To hang the jersey of the 44-year-old Dynamo legend, the club prepared several commemorative videos, a special song and invited Sýkor’s family and hockey friends to the ice before the match with Pilsen. Rolinek, Divíšek or teammates from Davos Marha, Tatíček and Bednář arrived. Last but not least, also the agent Aleš Volek and the long-time coach and general manager of Davos Arno del Curto who flew in from Switzerland.
“All moments of the evening had a tremendous impact on me,” Sýkora admitted. He also brought up a sad memory of the late former goalkeeper Adam Svoboda, who would have celebrated his 45th birthday today.
On the ice, Sýkora spoke almost face to face. “I prepared about five speeches, I forgot them all sitting here in the chair. All of this completely blew my mind. I really appreciate it and it’s an honor for me to stand here,” he explained directly on the red carpet. “The whole time I was afraid of what would come out of me. I’ve probably never been so nervous during my career,” he smiled in an interview for O2 TV.
He is a legend in Pardubice. “You’re the boss. This is all for you, for that great career. You have become a goal machine. Thank you for all my teammates,” his most loyal teammate Tomáš Rolinek sent him a message.
Sýkora never played for another team in the extra league. He played an incredible 18 seasons for the East Bohemia team and helped them win two titles. “I always appreciated Pardubice’s interest. I was never tempted to go elsewhere in the Czech Republic. After all, I always wanted to try abroad once every three years,” described the famous sniper.
At the age of twenty, he tried to fight for the NHL in Nashville, but scored only two starts. Seven years later, he played ten games for Washington, but still preferred to return home. He chose the last foreign station of his career ideally. He spent four great seasons in Davos, sweetened by two titles. “I have a second home there. A great group of people, it enriched me in terms of hockey and people. Amazing four years,” recalled Sýkora.
Throughout his career, he excelled mainly with volley shots. “I was never a recording artist. I’ve always listened to my teammates in order to shoot,” said Sýkora, who works as a scout and individual skills coach at Dynamo after the end of his career.
Even the hockey players from Pardubice didn’t give him a reason to be happy during the festive day. They extended their winning streak to seven duels with a 4:3 win over Pilsen in the preliminaries of the 42nd round.
“I am very happy for the boys that they managed the match. These special matches are not easy at all. The players are preparing elsewhere, they have to wait a long time. If I invite them to lunch and contribute to the cash register, maybe they’ll forgive me,” Sýkora smiled. He enjoyed the post-match thank-you party right on the ice. “Unexpected and unplanned. Nice return to the ice,” he added.
