Bemidji State Men's Hockey Lands QMJHL Forward Jiří Klíma From Shawinigan

Bemidji State men's hockey added a proven QMJHL scorer to its incoming class when Czech forward Jiří Klíma committed to the program, giving the Beavers a player who just completed one of the more productive offensive seasons in Shawinigan Cataractes history.

Klíma, who turns 20 this spring, finished the 2025-26 QMJHL regular season with 52 points in 50 games for the Cataractes, a significant jump from the 40 points he posted across 64 games the prior year. The production surge came despite Klíma missing time with an injury earlier in the season and a stretch away from the club for international duty. When he was in the lineup, Shawinigan's own league opponents noted how difficult he was to contain: after returning from the World Juniors, he recorded 25 points in 24 games.

That international experience came at the 2026 World Junior Championship, where Klíma suited up for Czech Republic and helped the team earn a silver medal. He was one of the standout performers in the quarterfinal round, posting three points, one goal and two assists, in Czechia's victory over Switzerland.

Klíma's playoff run with Shawinigan also gave Bemidji State fans a preview of what the forward delivers in high-stakes moments. He scored twice in a single game against the Rimouski Oceanic, forcing a Game 7 in their first-round series and keeping the Cataractes' season alive.

Now in his third season with Shawinigan after arriving from the Czech Republic, Klíma has developed steadily within the QMJHL, a league that has long served as a reliable pipeline to CCHA programs like Bemidji State. The Beavers, who play out of the Sanford Center in Bemidji, have built their recruiting around exactly this type of player: a battle-tested import forward whose numbers trend sharply upward by his final junior season.

Klíma joins a Bemidji State roster that has continued adding depth through the QMJHL and other junior circuits. His combination of scoring volume, international experience, and a demonstrated ability to elevate his game in the postseason makes the Czech winger one of the program's more notable incoming commitments in recent memory.