Riga (from our correspondent) – And there are already rumors that the 30-year-old center is being closely watched by scouts from the NHL at the venue of the tournament, even though a few days ago Dynamo announced that they had extended the contract with him for five seasons.
When the management of Pardubice is watching your performances at the WC, they can be happy on the one hand, but on the other hand they must be worried. Do you have a clause in your contract about a possible return to the NHL?
I think it’s always there just in case. I’ll leave the rest for others to comment on.
You couldn’t even imagine a better personal record after two games, could you?
It probably sounds nice, but today against Kazakhstan it was two second recordings, so it’s more of a coincidence. In the same way, my goal was accidental, because I threw it there out of nowhere and I think the goalkeeper made a mistake.
No one will ask that anymore…
Sure, I’m happy for the points and that it was contested there, but it’s only two games. I wouldn’t overstate it. I want to focus mainly on my performances. I believe I can play better than on Sunday.
The score 5-1 seems obvious, but what was the match from your point of view?
Bad… In the first period it was half and half, some good things, but also bad things. We didn’t do well in the second half. We must learn from this – no one can defeat himself. I’m glad that we managed it without too many nerves, but the second period is a big warning for us for the next matches. We must avoid such depressions. We were doing completely unnecessary things. We have to play our hockey and above all simply.
Didn’t you think, when Flek was fouled in the middle of the game with the score 2:0, that you would have said about the execution of the penalty shot, and thus went instead of the ultimately unsuccessful Kubalík?
Not at all, I can’t do them. I don’t really know how much of a penalty kick specialist Kubalda is, but he had the goalkeeper in a good position and it was enough to hit the gap between his legs. Damage…
How much did it affect your game that after Chytila’s injury you played only 11 forwards and only three centers from the second period on?
It didn’t matter at all, because we started not doing well in the first third. We scored two simple goals and thought it would go away by itself and we could play hockey into an empty net. We wanted to play nice light hockey, but that doesn’t apply to anyone anymore. In the third period, we started working harder again and it was immediately better.
What did you even think when, after Chlapík, Smejkal and Černoch, Chytil now has health problems?
It’s stupid, of course, but it is what it is. Injuries are bound to happen. I don’t know how Philip is doing, but I hope he recovers and will be well soon.
Can such complications paradoxically kill the team?
Every team goes nuts when they get into trouble. It’s good to go through a tough time, it can toughen us up.
What do you expect from Monday’s match with the home Latvians waiting for the first point gain?
I am looking forward to seeing him. The Czech fans were great against Kazakhstan, but of course it will be different now. It will also draw us into the match a little more and we will enjoy it. We have to play our hockey and not adapt to the opponent, as happened to us now. And it is necessary to play fully the whole match. Not that we let up after two or three shifts.
