Up next in our series of profiling all 48 CHL clubs is BK Mladá Boleslav, one of the oldest clubs in the Czech Republic. The Central Bohemian team will compete in the CHL for the first time ever thanks to an historic 4th-place finish in the Extraliga.

by Vojtěch Balon

Even though BK Mladá Boleslav is a small-town organization with little international recognition, it is one of the oldest clubs in the Czech Republic. The club was founded in 1908 and became one of the founding members of the Czech Ice Hockey Association.

More than a century of hockey

In order to find the original roots of the club, we must dig even deeper in history, back beyond 1908. In the 19th century, BK Mladá Boleslav was originally a skating and rowing club. Although it soon expanded its scope to hockey, bandy was the more popular on-ice sport at that time and the first official bandy game was played in 1904. As we already know, the actual ice hockey club as we know it today was founded four years later.

The smalltown organization (Mladá Boleslav has a population of about 45 000) had to fight its way to the top tiers of Czech hockey. In 1935, BK Mladá Boleslav qualified for the 1. liga (the elite league at that time) thanks to an incredible work ethic of its amateur players, who trained in very modest conditions and often favoured hockey before their jobs.

In the opening home game of the 1937/1938 season, BK Mladá Boleslav hosted  The green-and-blacks lost 9-2 and failed to collect any points in that season. In the following season, BK Mladá Boleslav recorded its first-ever win in the elite league over German club Troppauer SV, however, the league was then shrinked due to the onset of World War II. The Central Bohemian club was reassigned to the second league in 1939.

After World War II, Mladá Boleslav hosted its first-ever international match. The renowned Team USA came to town in 1947, and more than four thousand spectators came out to watch BK Mladá Boleslav suffer a 14-1 defeat.

The future is bright

Almost 80 years after its last season in the top divison BK Mladá Boleslav, with star center Richard Král as the team captain, carved its way back to the top flight. However, the club had to secure its spot in the Extraliga in relegation battles for each of the three following seasons. The club experienced several coaching changes and earned the demeaning nickname 'Barážový klub' (Relegation club). Mladá Boleslav failed to survive yet another relegation series at the end of the 2011/2012 season (even with ex-NHLers David Výborný and Jaroslav Balaštík in the lineup), and was relegated back to the second-tier league.

Since then, BK Mladá Boleslav has been gradually improving. František Výborný took over coaching duties together with Marián Jelínek (a foremr personal trainer to legendary Czech player Jaromír Jágr), and two years afterrelegation the club was promoted back to the Extraliga and reached the play-offs as the league's novice team. 

Last season was the most successful in the club's rich history. The team around David Výborný, coach František's son, managed to reach the semifinals, in which BK Mladá Boleslav lost to Bílí Tygři Liberec, who eventually went on to become Extraliga's champions. David Výborný then decided to hang up his skates and was named sports manager at the drop of the hat.

Outlook

Despite its regional status, BK Mladá Boleslav has managed to bring up several stars of Czech hockey. Names like Radim Vrbata, Jiří Hrdina or Marek Schwarz are known to fans all over the hockey world.

"There are many players with potential, but they often fail to reach it. Together with Marián Jelínek, we also care about the mental aspect because having national-team players means great reputation for our organization," said coach František Výborný before the start of last season. And the dream came true; several players of the smalltown club heavily sponsored by car manufacturer Škoda Auto dressed  for the Czech national team.

Who to watch

Jakub Klepiš joined the team midway through last season from HC Oceláři Třinec, another CHL competitor. A stalwart of the Czech national team with experience from both NHL and KHL, he quickly became one of Boleslav's leaders both on and off the ice. As longtime captain David Výborný recently called time on his career a few months ago, Klepiš is one of the frontrunners for this honour in the new season. 

Tuomas Tarkki is the club's new number one goaltender. The Rauma native has signed a one-year contract with BK Mladá Boleslav after four successful seasons with JYP Jyväskylä, for whom he also played in the CHL. Tomáš Voráček joined Boleslav before last season originally on a loan from Liberec, the reigning Czech champions. Voráček didn't have a very successful year behind him in Liberec, but he managed to turn around his game in the city of Škoda cars, became a cornerstone of the club's defence corps and almost made the final Czech squad for the IIHF World Championship in Russia.

Fun facts

2015/2016 was an incredibly successful season for BK Mladá Boleslav. The team coached by František Výborný and Marian Jelínek reached the play-offs for the second time in club's long history and a win in the quarterfinals against Mountfield HK not only secured a spot in the semifinals, but also in the Champions Hockey League. For the first time ever!

Team facts

CHL seasons:

The team is making its debut this season

Click here for current information about this club.