Jiří Tlustý

Jiří Tlustý (born March 16, 1988) is a Czech professional ice hockey player who is a member of the Carolina Hurricanes organization of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was a first round draft pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, and split time between the Maple Leafs and the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League (AHL) until he was traded to the Hurricanes in December 2009. Tlustý was also drafted by Atlant Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) on June 1st 2009, 43rd overall.

Junior career
Tlustý was assigned to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League, holders of his OHL rights. In Tlustý's first 13 games of his OHL career, he sustained a bad high-ankle sprain that kept him out of the lineup for nearly 6 weeks as he attended treatment in Toronto. The injury also kept him from joining the Czech National team at the World Junior Hockey Championships although he was named to the pre-tournament roster.

He made his return to the lineup in mid-January 2007. He finished his first regular season in the OHL with 13 goals, 21 assists for 34 points in 37 games. With Tlustý back in the lineup, the Greyhounds made a strong finish leading into the playoffs and scored an upset in the first round, eliminating the Saginaw Spirit in 6 games. In the next round they faced the London Knights and lost in 7 games. Tlustý played well in the playoffs scoring 9 goals and 8 assists for 17 points in 13 games.

Training camps and the AHL
On July 14, 2006, Tlustý signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, while appearing wearing #41 in training camp. On September 25, 2006, Tlustý was assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League where he started his professional career by scoring three goals and one assist in six games. On October 23, 2006, he was sent back to Sault Ste. Marie.

Tlustý attended the 2007 Toronto Maple Leafs prospect camp tournament for players who had been selected in the NHL Entry Draft, but had yet to play in the NHL. He played in all four games scoring three goals and adding an assist for a total of four points.

After the 2007 Prospects camp, Tlustý attended the Toronto Maple Leafs training camp and pre-season. He played four games in the pre-season and earned three assists. He qualified for final cuts before being sent down to the AHL again. He played in 5 games in the AHL, scoring one goal and two assists.

On February 18, 2009, Jiří Tlustý for the Toronto Marlies scored 5 goals on 5 shots against the Syracuse Crunch, setting a franchise record for most goals scored in a game by one player for the Toronto Marlies and being the first player to score 5 goals in a game in the AHL since Jarkko Immonen did it in 2006.

On March 4, 2009, Tlustý set a franchise record for most points in a game in a game against the Providence Bruins. Tlustý finished with two goals and four assists for six points in a 6-4 victory for the Toronto Marlies.

NHL
On October 25, 2007, Tlustý played his first regular season NHL game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, scoring two goals in his début. His first goal was originally a shot by Alex Steen, but it deflected off of Tlustý's backside and went in the net. Thirty-five seconds later, he scored with a wrist shot from the wing. He earned his first assist on November 2. When he got into the NHL he wore number 41. However, he later switched his number to 11.

On January 15, 2009, Tlustý registered a career high of three points, all assists, in a game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

On December 3, 2009, Tlustý was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes for forward Philippe Paradis. Tlusty scored his first goal for the Hurricanes on December 11, 2009 against the Capitals in his first game for the club.

Nude photo incident
In mid-November 2007, photos of Tlustý, one of which was of him nude, appeared on the Internet, causing a media frenzy. Tlustý took the photos with his cell phone while still in Sault Ste. Marie the previous season. The photos of Tlustý first appeared on Canadian gossip site, after which Tlustý retained the Toronto law firm Adair Morse, which began issuing cease and desist orders to some websites that had put the photos up. He issued a press release saying, "I used poor judgment in this instance and I have learned a valuable lesson." A second set of photos, reportedly taken during a night at a bar, was also circulating on the Internet. One photo showed Tlustý with his tongue out towards a male friend who was leaning in over his shoulder. This photo was published as the full-front page photo of the November 14, 2007 issue of the Toronto Sun.