Roman Polak

38-Year-Old DefensemanD
 Free Agent  
2024 Fantasy Outlook
There was no outlook written for Roman Polak in 2024. Check out the latest news below for more on his current fantasy value.
$Signed a one-year, $1.75 million contract extension with the Stars in June of 2019.
Hired as European scout
DFree Agent
September 14, 2022
Polak will join the Blue Jackets as a European-based amateur scout, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports Wednesday. This marks the official end of Polak's professional career.
ANALYSIS
Polak spent last season playing in his native Czech Republic for Vitkovice HC, for which he garnered eight points in 51 contests. The blueliner spent 14 seasons playing in the NHL for the Blues, Maple Leafs, Sharks and Stars, appearing in 806 games and tallying 140 points.
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Roman Polak See More
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April 10, 2018
Jan Levine previews the Stanley Cup playoffs, picking each round, as Patrice Bergeron looks to carry the Bruins to another championship.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
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The veteran blueliner came over from Toronto last season and played 77 games for the Stars, giving the club an effective, physical complement to slick offensive stars like John Klingberg and Miro Heiskanen. Even at 33, Polak still likes to dish out punishment, delivering 191 hits while also blocking a career-high 151 shots. He offers almost nothing on offense, but that's not his role. After re-signing with Dallas on a two-year deal, Polak will give the club a stay-at-home beast who allows the blue-line studs to do their thing.
Polak wasn't the free-agent defender Stars' fans hoped for this past summer. His feet are slow. His advanced stats are weak. He doesn't score. But Polak did average 2:30 shorthanded on the league's 11th-best penalty kill in 2017-18. The Stars inked him to just one year and $1.3 million. That's a smart deal if the burly right-handed shot can make the team as its 6/7 guy -- after all, it'll be an easy write-off if Polak misses the mark.
Polak is an absolute warrior on the blue line, but his immediate future is unclear. He underwent surgery in April after an ugly leg/ankle injury suffered in a collision with the Capitals’ Brooks Orpik in the playoffs. When healthy, Polak is best described as big and physical, but he heads into late summer without a contract. Teams will want to see how that injured leg/ankle has impacted the previously slow-footed defender before they commit to a contract. When, or if, he lands with a new team, Polak will be little more than a third-pairing defender who delivers fantasy owners nothing but PIM.
Polak isn’t much of an offensive contributor, nor are his advanced stats attractive. But the guy is tough and he pushes his mates to take responsibility for their poor play. Remember when he called out his teammates for not playing solid defensive hockey back in January? He said the Leafs didn’t play well “because it’s hard work” and the team didn’t like to do that. Harsh, but true. The average-skating defender leads on and off the ice, and will toil on the team’s second pairing. He’ll deliver hits, but nothing more for fantasy. Even that's contingent on him staying healthy -- after sitting out 10 games as a Blue the prior season, he missed 26 in his first campaign with the Leafs.
Polak is tough, we'll give him that. He can drop his gloves - see YouTube for evidence of that - lay hits and block shots, but he won't deliver much fantasy goodness for your squad. Odds are good he will spend the season as the defensive-minded partner of a more offensive-minded puck-moving defenseman like Franson, Gardiner or Reilly. Let a Leaf fan tie this anchor on their squad.
Coming off a year limited to 55 games by an early-season wrist injury, the Blues were pleased enough with Polak to reward him with a five-year contract extension. Though a minus-4, Polak continued to be a team leader in hits and blocked shots, willing to do the dirty work in all corners of the ice. He’s not going to be much of a fantasy player, but he’s the stay-at-home type that allows someone like Alex Pietrangelo to take chances offensively.
Polak impressively improved his plus/minus from minus-15 in 2008-09 to plus-7 last season. Still just 23, Polak has gained a ton of experience in St. Louis over the last two years, becoming one of the team's better stay-at-home defenders. He'll pair up with Barret Jackman, just like last year, and continue to be a top-six defender, skating 20 minutes a night.
Polak was given a bigger role than expected last year because of the injuries to Erik Johnson and Eric Brewer. He showed enough to earn himself a two-year deal in the offseason and should remain a high-minutes guy on defense. His spot is assured among the top six defenders.
Eric Brewer, Jay McKee and Barrett Jackman are the only healthy defensemen listed on the Blues' Official Site's Depth Chart. None of those three can be considered much of an offensive threat. So, we expect Polak to make the team out of camp but his performance will determine how long he stays there. His value is minimal right now but the 22-year-old Czech defender is worth keeping an eye on.
Polak will likely not see any serious minutes on the Blues' blue line this season, with names like Jay McKee, Eric Brewer, Christian Backman, Barret Jackman and Bryce Salvador a virtual lock to be the team's top five d-men. Pencil in the highly anticipated Erik Johnson as the number six guy, and there isn't much room left after that. Look for Polak to compete for a backup spot with the likes of Matt Walker and Jeff Woywitka.
More Fantasy News
Not included on camp roster
DFree Agent
July 11, 2020
Polak isn't listed on the Stars' Phase 3 training camp roster, Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press reports.
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Signs overseas
DDallas Stars  Free Agent
June 15, 2020
Polak agreed to terms on a multi-year contract with Czech club HC Vitkovice on Monday.
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Available if needed
DDallas Stars  Free Agent
March 7, 2020
Polak (personal) returned to practice Friday, NHL.com's Josh Clark reports.
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Doesn't travel to Nashville
DDallas Stars  Free Agent
Personal
March 5, 2020
Polak won't travel with the team to Nashville for Thursday's game against the Predators due to a personal matter, Sean Shapiro of The Athletic reports.
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Still searching for offense
DDallas Stars  Free Agent
March 4, 2020
Polak has no points in his last 22 games.
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