From our correspondent in Italy – He concluded a great career crowned with the Stanley Cup and more than a thousand starts in the NHL some time ago. Even so, he remains deeply immersed in hockey events.
Gáborík celebrated his 44th birthday right in Milan, and he cooperates with Slovak TV STVR as an expert here. In an interview for Aktuálně.cz and Hokej.cz, he talked not only about his performances under the five rings.
You played in the Olympics in Turin and Vancouver. What place do they have in your career?
I’ve been watching the Olympics since I was a little boy, of course I was grateful to be able to play in them. They are great experiences. We didn’t see much of other sports, but we were there for hockey and that’s what we did well.
It was a sensational drive from you in Turin. You won all five matches, even against the strong Russians, Americans and Swedes…
And then you trained us in the quarter finals. (smile)
Yes, there was a 1:3 defeat by the Czechs in the quarterfinals. what was it like
It was a ride, the Swedes dropped the last game to go against the Swiss. We went against you, it was a pity in the end. We were losing at the end 1:2 and I had a free puck in the goal area. All it took was a sweep, but Jarda Jágr appeared there. For some reason he was in front of his own goal, which of course he doesn’t go often, and he completely pushed me. I couldn’t make it. Martin Straka added a goal into the empty net and our run was over.
In Vancouver, you shocked the Swedes in the quarter-finals, tormented the Canadians in the semi-finals and beat the Finns 3-1 in the third-place match. There, your generation was really close to Marián Hossa, Zden Chára or Pavol Demitra.
We messed it up ourselves with fouls and unnecessary mistakes, we lost 3:5. Fourth place is amazing in retrospect, but it was one of the hardest moments of my career at the time. It was hard to swallow, and it was actually one of two times I cried over hockey.
What was the other case?
When we played for salvation against Ukraine at the World Junior Championship. I’ve been in the twenties twice, the first time we won bronze and then this. We lost the first game of the series against the Ukrainians, it was only decided in the third game on raids. Thank God we saved it. I was a young guy and this was a brutal career experience. It wasn’t easy.
Here in Milan, NHL players are back at the Olympics after 12 years, but you personally experienced the last such major meeting of the complete elite. At the 2016 World Cup, you reached the final with the European team.
It was an interesting concept at the time and I remember everyone writing us off. We played preliminary matches in Canada, the North American under-23 team was against us and they gave us a hard time. What Connor McDavid and company were showing there, just complete aliens. But then we came together, we also had excellent players like Leon Draisaitl, we were coached by Paul Maurice.
Even back then, hockey seemed to be changing more into speed and skills, did it feel that way to you?
Yes, guys like McDavid or Nathan MacKinnon have incredible talent. Sometimes I lack creativity in hockey, it seems robotic to me, but what these players are showing… Back then, in that preparation before the World Cup, I once caught myself sitting on the bench and marveling like a spectator. It was amazing, and these were only young nosedives.
What do you think of the Canadians now that they have beaten their group in Milan?
Canada is somewhere else entirely. The Czechs had nothing to complain about in the first match, but the Canadians when they turn on… In the last match against the French, it was decided a long time ago, McDavid had three points and kept flying forward and backward. And that’s what’s admirable about those great players. Let the fans appreciate and enjoy this tournament. Last year’s Four Nations Tournament in the Americas was such a starter and this is absolutely brutal.
Do the Czechs have any chance against Canada in the quarter-finals?
There is always a chance, the Czech Republic should never be written off. You have quality. Canada is Canada, but you never know.
And how do you like the Slovak team, which surprisingly went straight to the quarter-finals over the Finns, Italians and Swedes?
The boys are playing great. Before the tournament we talked about a must-win against Italy and if we could steal another point it would be great. Nobody expected this. Goalkeeper Samuel Hlavaj stood on his head, he was amazing against the Finns. Juraj Slafkovský has matured, gained experience, is confident on the puck, knows his strength in his legs. He plays as a team.
Who else would you pick?
Defenders Martin Fehérváry, Erik Černák, Šimon Nemec or Martin Gernát are great. The results in the group are already a success, but the team has more to do. In the quarter-finals we have the Germans, the easiest opponent on paper. The Americans showed the way against them, they got under Draisaitl’s skin, he was frustrated. We must learn from this.
We were discussing the Olympics you played in. You missed Sochi due to injury, but then you won the Stanley Cup with Los Angeles. What was the story of that season?
It was the season I got injured twice in Columbus and I was fed up. I wanted to quit, but thanks to my wife, who was still my girlfriend at the time, I kept trying. And in half a year I held the cup. Sport is like that, there are those sinusoids, and that’s what’s beautiful about it. I was 32 years old, I no longer hoped that it would work out. It ended up being amazing.
Defenseman Drew Doughty celebrated with you in Los Angeles, now he is here with the Canadians at the Olympics. Did you meet in Milan?
Yes, we saw each other. He is a winner, he has two Stanley Cups, two Olympic gold medals. He is one of the best defenders I have ever seen play. Of course, he has had his years and a new generation is coming, for example Cale Makar. But Doughty still has it in his head, handling the game forwards and backwards. And he’s an even better guy. I’m glad I got to meet him and that he’s doing well.
You played with Marko Židlicky again in Minnesota, he now leads the defenders in the Czech national team.
Well, Židla, it wasn’t easy to play against him. He was such a jerk, such a bitch with a hockey stick. (laughter) He wasn’t afraid to play ‘dirty’, he gave you a boner in the ribs, an ax across the calves. But then we met in the team and he was a great player, a talented fighter. Now he is on the coaching side, which is certainly not easy. I wouldn’t laugh at it, hats off.
You now enjoy the role of an expert on television, and you have a podcast Boris and Potato with another former hockey player Boris Valábik. Didn’t you want to train?
I’m not attracted to it. I have two girls, maybe if I had a boy I would be more drawn to it. But in Trenčín I have a winter stadium, a hockey school. I take care of the children there. And in terms of coaching, I would rather work with the players on self-confidence and mental awareness. In hockey, it’s terribly important, and I’ve already been in a long-distance relationship with some of them.
How did your podcast come about?
I had the idea in my head that I would like to start a platform where I would bring people behind the scenes of hockey. Boris came up with a podcast about six years ago, and it went down well. He is a great partner, a perfect professional, knows his way around hockey. We would like to shoot more often, more regularly, but sometimes it doesn’t work out in time. However, thanks to the podcast, we met a lot of great people, not only from sports.
Finally, we can’t leave out your iconic moment from the NHL, when Dominik Hašek jumped at your feet and shot you into the air. What was your view then?
(smile) We also had Hasan in the podcast and we dealt with it. I got the record in the break, I wanted to sink the puck. I raise my head and that’s when I see Hasan. Nothing could be done about it. He was still getting angry and was very surprised that the referee whistled for a foul. In the meantime, Chris Chelios was following me, asking if I was okay. I only had a few bruises but nothing serious. It looked worse.
