“It was very rushed. A few days ago I signed the termination of the contract in Sweden and on Thursday we met in Ostrava with the owner of Vítkovice Aleš Pavlík, who called me several times before to show me that the club is interested in me. I appreciate it very much and the great interest made the decision,” confided the native of Ostrava, who played 232 extra league games for Vítkovice.
The rest in Pilsen, where Vítkovice traded him in the 2019/2020 season, and in Litvínov. “I’m glad to be home. I was born in Ostrava, grew up here. And it’s great that not much has changed in the club. Most of the people here are the same and they gave me a great welcome,” confided the 28-year-old hockey player, who should help Vítkovice from the bottom of the extra league table with his points.
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“I think there is a great group here and I hope that the team’s results will improve and that we will start playing what Vítkovice is used to from last season,” emphasizes Zdráhal, who preferred the last team to, for example, Mladá Boleslav’s offer. “There was interest from several clubs and I was pleased. But it was decided that I’m simply from Ostrava, I have family here and I want my grandfathers to see me play hockey for Vítkovice,” he described.
Reluctantly, he was looking forward to getting another chance to show off his skills in matches. “I didn’t play in Lulea. At the beginning of the season I got a chance for seven minutes and then the ice time kept going down. In the last matches, I played a maximum of three, four minutes. I want to play at my age. The Swedish league is the best in Europe and the quality is huge there, but I have to look at myself as well. I love this job and I want to be useful to the team, but I wasn’t useful to the team there. I sat on the bench and got on the ice maybe during a commercial break. A lot of people didn’t understand it, but that was the coach’s decision. I respected him and that is why I am now in Vítkovice,” Zdráhal described the experience.
Now he will try to lift Vítkovice. “I believe I can help, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. There is a quality team here, be it Laky (Lakatoš), Mueller, Buky (Bukarts), Krieger, Marek Kalus, but also others. The defense is also good and I am convinced that the goalkeepers will also get into it because they are of good quality. I don’t see a weakness in the team. It’s just all about the head,” pointed out Zdráhal.
2023-10-14 17:17:14
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