The Invicta Dynamos have confirmed that Streatham Redskins’ Czech import Jakub Klima has agreed on a move to Gillingham for the 2013/14 campaign.

Twenty three year old forward Jakub Klima rose through the junior ranks in his home town of Liberec before later going on to spend the majority of his early career in the Czech Republic’s third tier.

In 2011/12, aged 21, the skater then made a switch to the UK as Chelmsford Chieftains’ player/coach Gary Clarke secured his services for his Essex side and the import proved to be a revelation in his new settings in the NIHL South Division 1.

In 34 league games, Klima found the net 39 times for the Chieftains whilst also playing a role in 51 more for an impressive total of 90 points. It was a tally that saw him end fourth in the league’s list of top scorers and aided Chelmsford in finishing as runners-up in the NIHL’s top tier whilst claiming the playoff title.

Come the summer of 2012, Jakub Klima was then tempted to London as the Streatham Redskins secured his services for 2012/13. Despite the Redskins initially struggling in the division, and ultimately finishing seventh in a league of nine, the Czech star proved to be their standout performer and his goal to games ratio only improved as he became the team’s ‘go-to’ man.

In 30 NIHL South outings, Klima found the net another 39 times whilst adding 36 assists for a total of 75 points – a tally that meant he had scored or was involved in 56% of the Redskins 134 league goals. Now, any further strikes will come in Kent as the import forward pens a deal for the Dynamos that will see him ice in Gillingham throughout 2013/14.

Speaking on the capture of his second non-British trained skater, Head Coach Kevin Parrish detailed what he thought Jakub Klima would bring to his side when the new season gets underway in September.

Parrish said, “In his two previous seasons in the NIHL South, Jakub has proven himself to be amongst the best in this division. He has pace to burn, quick hands and a lethal finish that saw him prove deadly on the breakaway – something we witnessed several times first-hand when he was icing against us for both Chelmsford and Streatham. He plays good, fast paced hockey and I’ve no doubt his goal scoring prowess will be a huge asset for us in 2013/14”.

Parrish then commented on his import pairing for the new campaign when he added, “Jakub’s signing completes our non-British quota and I’m delighted to have both him and Juraj Huska on the books for the new term. Both are proven players at this level, we know exactly what we’re getting and their familiarity with the competition should give us that extra edge when we finally get underway in September”.

Invicta Dynamos Czech import Jakub Klima will wear shirt number 62 when he ices for the club in the new season and his capture takes the team’s current roster to sixteen with Head Coach Kevin Parrish now just applying the finishing touches to his new look side.

Picture supplied by David Trevallion.