Shoots Left Role Ice hockey player Position Forward Name Kai Hospelt Career start 2002 | Playing career Weight 85 kg National team Germany Height 1.85 m | |
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Born August 23, 1985 (age 38)
Cologne, West Germany ( 1985-08-23 ) DEL team
Former teams Adler Mannheim
Kolner Haie
EHC Wolfsburg NHL Draft 216th overall, 2003
San Jose Sharks | ||
Kai Hospelt (born August 23, 1985) is a German professional ice hockey player currently playing for Kölner Haie of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) and was an Olympian at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.
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Playing career
Kai Hospelt's career started in 2002 in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga for his hometown Kölner Haie. After his first year in the DEL he was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. Hospelt never made it to the North American Sharks squad, but played for five more seasons in Cologne. After six total seasons with the Sharks, he moved onto the Wolfsburg Grizzly Adams where he spent five seasons and his last two as Captain of the Grizzly Adams until the conclusion of the 2012–13 season.
On April 12, 2013, at the conclusion of his contract with Wolfsburg, Hospelt was signed to a three-year contract with Adler Mannheim. Following the 2015-16 campaign, he returned to his hometown team Kölner Haie.
International play
Hospelt has represented Germany's national team on numerous occasions. Twice (in 2002 and 2003) he played for Team Germany in the IIHF World U18 Championships. Three times (in 2003, 2004, and 2005) he represented them in the World Junior Championships. Six times (in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015) he suited up for the national team in the World Championships. The largest honour came in 2010, when he suited up in the Olympic Games in Vancouver in 2010 and score one assist in four games as Germany fell in the qualification round. Having won 115 caps for the German men’s national team, he announced his retirement from international ice hockey in July 2017.