OHL Alumni Central

Marian Kacir is number 10 in white.

Marian Kacir is in his sixth year of professional hockey in Poland’s Ekstraliga. His status with Akuna Naprzod Janow is currently in limbo. However, the team needs his offensive power if they don’t want to remain in last place in the ten team league.

Kacir played two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League in 1992-93 and 1993-94, both with the Owen Sound Platers. In his second season with Owen Sound he was second on the team with 87 points and led the team in assists with 64. In 1991-92, before coming to the Platers, Marian scored 6 goals and 10 points for the Czechs as they captured gold at the European Junior Championships in 1991-92.

He was a fourth round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning at the 1993 NHL Entry Draft, 81st overall. Kacir spent three years in the North American pro leagues from 1994-95 to 1996-97 with a handful of teams in the ECHL, IHL and AHL. Before ending up in Poland, Marian had played in Sweden, Germany, Finland and his native Czech Republic.

In 1999-00, he led the Essen Mosquitos of Germany’s Deutsche Eishockey Liga in goals (16), assists (29) and points (45) over 52 games. In 2006-07, he was the Poland Ekstraliga’s leader in assists and points. With Naprzod Janow, he holds the team records for most goals (25), assists (27) and points (52) in a season, all done in 2009-10.

Check out the team’s official website.

Marian Kacir is on the OHL Alumni Big List

Rafal Martynowski on the right.

Rafal Martynowski left the Ontario Hockey League as the Sudbury Wolves leader in points for 2004-05 with 67. Martynowski’s 31 goals that season tied him for the team lead with Bobby Chaumont (check out this previous post on Bobby Chaumont). Rafal is now a member of Cracovia is Poland’s elite league.

Rafal Martynowski played four seasons in the Ontario Hockey League from 2001-02 to 2004-05. His first two seasons were played with the Kitchener Rangers. After 14 games in his third year, Martynowsky was sent to the Sudbury Wolves. He finished out his OHL career in Sudbury.

Rafal was a member of the 2002-03 Kitchener Rangers that won the Robertson Cup as Ontario Hockey League playoff champions then went on to win the Memorial Cup as Canadian champions.

Martynowski was undrafted and found himself playing in the UHL in his first year of professional hockey. He split that season between the Richmond Riverdogs and the Quad City Mallards. The following season saw him play just two games with the Odessa Jackalopes of the Central Hockey League. In 2007-08, he put in 52 games with the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the IHL.

For the past two seasons, Rafal has been playing tier 4 hockey in Germany with Pfaffenhofen. Over those two campaigns, Martynowski has averaged over two points per game with 33 in 16 games in 2008-09 and 54 in 26 games this past season.

Rafal Martynowski can be found on the roster page at the official Cracovia website.

Ontario Hockey League grad Frantisek Bakrlik played in Poland last season but has moved on to his native Czech Republic for 2010-11 (click here to view a previous post at OHL Alumni Central on Bakrlik).

Frantisek Bakrlik played two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, 2000-01 and 2001-02. The native of the Czech Republic began his OHL career with the Barrie Colts and during his second season in the Ontario Hockey League was dealt to the Sarnia Sting midway through the season.

Bakrlik represented the Czech Republic at the 2001 World Under-18 championships played in Finland. The Czech Republic was held out of the medals that year, placing fourth. Infamously known during his career in the Ontario Hockey League as the Barrie Colt who was acused of hurling a racial slur at Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds goalie, Ray Emery, during the 2000-01 season.

After junior, Bakrlik went back to the Czech Republic and played a season in the second tier of the Czech Extraliga. He returned to North American for the better part of three seasons to play in the United Hockey League.

Although he has made a few other attempts to catch on in his native country, Poland has become his second home. Frantisek has played three of the past four seasons for Wojas Podhale of the Polska Liga Hokejowa and is signed on for another season with the club. The team plays out of Nowy Targ, Poland.

This past season, 2009-10, he was a major part of the team winning the Polish championship. His 51 points on 21 goals and 30 assists over 40 regular season games placed him tied for first on the team. Bakrlik’s additional 17 points on 9 goals and 8 assists over 14 playoff games placed him first on the team and also in the league. His accumulative 68 points placed him fourth in the league.

The PLH is not the NHL by any means. The 19 team league plays just 40 regular season games. Those games are played in front of an average of 950 spectators each night. Podhale plays out of a 3,500 seat arena that was built almost 60 years ago (1952). Regardless, the important thing is that hockey is being played there.

Check out Frantisek Bakrlik’s profile page on the Wojas Podhale official website.