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Post by Mrs. Sykora on Apr 6, 2004 16:25:03 GMT -5
Wide Asleep, this year I visited Sparta's game vs Ceske Budejovice )) I like the atmosphere during the game and intermissions. That's what we sometimes miss in Kazan. BTW is Jan Marek for sold ?
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Post by Wide Asleep on Apr 7, 2004 1:18:27 GMT -5
Mrs. Sykora: I am glad you enjoyed it. Ceske Budejovice is my second favorite team in the league. Well it was anyways since they were relegated to the second league after losing the relegation round this year. Honza Marek was by far Sparta's best player this season, both in the reguar season and the playoffs. He and Martin Chabada who returned in the middle of the season from the USA. But Marek really carried the team when they had 12 injured. He came down with some flu virus during the semi-finals and he got it again a day or two ago so he had to leave the Czech National Team training cam, so you won't see him in the World Championships I am afraid. And yes, he is still under contract with Sparta and I expect the team to build on him. But you have Hlinka, and he was one of the best in Sparta three seasons ago! I'll gladly send you our captain, Roman Simicek for Hlinka!
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Post by DanCan on Apr 7, 2004 4:17:18 GMT -5
WA, for what games do you have tickets? The Sazka Arena looks really nice: Sazka Arena
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Post by Wide Asleep on Apr 7, 2004 8:18:36 GMT -5
I am going to two Quarterfinal games: A2 - D2 and A1 - D1 on May 3rd. I am assuming that the Czechs will meet the Canadians in the A1 - D1 game.
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Post by Wide Asleep on Apr 7, 2004 8:30:48 GMT -5
Sparta had higher expectations than 3rd place and the semi-final loss to Slavia has already cost the heads of the main coach, Alois Hadamczik, who has said he will concentrate on the Czech-20 team.
So who will take the coaching spot? That secret was unveiled today: Slavomir Lener, currently the head coach of the national team. Some about his past. He is considered to be a theoretician and has always been a Spartan. He coached them from 1996-98 and has also worked in the NHL (assistant coach in Calgary and Florida). He also coached the Czech 20 team and the national team of, erm... China. His assistants will be Leo Gudas and David Volek (played for the Islanders from 88-94), both former Sparta stars. The conditional trainer will be Marian Jelinek, currently Jaromir Jagr's personal trainer.
So far three players have lost their spots on the team, 7-time league champion Jan Srdinko and forwards Jan Tomajko and Petr Havelka. More changes will be announced next week.
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Post by Wide Asleep on Apr 9, 2004 7:55:42 GMT -5
Rewrite the history books! Zlin is the new champion of the Czech Republic! The coach, Ernest Bokros, coached Slovan Bratislava totheir title last year, too, and he is the first coach to win both, let alone a double header.
Slavia scored the first goal and tried hard to defend their tight led while waiting for a chance to capitalise on any mistakes that Zlin made. Zlin kept up the attack and in the third period scored not once, not twice, not even three times, but four times (the last being in an empty net).
Zlin has been around for something like 75 years and this is their first championship title. They made it to the finals in two other instances, but always had to play second fiddle.
Zlin is an interesting town since before the WWII the Bata family built up a city around their shoe factory. They had all kinds of unique architectural elements from the general director's office which is also an elevator down to all the functionalist houses that were built for the workers. A planned town from the 1930s.
After the revolution Klement Gottwald, the first communist president of Czechoslovakia wanted his own Lenin/Stalingrad, so the town of Zlin was renamed Gottwaldov until after the 1989 revolution. It is a unique part of the country, and I wish them all the best with their title.
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Post by Wide Asleep on Apr 9, 2004 8:59:22 GMT -5
I forgot to mention a couple of things of interest:
Tomas Bata left Zlin in 1948 when the communists came to power and set up the Bata shoe empire in Toronto. He is still alive and was at the game last night.
Zlin's rise to the title is even more commendable considering that they were in 13th place last year!
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