  1. ^ "Toronto Maple Leafs Select Filip Kral 149th Overall". Pension Plan Puppets. SB Nation. 23 June 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  2. ^ "Blanenský rodák Filip Král má namířeno do NHL". Město Blansko (in Czech). 6 June 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  3. ^ Punčochář, Jiří (3 October 2017). "Kometě odchází za oceán velký talent. Obránce Král jde zkusit WHL". iSport.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Czech Defenseman Filip Kral Headed to Spokane". Western Hockey League. Canadian Hockey League. 6 October 2017. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  5. ^ Murray, Robert (20 June 2018). "Growing the Game's Best Talent: Kristian Reichel and Filip Kral". Western Hockey League. Canadian Hockey League. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  6. ^ "Maple Leafs sign Kral and Rubins to entry-level contracts". Toronto Maple Leafs. 2 April 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  7. ^ Toronto Maple Leafs (12 August 2020). "Maple Leafs loan Kral and Lindgren". Twitter. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  8. ^ "NHL defenseman Filip Kral signs with Pelicans" (in Finnish). Lahti Pelicans. 14 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
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