He is a proven leader. After captaining the Czech Republic to a gold medal at the 2010 World Championships and following that up with a bronze the following year, the 15-year veteran pro is coming to Sparta with a clear goal on his mind.

"I know I´m going to the team with whom I have a chance to win the title," he said frankly. "Virtually from the moment I finished in Pardubice, I was in contact with Sparta. My agent told me about some other options, but I wanted to come here. I really am very excited that we were able to make it happen."

Speculation about the possibility of Rolinek coming to Sparta started several weeks ago, but an agreement was not finally reached until this past week.

"The situation has changed somewhat, and because of higher expectations the management team decided to do more," explained Patrik Martinec, sports club manager. "That´s why Tomas Rolinek is finally coming to Sparta. He is among the best Czech hockey players and available and will greatly strengthen our team."

Rolínek does not hide the fact that one of the things that drew him to the capital was the chance to once again play for coach Josef Jandač, for whom he played in Pardubice years ago.

"Sure it played a big role--it was one of the biggest factors in my decision. We´ve known each other for a long time and I know that he´s a good coach," Rolinek said convincingly. The coach´s feelings on the move are mutual.

"I´ve known Tomáš for a long time and I know exactly what he´s looking for," said Jandač. "That´s why I pursued him so much. Finally, the transfer went through, and I believe that will help us a lot."

Career Statistics:

Season   Club                                   GP  G  A Pts PIM  +/-
1998-99  HC IPB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL)        2  0  0  0   0    -
         HC IPB Pojišťovna Pardubice Jr (JEL)   45 24 22 46   -    - 
1999-00  KLH Jindřichův Hradec (1. liga)        23  3  3  6  14   -4
         KLH Jindřichův Hradec (1. liga, p-out) 10  6  5 11  27   +6
         KLH Jindřichův Hradec Jr (JEL)         34 26 25 51  53  +19
2000-01  HC IPB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL)       30  4  7 11  10   +1
         HC IPB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL, p-o)   7  3  2  5   8   +4
         HC Berounští Medvědi (1. liga)         15  7 11 18  18   +5
         HC Berounští Medvědi (1. liga, p-o)     3  1  2  3   0   +2
         HC IPB Pojišťovna Pardubice Jr (JEL)   14 17  6 25  32  +15
         HC IPB Poj. Pardubice Jr (JEL, p-o)     4  5  6 11   8  +12
2001-02  HC IPB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL)       50 12  7 19  26   -7
         HC IPB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL, p-o)   6  1  2  3  27   -1
         Bílí Tygři Liberec  (1. liga)           1  0  0  0   0    0
2002-03  HC ČSOB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL)      40 12 10 22  18  +10
2003-04  Bílí Tygři Liberec (EL)                13  5  3  8   8   +1
         HC Chemopetrol Litvínov (EL)           35  3  4  7  18    -
2004-05  HC Moeller Pardubice (EL)              42  2  6  8  32   -3
         HC Moeller Pardubice (EL, p-o)         11  1  1  2  12    0
         HC VCE Hradec Králové (1. liga)         4  1  0  1   2    -
2005-06  HC Moeller Pardubice (EL)              42 15 14 29  32   -3
2006-07  HC Moeller Pardubice (EL)              47 16 18 34  69  +15
         HC Moeller Pardubice (EL, p-o)         17  7  3 10   6   -3
2007-08  HC Moeller Pardubice (EL)              48 16 16 32  34   +4
         HC Moeller Pardubice (EL, p-out)        6  2  1  3   0   -1
2008-09  Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL)           54 24 15 39  28   +9
         Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL, p-o)      12  5  3  8  16   +2
2009-10  Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL)           55 20 14 34  22   +6
         Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL, p-o)       9  3  2  5  33   -1
2010-11  Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL)           54 14 15 29  26  +11
         Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL, p-o)      15  6  5 11   2   +5
2011-12  Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL)           52 10 14 24  22   +9
         Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL, p-o)      11  3  2  5   8   -4
2012-13  Salavat Yulaev Ufa (KHL)               23  3  3  6   8   -6
         HC ČSOB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL)      15  4  5  9   4   +3
         HC ČSOB Pojišťovna Pardubice (EL, p-o)  5  0  1  1   4   +1

Combined totals in Extraliga & Jr. Extraliga: 424 103 100 203 314 +19


Czech National Team:

2006     World Championship (Latvia)             8  0  0  0   2   -2
         silver medal
2007     World Championship (Russia)             3  0  0  0   0    0
         7th place
2008     World Championship (Canada)             7  2  1  3   2   +2
         5th place
2009     World Championship (Switzerland)        7  1  2  3  10   +1
         6th place
2010     Olympic Games (Canada)                  5  1  0  1   0   -1
         7th place
         World Championship (Germany)            9  4  1  5  12   +3
         gold medal
2011     World Championship (Slovakia)           9  1  2  3   6   +2
         bronze medal