According to media reports, Kari Jalonen’s stint at the helm of the Czech national team is ending in dismissal.
Kari Jalonen has been on hot coals for the past few days. PDO
Kari Jalonen has been under the magnifying glass since the World Hockey Championships in May.
The Czech Ice Hockey Federation was disappointed with the performances of the team led by Jalonen in the games. The team’s season ended with a quarterfinal loss to the United States.
The president of the Czech Ice Hockey Federation, Alois Hadamczik, suggested after the games that the team must, among other things, play more aggressively.
The union said on June 8 that Jalonen and the GM of the national team by Martin Havlat a plan for preparing for next year’s World Cup home games must be drawn up by June 20. However, the union committee was not convinced by what they saw.
Czech Isport said on Monday evening that Jalose is about to be given the boot, even though he still has one year left on his contract.
The actions of the Czech Ice Hockey Federation have caused a lot of criticism among the players. For example, Jakub Voráček, who has had a long career in the NHL, published a message on his Twitter account on Monday.
– It’s a comedy, the NHL star wrote.
Voráček explained his tweet on Tuesday In an interview with Isport. He said the union’s fuss was “unnecessary fooling around”. According to the NHL star, the union should just outright fire him if the situation has progressed to that point.
– First of all, I don’t understand how a coach can analyze the World Cup, which is 11 months away. When he doesn’t know which players will come from the NHL, how to build the superior squads. I just don’t think it’s possible. I don’t understand how such an analysis can be developed. And I don’t think I’m the only one who feels this way in the puck community, Voráček said and continued:
– Let’s be honest, the World Cup did not go well. The team wasn’t very good, even Roman Cervenka talked about this after the tournament. It’s rare for a goalkeeper to stand on his head like that, to defend in the quarterfinals or finals and there for medals or even a gold medal. It rarely happens and the goalkeeper then has to be very lucky and world class.
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Legends defend
Czech player legends such as Dominik Hašek and Otakar Janecký wanted Jalonen to remain as the head coach of the national team.
– If I could vote, I would vote for him to stay. It was the first time in two years that his team had really broken up. Otherwise, the team has performed well under him, considering the quality that was in use, Hašek said at the beginning of May.
– Jalonen must complete his project. This year it didn’t work, but that doesn’t mean that the same thing will happen again next year. The NHL may become auxiliary forces, the games will be played in Prague and Ostrava. It will be a big challenge for the players, Janecký said.
Jalonen coached the Czech Republic to medals at last year’s World Championships.