What could the team of Slovakia look like at the Olympic Games in Beijing? – ŠPORT.sk

The attack will be stronger than in Pyongyang

The advantage for our hockey is that, especially in the attack, we have a much higher quality in Europe than we did four years ago in Pyongyang. It is also questionable how many players coach Craig Ramsay and manager Miroslav Šatan will be able to take to China due to the impending coronavirus pandemic. They had 25 of them at the World Championships in Riga, we chose a few more names to be sure, which have the best chance of playing under five circles.

There should be two from the South Korean tournament in the goal. The great news is that Branislav Konrád recovered after a horrific hit by a skate in the neck and was already catching in an Olomouc jersey. Patrik Rybár is probably sure. He is in Diname Minsk in the KHL and returned to the national team with an excellent performance against the home team in the Swiss Cup. “I do not calculate who will go and who will not. I try to do well in the club, ” Fisherman told us in the fight for the Olympics.

The third will probably be Matej Tomek, who caught well not only in Vispe, but also in the German Cup in Krefeld.

WE DO NOT HAVE QUALITATIVE PRESSURE IN DEFENSE

Both tournaments have shown that we do not have overpressure in defense in Europe. Ramsay needs all the top backs to be as healthy as possible. In quality European clubs, we have regulars in the form of five backs. Defense leaders are clear. Peter Čerešňák played great in the Bratislava Olympic qualification and has been fighting for the post of the most productive defender of the competition since the beginning of the season. It is not for nothing that there is interest in him in the KHL. Kazan wanted to buy it out of the contract.

Martin Gernát was already the best in scoring in the Czech Republic, moving smoothly into a higher quality Swiss league. He was our busiest quarterback at the World Championships in Riga and he also played reliably in qualifying. “I think that when I got the space, I was able to defend my performance. I would like to go to Beijing, it is one of my career goals. “ The Swiss quarterback Lausanne told us.

We have a modern back with a quick pass and few mistakes in Mislav Rosandič. He works in Liberec and managed his first world championship. The nomination should not miss, as well as a pair of experienced defenders shot from the NHL or KHL.

Martin Marinčin continues the tradition and is the backbone of the Czech champions from Třinec, and Michal Čajkovský has again won almost 300 KHL matches, the Olympics and three world championships. Mário Grman has experience from the championship, the KHL and the Finnish Liiga, which is also valuable from the point of view of being right-handed. We’ll see how he’s doing healthily, as he is limited by injuries this year.

Reliability was demonstrated at the last championship by Daniel Gachulinec. He bounced back from Detva at the World Championships and also plays well in the Slovan Bratislava jersey after the transfer. Only seventeen-year-old Šimon Nemec, who is currently in his twenties at the Junior World Championships, will definitely be fighting for the nomination. He was already senior and skating in the Olympic qualification. The problem may be that with Gachulinc, both are more offensive right-wingers. An alternative could be Šatan’s favorite Martin Bučko, who is also right-handed, but he is more defensive and more agile than the mentioned pair.

TO HRIVÍK WITH CEHLÁRIK HUDÁČEK?

The offensive will bounce off our best duo in European competitions. Marek Hrivík and Peter Cehlárik last year dominated the productivity of the Swedish SHL and played very well at the World Championships in Riga, where the latter was declared the best striker of the tournament. He transferred the performances to the defending champions in the KHL from Omsk.

“Coach Bob Hartley asked me before the season if my goal was to go back to America. I think that if you want a chance to return, you have to be among the top ten players in the league and be among the best at the Olympics, “ he told us in an interview Cehlárik.

We will see how the coaches complete the duo. Róbert Lantoši, who should not be missing from the Olympic nomination, played with them in Riga. In Sweden, a change of jersey helped him when he transferred from Rögle to Linköping. In the Olympic qualification, Tomáš Jurčo got the space between Hrivák and Cehlárik. An experienced winger did not play well, but his aching back and a longer game outage played his own. The 28-year-old from Košice is already skating in Astana, Kazakhstan, in the KHL, and he probably won’t miss a place in the Olympic team.

An interesting alternative for the elite formation is Libor Hudáček. He preferred to play at the center post, but for a long time he was a wing and his creativity would fit into the first attack. He was excellent in shooting in the Olympic qualification, he struggled in the club season. He changed his third jersey this season, but it’s good that he returned to the KHL. In Lugano he mostly sat in the stands at the end of the calendar year, in Diname Minsk he should play regularly.

“COMEBACK” CHRISTIAN WITH A FOX

Michal Krištof applied for the position of the second center. The 28-year-old native of Nitra did not play a good world championship and missed the Olympic qualification. However, he was great at the German Cup and a clear leader is in the club after the transfer to Comet Brno. He has already experienced the Olympics in Pyongyang. An alternative could be David Griger, who played well in preparation. However, his disadvantage is the worse club season in Liberec and zero experience from the top tournament in the national team jersey.

Other attackers from other World Cups should also have certain places. The goal potential was shown by Kristián Pospíšil, who moved higher in the club. The Finnish champion Lukko Rauma was exchanged for the Swiss Davos. In Finland, super-talent Juraj Slafkovský regularly plays for the ambitious TPS Turku. Without NHL players, his chances for the Beijing Olympics have increased.

Miloš Kelemen, who presented himself at the Swiss Cup with three goals in two matches, is making great progress in Mladá Boleslav. “I heard about Miloš’s interest in the NHL. He has a very well-trodden career. I wonder where it will end. He has more than the Czech extra league, “ the national team manager told us Oto Haščákwho is also a scout of the New York Rangers.

Miloš Roman is proving to be a fixture for the weakening and the third attack. The 24-year-old center grows in the hierarchy of the master Třinec and transfers its performances to the national team. The coaches could rely on him at the world championships or in the Olympic qualification. Marko Daňo from the rich steel club is definitely in the sights. Lukko Rauma’s power forward Pavol Skalický, who is productive in Finland’s top competition, also has a chance.

Adam Liška asks “Comeback” for the big tournament. Like Krištof, he did not have a good world championship and the coaches missed him from the Olympic qualification. He regularly plays in the first formation for the surprise of the KHL from Čerepovec. The 22-year-old winger was unlucky in Vispe, where he played only a few shifts after shooting the puck in his mouth. “We will see what Miro Šatan and Oto Haščák expect from me. I will do my best not to miss Beijing. “ said the resident of Bratislava.

Without overseas reinforcements, we can also expect attackers from the Slovak extra league to be nominated. We attribute the greatest chances to Adrián Holešinský. The physically well-built forward showed quality in the national team. However, he must stay healthy as he is limited by injuries in his career. He was already pausing this year and despite the pain he also played at the World Championships in Riga in May and June.

Pavalov Regenda from Michal took the Swiss Cup and Samuel Buček from Nitra is interesting for the alternative position of the shooter. However, everything will also depend on how many players the coaches will be able to take to Beijing.