The national team arrived in Zurich on the same line as their Thursday opponent from Finland at around half past one. The coaching staff treated the afternoon training in the local hall in the same way as in Karjale. “It’s been a long day, all the traveling. We did a lighter training, more to overcome fatigue,” confirmed assistant coach Jiří Kalous.
Only at the end of the training did a slightly more intense exercise take place in order to play the newly formed formations for the match against Switzerland. While the defense will not see significant changes, not one of the four attacks has remained together.
Three players will make their national debut – Spartan goalkeeper Josef Kořenář, České Budějovice defender Mikuláš Hovorka and Liberec forward Jakub Rychlovský. In contrast to Thursday’s appearance in the O2 arena, fullback Michal Kempný and forwards Petr Kodýtek and Ondřej Beránek will also join the lineup.
Above all, Kořenář’s premiere will be special. The 25-year-old goalkeeper of Sparta was originally supposed to complete the national team only at the training camp in Prague, and the goalkeeper duo Dominik Pavlát – Roman Will was then supposed to travel to Zurich.
However, the coaching staff eventually abandoned the nomination of the latter, even though they were initially inclined to the idea that Will would only join training two days later due to Pardubice’s participation in the Champions League.
Defenders Filip Král and Tomáš Kundrátek will watch Saturday’s duel only from the stands. They were the first defensive pair against the Finns. Radan Lenc, Tomáš Filippi and Michal Řepík will also sit in the auditorium together with them. Due to a minor injury, he did not even train with the team on Friday. But he should be involved again on Saturday. However, he will miss the match.
The challenger to the so far undefeated selection of coach Radim Rulík will be home Switzerland. This already plagued the Czech Republic in Karjale, where the national team won with a goal from Lence 1:0. “In recent years, they have been presenting hockey based on skating and fighting. I expect it to be similar, moreover, they are playing at home,” Kalous is aware.
The starling was surprised by a visit
There are three Czech hockey players in the Swiss league, and one of them, Michael Špaček, agrees that the domestic selection will be tough. “They play good defense and are strong on the puck. We have to prepare for that,” the 26-year-old forward warned of the Swiss’ style of play.
So far, they have the opposite problem to Rulík’s wards. They haven’t scored a single point in the EHT so far, and there couldn’t be much enthusiasm even from Thursday’s visit to the duel with Sweden (2:4). Only 5,013 spectators found their way to the Zurich auditorium for the home premiere of the Swiss this season. Exactly 12,000 less than what came to the match between the Czechs and the Finns in Prague.
“It’s a surprise for me because a lot of people go to matches in the league. It’s sold out practically everywhere,” Špaček shook his head. He often mentions the attendance as one of the superlatives of the Swiss competition.
The Czech team will not have much time to recover after Saturday’s match. The opening face-off of Sunday’s duel with Sweden is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
Expected line-up for the match with Switzerland (Saturday 18:00): Kořenář (Pavlát) – Kempný, Hovorka, Pyrochta, Jandus, Mašín, Zábranský, Ticháček, Knot – Flek, Špaček, Červenka – Stránský, Kodýtek, Voženílek – Rychlovský, Tomášek, Kousal – O. Kovařčík, M. Kovařčík, Beránek.