In game one, Ton was one of two Spartans who failed to convert on penalty shots in the first period. Though disheartening at the time, there was something positive from it he could take into Saturday´s game.
"I knew a little bit about how (goaltender Peter) Hamrlík reacts, so I´m glad I got the opportunity. The coach asked me how I felt and if I was ready to go. I said yes. Then it came that I would go third--for me it was also an advantage that the two in front of me were left-handed. I tried to observe as much as possible. It always depends on the position of the goaltender, whether to deke or shoot. There´s no science. It´s very motivating for the upcoming games."
Top scorers in club history
(Total points in regular season, playoffs, and tournament games)
- Richard Žemlička .. 565
- David Výborný ..... 548
- Jiří Zelenka ...... 506
- PETR TON .......... 500
Off course, the skills competition to decide the game wouldn´t have happened if they hadn´t got a late tying goal from the fourth line.
"The coach can sense which line is hot and might have the best chance at any particular moment," Ton explained. "Yes, they got unlucky goal against them, but it happens. They played an excellent game and they came through again. I have confidence in them going forward. All four of our lines were really going well."
Ton is pleased with the fact that his team is returning home with the series tied 1-1. "We know that this win has brought us back into the series. I´ve played in several series before even when losing 0-2, and still it would have been possible, but this is very mentally uplifting. We know now that we´re on home ice now, and I´m sure we´ll play even better in the third game."
In addition to the team´s success, Ton reached a personal milestone in game two, recording his 500th point in a Sparta jersey. His two points showed how he and the rest of the team were finally able to solve Hamrlík. "Friday we fired all sorts of rubber at him and he stopped everything," he said. "This time, in addition to a large number of shots, we got a lot of traffic in front and some of those shots where he was screened went in."
Třinec played similarly in the second game as they did in the first, "But the problem in game one was giving up an early goal and taking lots of penalties. Then they got the second goal and our gameplan collapsed, because we had to open it up. This time, we played the kind of hockey that we want for the whole series--skating hard and moving the puck, all four lines, any of which might decide it in our favour."
