One of the fastest-rising stars in the Calgary Flames organization has received the call to represent his country once again. Key shit disturber, Martin Pospisil, had a breakout campaign with the Flames last season and carried that success onto the world stage at the IIHF World Hockey Championship this summer. After a standout performance, he will be one of the faces of the team in an Olympic qualifying tournament this month.
Pospisil will also get to play with his brother, Kristian, for the first time on the international stage.
Pospisil is a rising star in Slovak hockey circles
Slovakia Hockey’s social media accounts have lauded Pospisil for his performance at the World Championship. He had seven points in seven games and was one of the most impactful players on the ice. Their Instagram page had this to say about Pospisil:
? An important “flame” in the team ?
@matespospisil24 has won its premier in the men’s representation at the May World Cup in Czech Republic, he was one of our best players and he will also qualify for the Olympic qualification! ??
This is the third reinforcement – and we believe not the last – of the NHL ?
Olympic qualifying tournaments
Slovakia will be in Group D, one of three groups in the qualifying tournament, along with Kazakhstan, Austria, and Hungary. Their games will be played in Bratislava, Slovakia, in one of three tournaments. As the host and the team with the most NHL-caliber players, Slovakia should win their group and qualify for the Olympics.
So far, Tomas Tatar and Simon Nemec have also been added to the Slovakia qualifying team. Juraj Slafkovsky and Martin Fehervary could also join the team, however Slafkovsky may or may not receive permission from the Montreal Canadiens and Fehervary is dealing with an injury.
Slovakia’s game schedule is as follows:
- August 29 vs. Austria
- August 30 @ Hungary
- September 1 vs. Kazakhstan
The two other tournaments are Group E, played in Riga, Latvia, which includes Latvia, France, Slovenia, and Ukraine, and Group F, played in Aalborg, Denmark, which includes Denmark, Norway, Great Britain, and Japan.
On the map
Pospisil is one of the best Slovak hockey players in the world right now, and he has a chance to make some serious noise in this tournament. Hopefully, this helps him start the season on the right foot and be ready to build on a very impressive rookie campaign for the Flames last season.
