Tomas Poletin: A world away

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“100 percent,” he said when asked whether the noise from the crowd makes a difference. “You can feel the energy in the rink from the fans.”

But after a season in the Western Hockey League, Poletin has also learned that a team cannot always rely on the crowd to get it going.

Playing on the road, with an entire building cheering against the Rockets, can provide its own motivation.

“It kind of gives you energy when they’re cheering against you too, but obviously in a different way,” he said. “Here, it’s mostly about creating your own energy inside the team on the bench and on the ice.”

Sometimes, that energy comes from a big hit. Other times, it is a good play that gets the bench going.

“Something that kind of gives you the energy and pumps you up,” he said.

It is a lesson that could prove valuable as Poletin enters his second season in Kelowna, with a bigger role on a Rockets team that looks considerably different from the group that competed in the 2026 Memorial Cup.

The 19-year-old Czech forward is no longer the newcomer trying to figure out what major junior hockey is all about. After scoring 20 goals in his first WHL season, sharing the Rockets’ Rookie of the Year award and helping the team reach the Memorial Cup, he has a much better understanding of what lies ahead.

“I was happy for sure, but it was hard,” he said of reaching the 20-goal mark. “The league is hard. It’s physically hard with all the travelling, and everybody plays hard.”

The season was a marathon, and by the time it ended, Poletin was ready for a break.

Following the Memorial Cup, he stayed in Kelowna for a couple of days with his family and some teammates before returning to Prague. With the pressure of the season behind him, he could finally enjoy the moment without thinking about hockey.

“It was actually one of the best days from the whole season,” he said. “I just didn’t have to think about anything and just enjoyed it.”

Home offered something he had been missing throughout the long season: time with family and friends.

Poletin did not stay away from hockey for long, taking less than two weeks off before returning to training. Still, the opportunity to reconnect with his roots was important.

“It was definitely the longest season I’ve ever had, so it was nice to stay out of it for a bit,” he said. “I was missing home, your family, your friends, so it’s always nice to come back.”

Prague and Kelowna may be separated by thousands of kilometres, but each offers something Poletin has come to appreciate.

Prague is a historic city, with old buildings and narrow streets that reflect its past. Kelowna, by comparison, offers a more modern setting and a landscape that is difficult to overlook.

“I live in Prague, so it’s a historic city,” he said. “You always go through these little streets. Here it’s more like square-type, narrow streets and new houses.”

Then there is the scenery.

“Especially here with the lake and all the mountains and everything.”

The food is different, too, and there are Czech dishes he looks forward to enjoying whenever he returns home. But some of his strongest connections to Prague have nothing to do with the city itself.

His younger brother, also a goaltender and a Kelowna Rockets draft pick, has been part of his hockey journey from the beginning.

The two grew up playing together in Prague. When Tomas left for Finland at 16, his younger brother followed a year later, and they even appeared in a couple of games together there.

Growing up, the relationship between the brothers was not always peaceful.

“There was a lot of fighting back in the day,” Poletin said with a smile on his face.

Time apart, however, has brought them closer.

“Ever since we got a little separated, we’re just best friends,” he said. “It’s hard to not see him the whole season, basically. But then we enjoy the summer, and we just have a good relationship.”

With another season in Kelowna underway, Poletin is adjusting to a different kind of change.

The Rockets have a new group, new challenges and plenty of opportunities for players to establish themselves. Having experienced the highs of last season, he is not interested in measuring everything against what came before.

“We have such a different group this year compared to last year, so I don’t really even want to compare it to last year anymore,” he said. “I’m just excited for this year.”

Part of that excitement comes from the chance to take on more responsibility.

Poletin has already worn the captain’s letter with Czechia’s national teams, so leadership is not an entirely new concept. He knows that being a leader involves more than what happens on the scoresheet.

“That’s also one reason why I came back here,” he said. “I’ve been the captain on the national team, and I always try to be a good example and a good leader.”

There is still plenty he wants to accomplish. A strong season with the Rockets, another opportunity to represent Czechia at the World Juniors and continued progress toward an NHL contract with the New York Islanders, who selected him in the fourth round of the 2025 NHL Draft, are all on his list.

But Poletin understands that the next step is earned through the work he puts in every day.

“I’m just trying to be better every day and try to leave a good impression every time I’m in New York,” he said. “They give chances to young players, so I just have to take the chance when I get it and use it.”

The next step is making his mark as one of the players others can count on.

“Being here this year is huge from this point of view,” Poletin said. “I definitely want to be a good leader.”