Czech hockey player Josef Vašíček was killed alongside the Lokomotiv team

Five years ago, a plane crashed, which was supposed to deliver hockey players from Yaroslavl "Locomotive" to the first game of the season. It was supposed to take place in Minsk. In that tragedy, only the engineer managed to survive. The game in the hockey club flew and Josef Vashichek, one of the leaders of the team. The striker was known to many fans of this sport not only in Russia, but also at home. Czech hockey player fell in love with the fans of the team from Yaroslavl immediately after the transition from the "New York Islanders". I remember Josef as a talented player and a person with a good heart.

Biography

Josef Vashichek was born on September 12, 1980. The birthplace was the town of Havlickuv Brod, which is located on the river Sazava in the Czech Republic. On the ice, Josef emerged as a central striker. In 2005 he became the world champion, and in 2006 - the owner of the Stanley Cup.

Early career

At 15, Vashichek already got into one of the youth teams, which played in the Extraliga. Debut, I must say, he was a success. In the first 36 games, he managed to score 50 points. This way Josef was able to surprise not only the leadership, but also teammates. On the ice it was difficult to surpass it: it showed high speed coupled with power.

Already after the end of the season, "Pepa" (this is not a nickname, and a diminutive from Josef in Czech) attracted the interest of "Slavia" - one of the key clubs of the country. Here he begins to play for the youth team, where he gets great opportunities and collects more points for the year. At that time, Josef Vaseček met Zbynek Irgl, who later played in Yaroslavl. At the same time, he took the fourth place with the youth team of the Czech Republic at the European Championship. For "Glory" Josef Vashichek, whose statistics surprised even the professionals, spent 71 games.

Then the athlete decides to go overseas, where any young hockey player dreamed to go. True, he moved not to the NHL, but to the OHL, where he began to compete for the "Su-Sainte-Marie Greyhounds."

In the new league, Josef Vašíček did not go unnoticed, scoring 151 points in two seasons. Soon he was nominated for the title of best beginner, and then completely got a captain's armband. Gradually, he became an indispensable leader and the most recognizable league player. At the same time he became the world champion among youth teams.

"Carolina Hurricanes"

In 2000, promising Josef began to notice the clubs of the NHL. The fastest was "Carolina Hurricanes", which concluded a contract with the striker. Here the young attacker had a very hard time. Points got with great difficulty, it was necessary to compete with star hockey players. Of course, there were good games, but the title of the NHL star vysice clearly did not claim. However, his help in the victories was invaluable. In the first season, Josef helped the club to make it to the Stanley Cup final . To win, however, the prestigious trophy was possible only in 2006.

In the period from 2004 to 2005 Vasjichek plays for "Slavia" from Prague. In the result for "Carolina Hurricanes" the year, Josef Vaseček received a serious knee injury and was eliminated in almost 60 games. The season was marked by the win of the Stanley Cup, which is the most prestigious trophy for teams from North America.

Then there was Nashville, in which the attacker did not get accustomed. In 2007, he made the transition to the New York Islanders, where he spent only one year. It seemed that the player's career was on the decline.

"Locomotive"

In the summer of 2008, Josef signed a contract with "Locomotive" from Yaroslavl. Here the player very quickly fell in love, gave him cute nicknames and almost wore in his arms. It was clear that the hockey player had finally started to progress. Already in the debut season he won with the team silver medals in the championship. In the 2010/11 season, Lokomotiv is third in the national championship.

Josef was able to settle down in Russia, began to speak in Russian. He sincerely fell in love with the Yaroslavl club, fans who responded to him in kind. Of course, he was at that time one of the best legionaries in the KHL.

On September 7, Josef Vašíček was killed in a plane crash together with his teammates. At that time he was only 30 years old. This is the age in which many hockey players are only fully revealed.

In the evening more than 10,000 people gathered to honor the memory of the dead hockey players. The action was held near the Arena 2000 complex. People brought flowers and candles.

The cause of the plane crash was the wrong actions of the captain of the aircraft and his assistant, who involuntarily pressed the brake pedal, which led to a contingency. In addition to the official, there are a number of unofficial versions of the causes of the crash of the aircraft.