It’s not the Czechs fault that they ran into a buzzsaw United States squad, sent home in the quarterfinal round of elimination play. Well, OK, maybe it was, but it was probably the expected ending for a Czech Republic squad that entered the tournament with more questions than answers. They were good-not-great in preliminary play, handled rival country Slovakia in their first elimination game, and even hung in there with the United States early in their final game.
But it wasn’t enough. And just what exactly did we learn throughout their five-game Sochi trip?
Mismanaged assets
I wasn’t crazy about this Czech club for a few reasons.
The biggest reason for me seemed to be some of the names left off the roster; Calgary’s Jiri Hudler (14 goals and 43 points in 58 games) and the Coyotes’ Radim Vrbata (15 goals and 39 points in 56 games) stick out as the clear misses. Left off the roster for names like Petr Nedved and Jiri Novotny was odd, and the word was that the higher-end skill names like Hudler and Vrbata were left off because of differences with the head coach. I can see why now.
I’ve acknowledged the fact that I could be biased based on watching him nearly 100 times a year with the Boston Bruins, but David Krejci sticks out as a player whose minutes and role was seriously mismanaged by the Czech coaching staff throughout the tournament. On a line with Milan Michalek and Ales Hemsky, excuse me -- sandbagged on a line with those players, I think a huge mistake for a Czech squad that struggled to score was not putting Krejci with a known sniper like a Jagr or even Philadelphia’s Jakub Voracek. It seemed like Krejci was used as the club’s checking line center option (behind Martin Hanzal) more than anything else.
Krejci’s been a big game player throughout his career, but the Czechs didn’t treat him as such.
Lack of shutdown pair hurt
The United States was a club able to just walk in and stomp all over the Czech zone.
Why?
Well, because the Czech Republic didn’t have that one defensemen that stepped up to the challenge of being the true No. 1 shutdown defender that they needed. All tournament long, it was way too easy for the opposition to march into their end, dance around their flat-footed defensemen, and get to the front of the net. Tomas Kaberle isn’t a shutdown player, nor is Michal Rozsival.
That showed.
Ondrej Pavelec showed true colors at biggest stage
Czech netminder Ondrej Pavelec is an average goaltender. That’s not a hyperbolic opinion stated to generate page views. It’s just the truth. He’s been average in Atlanta/Winnipeg, and he was average throughout this tournament. He beat the teams he was supposed to beat, but was made to look absolutely silly against a US squad with more than a few NHL talents.
Pavelec’s rebound control was virtually nonexistent, and after being yanked after stopping just eight of 12 shots thrown his way, Alexander Salak was thrown to the USA wolves. Salak, of two-game fame with the Florida Panthers in 2009-10, is probably not the answer. It seems unlikely that former Philadelphia draft pick Jakub Kovar is, either.
And that might be the biggest issue for the Czech Republic moving forward.
If you look around the Olympics and how they played out, you saw elite goaltenders taking their teams to the next level. Carey Price for Canada, Jonathan Quick for the US, Henrik Lundqvist did it for Sweden, and Tuukka Rask did the same for Finland.
The Czech Republic -- not exactly a known hockey superpower -- will need a goaltender to emerge in 2018 if they want to seriously challenge for a medal. And barring an unforeseen metamorphosis from average to elite, Pavelec doesn’t appear to be that guy.
Jaromir Jagr can’t leave
At 42 years old, Jaromir Jagr still looks like a player having the time of his life.
Jagr was the face of the Czech offense throughout the Olympics, never left the club’s top line, and showed off some of the puck-management skills that have made him a viable NHLer even as he slowly approaches his mid-40s. And I don’t know about you, but I want to see a 46-year-old Jagr in 2018.
It wouldn’t feel right without him.
And honestly, would it surprise you if he did play in four years?