Jašek returned to Saturday’s incident, after which the disciplinarian suspended his activity for three matches. “They took down our captain in the corner, his head flew into the goalpost and the referee did nothing,” the Czech attacker did not understand. Then he assumed the role of the avenger and wanted to punish the culprit himself. But he chose a rather non-hockey way, because he violently dragged the home striker Kalle Kossila over the hands of the hockey stick.
“Obviously chopping is not appropriate, I should have taken him in a tie,” he threw ashes back on his head. At the same time, last year while still in the jersey of Finnish Lahti, he also caught a stop sign for chopping. “I don’t know where it comes from in me,” said Jašek. The national team matches will be the last for him for some time. In addition, the previous two tournaments in the national jersey did not work out for him, so he has taken care of his motivation.
However, according to his own words, the style of the new coach Radim Rulík should suit him better than that of his predecessor Kari Jalonen. At least that’s what he judged according to the first training, which did not lack intensity and a lot of skating. “I’m looking forward to it, it will be something different. I will accept any role. Most importantly, let’s play as a team,” added Jašek, who has played 11 matches for the national team with one goal and two assists.
Sweden is three levels above Finland
In Oskarshamn, Sweden, Jašek has a much better record. But his team is in last place in the table. However, the Třineck schoolboy scored 12 points (6+6) in 16 games, a decent balance for a reinforcement from Finnish Lahti, where he spent the previous two seasons. The sight of better competition attracted him to Sweden, where he already worked as a junior.
Tomáš Plekanec does not feel like a coach. He lobbed players and liked how they responded. Video: Sport.cz
“I wanted to move on. I was in Finland for two years and I think that the Swedish league is three levels higher,” Jašek surprised. How is hockey different in the two Nordic countries? “In Sweden, the players are more experienced and hockey is played up and down. Swedes are like machines, they won’t give you an inch of ice. In Finland, everyone tried to copy the style of the national team when it won the Olympics and two World Cups (2019 and 2022). They play with a withdrawn defense, while in Sweden you don’t have time for anything,” Jašek describes the differences.
However, it is uncertain whether they will improve their national team record on Thursday, when the Czechs play against the home Swedes in Växjö. On Monday, he trained with five players with different jerseys, which could mean that he will watch the first game only from the stands.
