Bílí Tygři Liberec come into the 2020/21 Champions Hockey League season looking to reach their previous heights of a Semi-Finals appearance from 2017/18 once again or go one better and all the way onto the Final in this year’s edition of the tournament.
Last season saw the team crash out at the Group Stage for just the second time in their CHL history, and now entering their sixth season they’ll be looking for success once more.
Liberec have a rich history of producing some great homegrown talents, and one of them is 28-year-old forward Michal Bulíř who once again will be a key part of the team’s chances in the Champions Hockey League, already playing in five previous campaigns for the Czech side.
Back in the 2017/18 season, Bulíř was part of the Liberec side that went all the way to the Semi-Final of the competition, and this season they’ll be looking to go on another deep run in the tournament.
The 2017/18 season was also special for another reason for Liberec, because of one team in particular that they defeated on their run to the final four.
The Frölunda Indians have a long history of success in the CHL, appearing in five of the six Finals so far, but it was Liberec back in the 2017/18 season that denied them a chance of maintaining a 100% record of making it all the way to the Final game with an 8-7 victory over two legs in the Round of 16. That even took Bulíř by surprise.
“Really? They were missing in the finals just once? I didn’t know about that.”
“That’s excellent that we’re the only ones who have achieved such a thing.”Michal Bulíř speaks on the fact Liberec are the only team to stop Frölunda from making the Final
The record of being the only team to stop Frölunda from getting to the Final was even more special for Bulíř, as it was his goal that settled the tie in overtime.
After Frölunda claimed victory in the first leg, the score was tight heading into the final period of regulation in the second meeting, but it looked like Frölunda might scrape through to the Quarter-Finals as time was winding down.
That was until the final minute of regulation, a shot from Martin Bakoš found the back of the net, making it 7-7 on aggregate and forcing overtime, where Bulíř became the hero.
“That was a great moment. Martin Ševc passed to Bakoš who sent me the puck in the right circle. I just finished the whole action and scored. It was fantastic especially against a team like Frölunda who have won the tournament four times.”
After the run to the Semi-Finals, Bulíř moved on from Liberec, starting the following season with Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the Kontinental Hockey League, but returned to his home country late in the season, re-joining Liberec.
“Liberec was the number one choice for me, after all I grew up there not just as a hockey player but at the same time as a human being.
"Talks about a new contract started immediately after I left Russia, so I wasn’t thinking about choosing another team a lot.”
After coming up through the Liberec junior systems, Bulíř took a familiar path to becoming a full time member of the Liberec lineup, spending time in the Czech second tier with HC Benátky nad Jizerou in his early seasons, something he credits for helping develop his game and many others.
“Cooperation between the two teams has helped Liberec a lot. I personally went through this system to Extraliga.
"Although I haven’t played so many games in Benátky like some other players, I think that I can say that in the long term is this cooperation paying off for the club.”
During his career, Bulíř has also been called up to represent his country, playing a handful of games for the Czech national team in recent seasons, something that he thinks can help him prepare to play teams from other leagues in CHL action.
"It can certainly help. When you're playing against a team from Sweden for example you prepare for their style of play which doesn't differ that much from the style they play with the national team."
Liberec begin their journey in the 2020/21 Champions Hockey League season with a matchup against Polish side GKS Tychy with their sights on a successful campaign after they failed to escape the Group Stage last season.