An update on top prospect who had his gear lost by Air Canada in Toronto ahead of WJC tournament
Late Sunday, player agent Allan Walsh went at Air Canada on Twitter over losing the skates, sticks and equipment of Columbus Blue Jackets prospect David Jiricek in Toronto as he attempted to catch a connecting flight from Cleveland to Halifax.
The lost gear left Jiricek and team Czechia in a bit of a quandary, as they drew a very tough team Canada on the first day of the preliminary round. The game was set to start at 6:30pm ET and as of the midway point in the day on Monday, the gear had yet to be recovered.
Walsh had revealed that Jiricek, who stands at 6'4, required custom skates, size 13, which were not readily available at many (or any) retail outlets. There's also a good chance that, given the size of the player, there may have been other custom equipment required as well.
Well, there is some good news to report on this front, as Walsh has since removed his tweets putting Air Canada on blast and has replaced them with a message of gratitude towards the airline for "going above and beyond in locating the missing bags and gear and delivering to Halifax".
As most are aware, the GTA was hit by a nasty storm over the holidays which delayed many flights and resulted in many errors due to airlines being short-staffed and overworked.
Thankfully, the gear has been returned to Jiricek. Czechia was unsure of whether or not Jiricek would play as of this morning, but in light of the recent news and his gear being returned to him in Halifax, it's likely we'll see him suit up after all.
