| Position: | Right Wing |
| Shoots: | Left |
| Height Ft: | 6 |
| Height In: | 2 |
| Weight Lb: | 190 |
| Played For: | HC Nové Zámky HK Martin Piráti Chomutov Sparta Praha HC Lev Praha HC Kometa Brno Orli Znojmo Dallas Stars Oceláři Třinec Carolina Hurricanes |
| Ntl Team: | Czech Republic |
| Birth Date: | 1 June 1980 |
| Birth Place: | Červenka, Czechoslovakia |
| Draft: | 208th overall |
| Draft Year: | 1998 |
| Draft Team: | Carolina Hurricanes |
| Career Start: | 1997 |
| Career End: | 2017 |
Jaroslav Svoboda (born June 1, 1980) is a Czech former professional ice hockey right winger. He played in the National Hockey League with the Carolina Hurricanes and Dallas Stars between 2001 and 2006. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1997 to 2017, was mainly spent in the Czech Extraliga. Internationally Svoboda played for the Czech national junior team at the European U18 Championships and the World Junior Championships, winning a gold medal at the 2000 World Juniors.
Svoboda was born in Červenka, Czechoslovakia. As a youth, he played in the 1994 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Olomouc.[1]
Svoboda was drafted in the 8th round, 208th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft and spent three seasons with the team, sharing his time in the American Hockey League with the Lowell Lock Monsters. After spending a season in the Czech Republic during the NHL lockout, Svoboda signed with the Dallas Stars in 2005 and managed to play 43 regular season games for them. In total, Svoboda has played 134 regular season games and has scored 12 goals and 17 assists for 29 points. He has also played in 25 playoff games (23 with Carolina in 2001-02).
He returned to Europe in 2006, and later played for HC Znojemští Orli in the Czech Extraliga.
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |||||
| 1995–96 | HC Olomouc U20 | CZE-U20 | 40 | 13 | 15 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | HC Olomouc U18 | CZE-U18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | HC Olomouc U20 | CZE-U20 | 37 | 19 | 14 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | HC Olomouc U20 | CZE-U20 | 36 | 14 | 21 | 35 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | HC Olomouc | CZE-2 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | Kootenay Ice | WHL | 54 | 26 | 33 | 59 | 46 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 11 | ||
| 1999–00 | Kootenay Ice | WHL | 56 | 23 | 43 | 66 | 97 | 21 | 15 | 13 | 28 | 51 | ||
| 1999–00 | Kootenay Ice | M-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 2000–01 | Cincinnati Cyclones | IHL | 52 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 25 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Lowell Lock Monsters | AHL | 66 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 58 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 10 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 23 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 28 | ||
| 2002–03 | Lowell Lock Monsters | AHL | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 48 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 33 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Lowell Lock Monsters | AHL | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | HC Oceláři Třinec | CZE | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | HC Olomouc | CZE-2 | 18 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 67 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 43 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2006–07 | HC Znojemští Orli | CZE | 51 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 160 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 56 | ||
| 2007–08 | HC Znojemští Orli | CZE | 38 | 12 | 8 | 20 | 60 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | ||
| 2008–09 | HC Znojemští Orli | CZE | 42 | 11 | 3 | 14 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | HC Kometa Brno | CZE | 42 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | HC Kometa Brno | CZE | 27 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | HC Kometa Brno | CZE | 41 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 47 | 19 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 24 | ||
| 2012–13 | HC Lev Praha | KHL | 25 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Sparta Praha | CZE | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2013–14 | Piráti Chomutov | CZE | 25 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | HC Red Ice | NLB | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | HK Martin | SVK | 18 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 24 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 2015–16 | HC Nové Zámky | SVK-2 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 21 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | HC Nové Zámky | SVK | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| CZE totals | 279 | 59 | 31 | 90 | 429 | 60 | 11 | 15 | 26 | 127 | ||||
| NHL totals | 134 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 62 | 25 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 30 | ||||
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Czech Republic | EJC | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | ||
| 2000 | Czech Republic | WJC | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | ||
| Junior totals | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 12 | ||||