“The team has worked consistently hard every week during the preseason, we were well-prepared for the games and did a great job,” Krupp said during a preseason press conference. “But the preseason is the preseason and now we’re looking forward to the regular season and we’re optimistic, but there are a lot of things we still need to work on.”
With the first game against Mountfield HK approaching, Krupp shared his thoughts on the upcoming season with his new team in his new city.
Looking ahead to the season, what are your expectations?
It’s a long season and you’ve got to break it down into phases. Right now we’re concentrating on having a good start and we’ll take it from there.
The team won seven out of 10 preseason games. What does that mean heading into the regular season?
It wasn’t perfect, but overall the work ethic was very good, the motivation was good, and the guys were willing to make the investment we’ve gotta make to win hockey games. It’s preseason and the results of the games don’t mean much – it’s more about developing good habits and coming together as a team.
How important is tradition when you come to a team like this?
I think it’s very important. Sparta’s a big part of Prague and a big part of the history of hockey in the Czech Republic and Czechoslovakia and it’s an impressive and log history of very good hockey. And the new jerseys are exciting too. Hopefully, we can sell a few of those.
How do you like living in Prague so far?
Oh, it’s a great place to live for me and my family. It’s a world-class city and one of the prettiest places I’ve ever visited or lived.
So your family’s all settled in?
Yes, the kids are in school, everybody is happy and we’re getting used to our routines. Everything’s going well.
What’s your favourite part of the city?
I think it’s got a lot of nice areas. Of course the historic centre, the Old Town, is what everybody comes to see, but I also like some of the outlying areas – the Divoká Šárka forest and nature reserve is very nice.
Do you think the beer here is better than German beer?
Czech beer is good but the Germans have good beer too, so I think there’s a good rivalry.
What about the Czech language? Have you learned anything yet?
Actually, I’m a little disappointed with myself. I’ve spent so much time concentrating on hockey through training camp that I haven’t had that much time to practice. I pick up new words pretty much every day, but right now it’s a work in progress.
Is it a challenge to communicate with players who don’t speak English well?
Going into it, I knew that was one of the challenges, but after seven weeks, I think I now have an idea of who does and doesn’t speak as well. We have three Canadians and a bunch of the Czechs have played overseas and speak English very well. I think everybody speaks a little bit and for the guys who aren’t as comfortable, we just have to spend a bit of extra time with, but overall I don’t think communication has been a problem.
Who do you expect to be the leaders on the team?
I think that good leadership is spread over different players. You don’t just expect one player to be the guy that everybody looks up to. On a good team, you have a number of players and I would say we have four or five guys who have the kind of experience to fulfill this role.
What do you think is the biggest strength of the team?
I think we have a good skating team, but I don’t think there’s any aspect that is going to single-handedly win games. It’s going to be a mix between good defence and having an effective offence.
Last season, defence was one of the team’s weaknesses. How does it look to you right now?
The team defence has been good. The guys have played well in their own end. Both of our goalies, Machovský and Honzík, have done a great job, but defence is played by six guys on the ice. They all have to work together and I think that’s been okay so far.
You and assistant coach Jaroslav Nedvìd were both big defencemen and you’ve added some big d-men to this team. Can we expect a more physical, North American style?
I don’t really know what that means, North American style. Physicality and hitting is a part of hockey but it’s not something that’s going to be the primary part of our game. It’s something that every good team does and we’re going to play physical, but that’s just one element among a number of other things that we need to do well.
You played against a few Czech teams in the preseason. How would you describe the style of play in the Extraliga?
It’s very fast and the games are very even. I didn’t feel like we were dominant in any game we played, and I think the Czech league is like that, where no team is dominant. I expect it to be very close.
Your first regular-season game is against Mountfield HK and you played them in the preseason. What do you expect from them specifically?
Hradec played us very well – they forechecked and put pressure on us and I’m expecting the same kind of hockey. That’s a game that we played early on in the preseason and they were missing a few keys guys from their lineup, but I think it’s going to be a fast game.
And how do you feel in general about getting the season started?
I’m excited, it’s great! I think the preseason has been long enough and the players are done with practicing and exhibition games. I think everyone’s looking forward to the real thing.
