A long-shot, left-shooting forward prospect taken by the Florida Panthers in the sixth round (184th overall) of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, Czechia’s Jakub Kos is currently plying his trade in Finland as he works towards his goal of securing an NHL entry-level contract.
Kos spent his draft season, his second in Suomi, playing for the Ilves organization’s U20 club, where he amassed five goals and 13 assists in 32 games to catch the eye of Panthers general manager Bill Zito and his scouting staff. He also represented his home country in the U18 World Championship, where he produced one goal and one assist and racked up 12 PIM in five games as Czechia was bounced in the quarterfinals by eventual gold medal-winner Canada.
The 2021-22 season saw Kos play 37 games split between the first and second level of the Finnish hockey pyramid. In 17 top-flight Liiga games with Ilves, he scored a goal and added two helpers. In 20 games in Mestis with last place KOOVEE, his burgeoning offensive ability was much more evident as he finished with three goals and 13 assists.
In the postseason relegation tournament, where the bottom four teams in Mestis played a double round-robin against the top two teams from third level Suomi-sarja, Kos was a force, piling up ten points (3G/7A) in 9 games played to help KOOVEE keep its spot in the fourteen team second tier.
Like fellow Panthers prospect Justin Sourdif, Kos took part in the canceled first run of the 2022 World Junior Championship in December 2021, seeing fourth line duty in both of the games that Czechia took to the ice. He played 8:34 and registered a shot on goal in the opener against Canada (a 6-3 loss) while his ice time decreased to 6:17 in a 2-1 overtime win over Germany.
With the tournament getting an August redo, Kos appeared in all seven games as Czechia surprised by finishing in fourth place, falling 3-1 to Sweden in the Bronze Medal game. His lone point in the event was an assist in a 5-1 loss to Canada during the group stage.
This season, Kos spent a lot more time in Mestis than he did in Liiga. In 24 games with KOOVEE, he scored four goals and added 15 assists, which works out a solid .79 points per game, and posted a plus-six rating. Good stuff from a player that didn’t turn 20 until May 30. He did appear in three scoreless Liiga games for Ilves.
Kos was again part of Czechia’s entry in the World Junior Championship. This time he made much more of a mark offensively, scoring twice and adding three assists in seven games as Czechia took silver by coming up just short in 3-2 overtime loss to Canada in the final. Kos’ second goal of the tournament was the one that sent that game to the extra session, as scored on redirection with 6:36 left in regulation to put a scare into the favorites.
🇨🇿CZECHIA HAS TIED THE GAME!
Two quick goals in 54 seconds apart. Jakub Kos with the equalizer.#CANCZE #WorldJuniors @narodnitym @FlaPanthers pic.twitter.com/355INrqXoC
— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) January 6, 2023
While still a ways off, Kos is the type of player who could eventually find his way to the NHL and play a bottom six role because he knows his strengths and doesn’t deviate from them. He’s speedy, has a large frame and is a relentless forechecker with some offensive upside. Unfortunately, Kos suffered a neck injury that was first reported to be career-threatening before later being said to be recoverable. if and when he is healthy again, the next step in his development is earning a full-time gig in Liiga and then he’ll likely need some additional AHL seasoning before he’ll be ready for the NHL, if and when he signs an entry-level contract.