House Keeping
It has been a quiet 10 days of late, as a bout of illness has hit the HockeySteve household, so first of all, apologies to the regular and awesome readers for no updates during this time.
Own job aside, the one thing I felt guilty about was not being able to function enough to write, think and make decisions or even talk. So no write ups, no podcast, no data mining. The FOMO has been real!
Now, onto the next chapter in the continued and storied journey for the Cardiff Devils in Europe.
The Road to the Continental Cup
It comes amongst a backdrop of tremendous success by a bitter rival who can’t stop enjoying the ride atop of a wave that continues to lift them.
There is a genuine level of jealousy and envy from the club, as for the longest time, the Devils were the mainstay for UK represented European Hockey participation.
Giants were there or there about, however the steady improvements for the CHL were eventually whittled away in the 21/22 season and since, the Conti Cup has been a focus, with the aim to win. So far, two bronzes and two hosting rights, one for qualification to finals and the other for the final itself.
So, on the third time of asking, can this club achieve the ultimate success of being a recognised, bonafide European Hockey Club? For me, the jury is so far, out.
To answer this question, this should be the third time of winning the competition, if that could be a thing. So, with another chance to play in the event and progress to the finals, this is the one competition the club cannot afford to lose.
It is all good wanting to be within a chance to win trophies and championships. That isn’t a winning culture. The focus should be, our goal and dedication each game is to be the best team each night, every night and win every title. Nothing else matters.
This is the rationale you should expect and to be honest, that has been it for the last three seasons at least. So, maybe the more cautious approach is a choice made to keep the locker room pressure low, allowing the team to freely express themselves.
However, the competitive displays so far have been offering the same questions that fail to attract an acceptable answer or even one at all.
In the league, the team are great, after 11GP, they sit 5 points clear of second, with a healthy team plus/minus. Just two losses. In the other competition, they are third, with two games left and far from securing their own fate to progress.
At the most they could sneak the final spot for an automatic progression, the least they could manage would be the play in game. At worst and very possible, it could be a failure when it was in their hands from game week one.
This is the form and drive they are taking to Slovakia soon. I am not a doom-monger, just outlining what has legitimately come to pass so far this season.
On The Hunt
It is easy for me who doesn’t pick, train or manage a team to say this, but for the purpose of perspective and conversation, the challenge cup should have been the key focus to prepare for another competition. Period.
The quality of roster the club has invested in, is too good to not be hitting +90% win rates each week. Even without Shinkaruk, who, if he magically recovers for this trip, the fans have been sold short. Where is he?
A genuine question on fans lips, as the line ups get a tweak here and there, but the overall tactics have already been scouted. Individual talents help to win games, battles and push their team to bigger victories. The owners gush over the player.
Sometimes though, caution endangers those around them. Also, classic coaching knowledge, if they can play, play them. Can’t make them fit, find a replacement. It is harsh, but it’s nearly mid-november and I don’t always have to be nice.
Intuition tells me that unless he plays Sunday via Blaze, then he will be taken to Slovakia and that is where he will get his first competitive games. Not ideal for invested fans who can’t get there, especially if he could have been iced a few weeks ago, which is highly likely.
This has been the only conundrum so far and for the run in to the next group stage. One player. But so far, his performances most fans can draw on is from pre-season, then a period on the first game. Where the other team scored during his shift.
Perhaps the realisation of being in this league and going down against the Glasgow Clan made him reconsider his career. If the stories are true about his talent, it is not an unreasonable conclusion, even for fun (which this is, an internal joke that as each week goes by, looks more convincing).
Jokes and frustration aside, the point still stands. Dress him, gentle minutes on the 4th line to allow players like Duggan and Brandt expand their game knowledge, even Busch and Perlini, anything to present a taste of what hard earned money invests in.
The reason is paramount, if he picks up another knock in Slovakia, it would be seen as unforgivable. A tough balancing act, as mentioned earlier, I am lucky that is not my decision to make.
The Hosts
The destination and hosts are somewhat of an obscure factor to this tournament. Travel has been slightly more difficult, not because of recent geo-political reasons, but just how the host nation deals with foreign nationals and its natural approach to organisation.
The language barrier and openness of the club itself to co-operate and help navigate for club and fans alike has been something which presented more difficulty compared to others.
The host team, Vlci Žilina, won their league championship last season, gaining promotion to the Tipos Extraliga but currently sit at 8th overall. Plenty of players from the Devils would know of the league, not to mention a core have lost to current 3rd place side, HK Nitra two seasons ago in the Angers final, which now features a couple of our players.
Slovakian teams such as Nitra (Donaghey, Duke) Dukla Trencin (Bowns), Slovan Bratislava (O’Brien, Duke), with a few other teams featuring very recent former Devils, have a knowledge of how the hosts might play, their building, fans and what to expect should be well communicated within the group, by their own experiences of the Slovakian top league.
The quality of the roster however might struggle to compete against teams that are used to playing the top flight and in more elite company. This could also be a positive, as conversely this could provide an edge to their own game, as they are so unknown.
One thing this team (Devils) should be prepared for is the unknown. With Astana Nomads being the outlier last season and previous champions HK Nitra taking the steam from under the wings of the Devils before, they should know as a club how to manage a largely unknown group of opponents and progress safely.
Ones to Watch
Nick Jones
Žilina’s Top points scorer at this stage of the season is Canadian Nick Jones, who is a point per game so far since joining (15). The 28 year old, 5 foot 11 forward from Edmonton, Alberta might be a juicy target competitively for the Devils as a whole, because of the age old Battle of Alberta.
This is his first stint across the pond from the AHL, where he spent 6 season between Hartford Wolf Pack in the US and Manitoba Moose in Canada. From 283GP, he put up 100 points. During his spell at Manitoba, he played with current EIHL’er Matt Alfaro of the Panthers, in the 21/22 season.
He also went to university at North Dakota with Giants trio Mismash, Kawaguchi and Bast. His quality should definitely be noticeable.
Kamil Walega
Another noticeable player is the young Polish forward Kamil Walega, who stood out during an Olympics Tournament against Team GB, where he picked up multiple points in a thrilling game for Worlds qualification this year and backed it up at the most recent Worlds with some sublime finishes.
In that D1A tournament he had 7 points from 5GP and became a hot topic across the UK hockey sphere along with the likes of Zygmunt, here is a recap of the game; https://www.iihf.com/en/events/2023/wmia/gamecenter/recap/39343/5-gbr-vs-pol
He played last season at CHL entrants Czech Republic side Třinec, before being loaned to Žilina this season. He has 11 points from 15GP so is definitely a threat for any team. He is fast, intelligent and can pickpocket defences to get some greasy goals. He has also played 4 games in the CHL with the parent Czech side, so is no stranger to tournaments.
Jakub Dubravik
Dubravik has come up through the ranks at Žilina however one thing to note is his birthplace. Hereford, UK.
The 17 year old has played 8 times for the team, so with such a heavy, condensed schedule, he should also feature. This is his first senior pro season proper, which he has already mixed with the U20’s team and the Slovakian U18’s. At those levels, he excels, so the potential and talent is there.
Whether he will make a massive difference is unknown to almost impossible to determine, however, considering his birthplace is not far from Cardiff, this could be a aim for him to play above expectations and make a name for himself.
After all, his team mate Walega has certainly done that in the last 18 months.
Where to Go – Žilina
Žilina, derives from the Slovakian expression and word for river, or more accurately a river vein, žila. So, for a place of many waterways, a traveler can expect the city and region to be beautiful and picturesque.
A steep history of religious architecture, the medieval sites for sight seeing will be cherished and pleasing for those well travelled and familiar to home, as the area originated from he 13th century. Also, for those who travelled to Angers, Prague et al, it would be another beautiful destination to add to the scrapbook.
Here are some recommendations from Nottingham Sport Ice Hockey Correspondent Dylan pick (@DylanPick23 on X/Twitter, please follow!) – So thank you for sharing!
Pizzeria Carolina; English speaking (which is great) and pizza, which is better. Highly recommended by a friend who played out there. Reasonably priced as well, with a wide menu of options.
Butchers Bit; a burger joint that tickled the taste buds and tantalised the appetites.
Zmrzlina Bibi; Fancy some ice cream, during November in Slovakia? Why not, always available during the day with a welcoming dispenser.
Zilinska Kozlovna; great atmosphere, incredible food, English speaking, highly recommended, again.
Mirage; Fancy some shopping? This was a recommended place to visit to have a look around in-between games, during some down-time and maybe pick up some bargains.
Some of HockeySteve’s favourites are abundant in this part of the world, pizza and of course, the oxygen to my stomach when abroad in Europe, Schnitzel.
For coffee fiends, much like myself, Epika, is a considered destination by other hockey bloggers, so keep a look out for this place if you need something before the beers flow, again.
A local soft drink that is favoured is called Kofola, much like the standard cola, it is also high in vitamin C. So for the health conscious, why not?
The national dish is Halušky, for the foodies, which is like gnocchi, with a cheese sauce and fried pork/bacon sprinkled on top.
Do not fret, for the more alcohol inclined supporters, there are plenty of bars, with lots of local beers, so make sure you generously sample them and offer some reviews to fellow travellers.
I hope you enjoyed part one, let me know if you have visited any of these places and sample some of those delights via X/Twitter.
Another one to follow is @TRRHockey on X/Twitter, who has an in-depth series for the city itself, dedicated to travelling hockey fans.
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