Vaclav Nedomansky was the first player to defect and play in the NHL.
10 Nedomansky Hockey Facts
My family escaped from communist Czechoslovakia on July 4th, 1974.
Two weeks later we defected to North America.
The front page of The Toronto Sun newspaper
I’ve been lucky enough to grow up with the freedom my parents didn’t have for most of their lives.
July 4th is a very special day for my family on so many levels. I’m so very grateful and now I can return the favor and tell our story…
1979 – The first game at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit
BIG NED is a feature-length documentary film about Vaclav Nedomansky.
He was the first hockey player to defect from a communist country
and play in the NHL. In the middle of the Cold War…
He risked everything for a better life.
He’s also my father…
HERE IS THE OFFICIAL TRAILER
ESPN wrote a great article about the documentary…
You can follow the making of the film on:
The Official BIG NED Facebook page.
The first 21 NHL defectors
On 6/4/2017 SLOVAKIA released 3 stamps featuring Vaclav Nedomansky:
click to enlarge
UPDATE: On June 25th, 2019…Vaclav Nedomansky was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
BIG NED in the Hall
Vaclav Nedomansky Career Stats
#BigNed
There are 4 comments
This looks fantastic! Excited to see the film. Thanks for sharing.
Awesome!!! Trailer looked great, the glitch effect and overlays were done really well. its fantastic that you get to help share your fathers story. Looking forward to the finished product.
Hello! It’s so cool that your dad was a famous Czechoslovak hockey player! I was born in Czech myself. I really like your content you put on the blog. I am an aspiring filmmaker myself and your posts inspire me.
Diky Bao! Keep cranking away! Best of luck…