About Tomáš Plekanec
Tomáš Plekanec (born 31 October 1982) is a Czech former professional ice hockey centre. He played most of his National Hockey League (NHL) career for the Montreal Canadiens, and briefly played for the Toronto Maple Leafs. After beginning his career with Rytíři Kladno, he was selected 71st overall by the Canadiens in the 2001 NHL entry draft. Moving to North America in 2002, he played three seasons for the Canadiens' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs, before joining the NHL club full-time for the 2005–06 season. By the time of his retirement from the NHL, he had played over 1,000 NHL games and is seventh all-time in games played for the Canadiens. During his NHL career, Plekanec was known for his use of a turtleneck undershirt. Due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Plekanec remained in Hamilton for a third AHL season and recorded 64 points over 80 games. In 2005–06, Plekanec became a fixture in the Canadiens' lineup, scoring 29 points in his NHL rookie season.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.