Hradec Králové advanced directly to the quarterfinals of the hockey extra league eight times, but only two of the ten series played in the playoffs. This year, Mountfield was not even valid for the premiere triumph in the basic part, he was quickly eliminated from the fight for the title by the run-off Mladá Boleslav. The series is analyzed by former extra-league coach Vladimír Kýhos, who has led both clubs in the past.
How big a surprise for you is the early elimination of Hradec Králové as the winner of the basic part?
It is definitely a big surprise for everyone. Hradec was in great shape in the basic part, it was definitely one of the favorites of the playoffs. It’s startling.
How did Mladá Boleslav lose the Hradec favorites?
Mladá Boleslav, on the other hand, did not have a good season. Although she attacked the top at the beginning, David Šťastný was injured for a long time, she sent Oscar Flynn to Zlín for a while. They changed players, they couldn’t find the right lineup. However, they did it right now. Already in the preliminary round, Boleslav took last year’s form and better managed the key moments. It was all even matches.
Hradec failed once in raids, twice in overtime.
Yes. As it was “glued” to him in the basic part, the shooters on whom Hradec relied all season left here. The dust got wet. Ahti Oksanen scored 25 goals in the regular season and missed once in the playoffs. It simply happens. The opponent will focus on your key players in that series far more than in the main part. Boleslav was well prepared and, for example, completely erased Oksanen.
How do you think the head of Hradec Králové Miroslav Schön will react now?
I don’t know, he’s so unpredictable. If he doesn’t blame himself a bit for the President’s Cup cheering… (smile)
Vladimir Kyhos. | Photo: ČTK
Schön was very happy with the first extra-league trophy in history, at the end of the basic part he jumped in front of the fans.
According to the unwritten rule, the players did not touch the cup, but of course everyone was happy about it. The moment the disappointment must be all the greater. After the team’s speech throughout the season, the players and the people in the lead must be very sad. Captain Radek Smoleňák talked about the biggest disappointment in his career, I understand him. You do it all year and then it ends like this.
This is a long-term problem in Hradec. Eight times out of nine seasons, he went straight to the quarterfinals, but then won only two series.
This is very strange. Hard to explain.
And after ten years, the winner of the basic part was eliminated in the first series of the playoffs. Is it very uncomfortable to face opponents from the preliminary round?
Waiting for an opponent plays a big role there. On several occasions, the excited team advanced from the preliminary round. He’s paced, hot, hot. But when you wait ten days, you have to wake up to yourself. It is not easy and every coach perceives it even after national team breaks that the team needs to be braked.
You yourself experienced a similar thing five years ago in Třinec. In the basic part you were second, in the quarterfinals you were eliminated by Chomutov, who at that time already had a turnover from the preliminary round against Mladá Boleslav.
Yes, I remember that well. It was a balanced series, we overshot them significantly, but we lost. Such is the playoffs, sometimes advancing a happier or more combative team. In the last matches of this year’s series with Boleslav, it was Hradec that seemed like no emotion. Maybe they were mentally heavy, they weren’t as rude as usual.
In the basic part, Boleslav gained an abysmal forty points less than Hradec, but now, unlike his opponent, he continues to play for the title. In this light, how do you view a system in which almost everyone advances to the playoffs?
The long-term competition is different, most teams go through a crisis. This is simply how the rules are set now, the first one was played with the eighth and it was played right away. Now the preliminary round is being played and some teams are paying extra.
Would you be back with just eight teams to return to the playoffs?
I think that players and coaches are with the current system of reconciliation, they just have to find the right note on how to prepare the team for the playoffs. When you get as many points in the basic part as the opponent from the preliminary round, you have to find a way to confirm the quality in the playoffs.
Only Kometa reached the final stage in fourteen seasons in 2012. Can Boleslav follow up in the semifinals with Třinec?
It is definitely possible. Boleslav found the right composition, she has a good defense, all attacks work for her and Gašper Krošelj catches excellent. In addition, the team is in euphoria, it will rest for a few days and prepare for Třinec.
In addition, a number of Boleslav players also remember last year’s semifinal series with Třinec. It was very balanced, the Steelers advanced only in the seventh match.
Yes. I think this year it can be similar with the length of the series. In Boleslav, the form of some players began to rise at the right time. Miloš Kelemen is now playing hard matches, he gained confidence at the Olympics, where he brought bronze. He tore down the others and Boleslav rides the wave with him.
Which of the other playoff series have you been interested in?
I really like the České Budějovice and Pardubice series. The situation seems clear, but Pardubice has already fired perhaps ten poles. I also like the style of hockey up and down, it’s greasy, there are emotions. I’m very curious how today’s fifth match will turn out.
