20.08.2018 - Derek O´Brien

Zach Sill, the defensive centre: I’ll play physical and finish my hits

HC Sparta’s newest player arrived in Prague on Thursday. ZACH SILL, a 30-year-old centre from Truro, Nova Scotia becomes the third Canadian to sign with the team this coming season. Up until now, he has played his whole career in North America, including the last nine seasons professionally. While he spent most of his career in the AHL, he also played in 93 NHL games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Washington Capitals, scoring two goals and adding three assists and 98 penalty minutes.

Zach, what made you decide to come to Europe at this stage of your career?
Well, I played in North America for a long time. As a family – me and my wife – we just decided to make a change and we’d never been here before, so we thought it would be nice. I just turned 30 years old, so I thought it would be nice to see Europe and play some hockey at the same time.

So your family came with you?
Yes, the whole family and our dog. There were a few complications bringing him over, but we got him here.

Why did you choose Sparta in particular?
It was one of our first offers, and it was hard to turn down. It’s such a historic city and you don’t get these kinds of offers all the time, so we jumped at the opportunity.

Had you ever been to the Czech Republic before?
No, I’d never been here, but I’ve played with a number of Czechs and they speak really highly of it. Also, my good friend from Nova Scotia has a girlfriend from Prague, so she was the first call that I made and everything she said was really good.

Which Czech players did you play with?
In Hershey I played with Jakub Vrána and Vítek Vanìèek was our goalie the past two seasons.

How about the current Sparta team. Do you already know any of them?
No. I played against Steven Delisle in junior but I don’t know him personally. I’ve talked to him a few times on the phone and asked him about Sparta and Prague, and he said all good things. He said the coaches are great, the city is unbelievable, and he was pretty excited to have the chance to come here.

Did the fact that there are two other Canadians, Steven and Jérémie Blain, also influence your decision to come here?
Yes, it’s definitely nice, even though they are French … just kidding (laughs). No, they’re good guys and it’s nice to have other Canadians on the team.

And how about your new coach, Uwe Krupp? I guess you already knew who he was...
Absolutely. I had a chance to talk to him on the phone before I signed, and he talked to me about the team and what he wanted to do, and it seemed like a pretty good fit for me. So, talking to him was a big factor in choosing to play here as well.

Growing up in Nova Scotia, did you play against Sidney Crosby growing up? He’s only one year older than you...
I did play against him and I played on the same team as him for one and a half seasons too, which was pretty cool. Yeah, he was really good even when we were little kids. It was amazing to watch him.

There’s a YouTube video of you wearing a microphone on the ice of one game with the Penguins from that time and it was pretty funny...
Yeah, yeah, that’s right (laughing).

You weren’t drafted, but you still made it to the NHL. How difficult was that? Because it isn’t so usual...
Yeah, it was a hard road. I played five full years in the American League before I got an opportunity in the NHL, and there were times when I thought I wasn’t going to make it, so when I did, it was a really good feeling. I just tried to hang onto that as long as I could.

And you stayed in the league for a while, too. Can you explain what that experience was like?
When you move from the AHL to the NHL, the calibre of play goes way up. You get to play with the elite players in the world like Sid, Yevgeni Malkin, Alexander Ovechkin … the list goes on and on. It’s pretty cool to play with and against amazing players like that.

How would you describe your style of play?
I would say I’m a bit of a grinder. I’ll play physical and finish my hits. I can kill penalties and I’ll definitely block a lot of shots. I can also chip in offensively here and there, but I don’t put up the biggest numbers.

Would you call yourself a defensive centre?
Yes, that’s exactly what I think my role will be – a third- or fourth-line centre who is able to shut down the top offensive lines of the other teams at full strength and on the PK. That’s been my role for a long time so it’s nice to come to a place where that’s expected of me.

Do you think you’ll get in any fights?
I don’t know, maybe once in a while. Is there a lot of fighting in this league?

There’s a little bit. One team, Plzen, has Ryan Hollweg – an American who is probably considered the best fighter in the league...
OK, well, maybe I’ll have to mix it up a little bit. I know Steven is pretty tough too.

Did you fight against any of the heavyweights in the NHL?
I don’t know if I fought too many famous brawlers, but I think I had about 15 fights in the NHL. I was never afraid to drop the gloves.

Are you interested in any fighting sports, such as MMA?
I don’t do it myself, but I do enjoy watching it, though. Those guys are pure athletes. It’s crazy to watch it.

You didn’t go with the team to Garmisch because there wasn’t time. What are your plans for the next few days?
I’m just going to get settled in. I was on the ice on Friday for the first time, then again on Monday. I still need to get all my paperwork done and then just settle in with the team, practice, and start playing some hockey.

Latest news

Buy tickets for the quarterfinal here!

ZACK KASSIAN JOINS SPARTA

Aftermovie: celebrate of 120th anniversary

Visit Sparta´s official store!