Jiricek's road to 2024 NHL Draft bred from 'intense' competition with older brother 

The 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft will be held June 28-29 at Sphere in Las Vegas. The first round will be June 28 (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS) and Rounds 2-7 are June 29 (11:30 a.m. ET; ESPN+, NHLN, SN, SN1). NHL.com is counting down to the draft with in-depth profiles on top prospects, podcasts and other features. Today, a profile on defenseman Adam Jiricek of Plzen in Czechia. NHL.com's full draft coverage can be found here.

It couldn't have been easy as the parent of two hockey-crazed boys in the Jiricek household in Klatovy, Czech Republic, not too long ago.

Rarely did a day go by when brothers David and Adam Jiricek weren't looking to win at all costs no matter where the battle took place, crashing into sofas and swinging their sticks into doors.

"Mom was mad all the time because we were playing hockey in the living room and in the kitchen, so the tennis ball was flying everywhere," David said. "That was fun. We had a lot of energy, but it was probably better to have us on the ice or a soccer field or something like that."

Said Adam: "It was really intense, and we fought each other a lot. We were in a small room, like a game room, but sometimes we needed a bigger room, so we went to the living room and my mom wasn't happy with us bumping into and breaking the furniture; we broke a lot of things."

When asked if he plans to make up for the damage at some point, Adam said, "Maybe a new house someday."

There was also the moment at Bell Centre in Montreal when Adam, three years younger, was there to give David a big hug when the latter was selected No. 6 by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2022 NHL Draft.

It was moment he'll never forget and something he's been dreaming about ever since.

"I was there in Montreal with him and have lots of nice memories," Adam said. "Montreal is a hockey town, so there were lots of fans, lots of cheering and a lot of TV cameras since it was such a big event. It was my first time to be in an NHL arena and when they said his name it was an incredible feeling for our entire family."

Adam Jiricek (6-foot-2, 167 pounds), No. 4 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of International skaters, will have his chance in the spotlight at the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft in Las Vegas.

He's expected to be a first-round pick, but questions remain after he had his draft-eligible season cut short after just 19 games with Plzen in the Czech Republic's top professional men's league after sustaining a right knee injury while playing for Czechia at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship on Dec. 26. He had surgery and missed the rest of the season but did attend the NHL Scouting Combine earlier this month. He did not do any physical testing but did interview with 29 teams.

"It was crazy because David was injured in his first game at World Juniors in his draft-eligible season as well, but it was a different injury," Adam said. "It's getting better day by day during off-ice workouts. I'm not having any problems and I hope to come back stronger [to begin 2024-25]."

The injury, according to NHL director of European Scouting Jukka-Pekka Vuorinen, did not alter any previous opinions of Jiricek and his capabilities when healthy.

David Jiricek was 6-foot-4, 189 pounds in his draft-eligible season, so inquiring minds would like to know, are the two brothers, each a right-handed shot, similar in any way?

"We have similar movement on the ice, but I think he shoots better than me," Adam said. "On the other hand, I think that I am a little bit better of a skater."

Big brother confirmed that assessment without being told of his brother's response.

"My strength is my shot and pass," David said. "He's a better skater and he was good at breaking up passes.

"Adam's hockey sense is pretty good too, and right now he was really trying to get used to it in the men's league [before his injury]. It's a big step from the from juniors to the men's, so it's important for him to play games. He was on the second power-play in Czechia so that's pretty good, and he was playing 15-17 minutes a night."

Adam Jiricek, who turns 18 on June 28, had one assist in 19 games for Plzen this season and experienced growing pains, but he also gained a lot of experience playing against older competition.

"He's a good, mobile skater for his size and has earned a big role on Plzen in the top men's league; a good two-way defenseman who likes to join the rush," Vuorinen said. "He plays calm and has solid puck retrieval, can keep his game simple when needed. He moves the puck quickly, sees the ice well, has excellent passing skills in all situations and can turn to attack in a variety of ways and always does it with speed."