Jiří Sekáč (born 10 June 1992) is a Czech professional ice hockey player for HC Lugano of the National League (NL).
As a youth, Sekáč played in the 2005 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Chomutov.[1]
Sekáč later played with HC Lev Praha in the Kontinental Hockey League and HC Sparta Praha in the Czech Extraliga. On 1 July 2014 Sekáč signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Canadiens worth $1,850,000.[2] In his first North American season in 2014–15 he scored his first NHL goal on 16 October 2014 against Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins.[3]
On 13 January 2015 Sekáč was invited to the 2015 Honda NHL All-Star Skills Competition as a replacement for Los Angeles Kings' forward Tanner Pearson.[4] Known for his skating speed, he was drafted by Team Foligno, along with Canadiens' teammate Carey Price, and participated in the Bridgestone NHL Fastest Skater race, beating Aaron Ekblad with a time of 13.683s, making him the 6th fastest of the event.[5]
After 50 games with the Canadiens on 24 February 2015 he was traded to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Devante Smith-Pelly.[6]
In the following 2015–16 season, Sekáč was unable to secure a regular forward role and appeared in 22 games for 3 points with the Ducks before he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Ryan Garbutt on 21 January 2016.[7] Sekáč was used sparingly in 6 games with the Blackhawks registering one assist before being placed on waivers and claimed by the Arizona Coyotes on 27 February 2016.[8] Sekac closed out the season with the Coyotes, appearing 11 games for two assists.[citation needed]
On 6 June 2016 Sekáč headed back to Europe and signed a one-year deal with Ak Bars Kazan in a return to the Kontinental Hockey League.[9]
On 1 May 2019, after three productive seasons with Ak Bars, Sekáč was traded to reigning champions HC CSKA Moscow in exchange for Igor Ozhiganov's KHL rights.[10] He registered 25 points in 45 regular season games, before ending his season through injury.
A free agent from CSKA, Sekáč continued his career in the KHL, agreeing to a one-year contract with Avangard Omsk on 16 July 2020.[11]
On 28 July 2021, Sekáč joined Lausanne HC of the National League (NL) on a three-year deal through the end of the 2023–24 season.[12]