Martin Necas knows quite well what it’s like in his hockey-mad country when the highest levels of success are achieved.
The Colorado Avalanche star wasn’t born in 1998 when Jaromir Jagr and Dominik Hasek led a stunning march to the gold medal at the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, but he was front and center when Czechia won the world championships two years ago on home soil in Prague.
“They called it ‘Prague-ano,'” Necas said. “That was insane. Best times of my life, for sure. It was a special moment, especially playing at home. It was crazy. The whole country was with us. I’m excited, because that’s going to be the same thing for the Olympics.”
The Czechs winning in Nagano was part of the golden era for the country’s hockey program. They won the worlds in 1996, the first Olympics with NHL players in 1998, and then rattled off three straight world championship titles from 1999-01, something no country has done since and hadn’t been done since the Soviet Union did it in the early 1980s.
As players like Jagr, Hasek and Milan Hejduk aged, the next wave of Czech players were not able to find the same level of success. There was a bronze medal eight years later in Turin, but the previous two Olympics with NHL players came and went without the Czechs being much of a factor.
They went 14 years without winning the world championships until 2024, which is a much bigger tournament for the European countries than the North American countries. There should be some renewed hope, and more coming on the horizon.
David Pastrnak, flag bearer of Czechia arrives during the Olympic opening ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Beware of underdogs
This Czech team in Milan is going to be fronted by world-class players. Necas will be joined by David Pastrnak and Tomas Hertl. The team will likely be backstopped by Lukas Dostal, one of the NHL’s top young goaltenders, but there is quality NHL depth in net as well.
They will be heavy underdogs as they open round-robin play against Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Devon Toews and Canada. But look out if Dostal has a great game, or Canada picks the wrong goaltender.
“I think it’s understandable,” Necas said. “If you look at those rosters, on the paper they are stronger than us. But once you step on the ice, it doesn’t really matter. We’re going to do our best and play as hard as we can. Whatever happens is going to happen.”
Canadian hockey fans collectively care a great deal more about the world junior championships than most. Ask a Canadian hockey fan, and they will verify this next sentence.
The Czechs are coming.
Maybe not in 2026, when the team is still short on NHL depth, particularly on defense, compared to the other big four nations participating. But Czechia has regained some of its development magic.
The Czechs have medaled in each of the past four world junior tournaments. No other country can say that. For three consecutive years, Canada’s quest for gold at the event has ended with a loss to Czechia, including a 6-4 defeat in the semifinals this year. Avs prospect Max Curran had a goal and two assists in that game.
Each of the past three Czech WJC teams has had at least 12 NHL draft picks on the roster, and the 2026 team could still add to that total.
“Just watching those guys at world juniors the last two, three years, it has been pretty cool,” Necas said. “We used to have one, two, maybe three good players, not like Canada or the U.S. But now, it’s the whole team playing really well.
“It’s exciting, because I want to be winning in the future with our national team as well.”
Avalanche center Martin Necas (88) against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period of a game Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Avs’ big bet on talent
Necas also wants to win in Colorado. He made that clear when he signed an eight-year, $92 million contract on Oct. 30 with the Avalanche.
He was part of one of the biggest NHL trades of the past 20 years in January 2025, joining the Avs from the Carolina Hurricanes in a three-team blockbuster that sent Mikko Rantanen away.
Necas has 33 goals and 90 points in 82 regular-season games since the trade. He’s essentially replaced Rantanen’s production, though the postseason is where his Colorado legacy is likely to be forged. Necas has not had the same level of postseason success to this point as the guy he replaced, but the Avs were willing to bet on his talent.
“He’s 26, turning 27, so you project that out,” Avs general manager Chris MacFarland said at the time of the signing. “The way he skates, the way he takes care of himself — we think the bulk of those years should be very, very productive hockey seasons.”
This trip to Milan will be Necas’ first chance to perform on one of hockey’s biggest stages. He had seven points in five games at the 2024 worlds, joining his countrymen midway through the tournament after the Hurricanes exited the playoffs.
Pastrnak and Necas are likely to be the front-line players for Czechia in 2030, and possibly in 2034 as well. By then, the kids who have been collecting WJC medals will be in their primes and could be dotted across NHL rosters.
At some point, Necas wants his country to relive the celebration that happened after winning the Olympics in 1998.
“It’s the biggest thing to ever happen to Czech hockey, I would say,” Necas said. “This is going to be exciting. If we could get something similar done over there, it would be unreal.”
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