Oceláři Třinec forward Petr Vrána missed two games at the very beginning of last year’s Champions Hockey League, yet he finished the season as the club’s second most productive player in the CHL. The 35-year-old Czech native joined Třinec, who are the last club to have been crowned Extraliga Champions, at the start of last year and is very much looking forward to taking on Yunost Minsk in the upcoming first found of the 2020/21 CHL Playoffs.
Both fans and players were already looking forward to the start of the post season playoffs, but regular seasons across Europe suddenly came to a halt due to the COVID-19 outbreak. As COVID-19 spread across the Globe, title races were called off and seasons postponed. Gyms and training grounds were eventually shutdown and hockey players had to find their own individual ways to stay in shape whilst at home.
“I spent the coronavirus lockdown at home, just like everybody else. The season was prematurely ended which was a big blow to us. You spend the entire Regular Season preparing for the Playoffs and in the end it’s all cancelled. It’s a shame. But there was no other choice, cancelling the season was something that just had to be done and there’s nothing we could have done about it,” said the 2019 Czech Extraliga Champion. “I worked out at home until gyms reopened, preparing myself for the upcoming season,” he added.
As Summer approached, the coronavirus situation in the Czech Republic had not yet fully stabilised. There were occasional cases of players testing positive and putting whole teams at risk. Most clubs wanting to protect their players and staff resulted in calling off their pre-season camps and cancelling most of their pre-season friendlies.
“We each got personalised workout plans and guides on how to prepare individually,” started Vrána, “once gyms reopened, we basically started our normal year-to-year pre-season program. Regarding training on the ice – everyone was tested, and we upped preventive hygiene measures to keep everyone safe, but apart from that everything else is the same. We don’t really know what’s going to happen to our pre-season, because Generali Cup matches were postponed. I think that everyone is taking it one week at a time. We are trying to train like we do every summer and I’m looking forward to playing again next week. Another thing we don’t know is if fans are going to be allowed into stadiums,” said the experienced centre-forward.
After returning from abroad in 2016, Vrána made his debut in the Champions Hockey League with Sparta Prague. He made it all the way to the Final that year but sadly lost in OT to the Frölunda Indians.
“I remember that year very well. We didn’t do very well domestically, but our CHL run was amazing. In the Group Stage we weren’t exactly sure what to expect from our opponents. Not all players wanted to play in the CHL because the games were played during the season international breaks. But once we started doing well, we made the decision to do our best and try to win each game. I’m personally gutted that we didn’t get to play the Final here in Czech. I think the game would have had a much better atmosphere. We didn’t even face Frölunda at their main stadium,” said Vrána, “the atmosphere was good, but the Final was a bit wild and hectic. We lost in Overtime playing three-on-three, not five-on-five as we usually play. But those are the rules. Overall, the experience was great – especially the Quarter-Finals and the Semi-Finals.”
Sparta’s second-place finish in the CHL that year wasn’t just a great result for the club, it was more importantly a massive result for the Czech Extraliga – Czech teams were suddenly seen in a different light by their more accomplished opponents from abroad.
“I believe that a great run like that really does shine good light on the whole league, regardless if it’s Sparta or anybody else. It’s always good when someone make it that far. It proves that Czech teams have it in them to play with the big boys. People always say that the Czech Extraliga lacks the quality of the Swedish, Finish or Russian league, but we were able to beat teams from these leagues proving that we have it in us!” said a very optimistic Vrána, who himself spent many seasons as a player in Sweden.
Sadly, Sparta didn’t get to play in front of their home crowd back in 2016, but fellow Extraliga team Mountfield HK did.
“I think they were a bit unlucky. The played great in the CHL but lacked a bit in the domestic league. It was great to see another Czech side competing for the trophy!” said Vrána about Mountfield’s loss in the 2020 CHL Final played in Hradec Králové.
Whereas with Sparta Vrána made it all the way to the Final, with Třinec he hasn’t been so lucky. Last season the Silesian club missed out on the Playoffs to rivals Minsk by a single point.
“We were disappointed to have dropped out so early. We finished our last match in Switzerland and were just waiting for the result of Minsk to come in. Sadly, they managed to drag out a point and knock us out of our Playoffs spot. I think our mistake was dropping points early on. I wasn’t on the ice, but the boys apparently played well. They just didn’t score enough goals and got sent off too easily.” he said.
We had high goals for the seasonPetr Vrána, Oceláři Třinec
“It’s a shame because we had high goals for the season. Overall, the experience of playing in the CHL was great. Especially our last match in Switzerland. We saw a lovely town, played in a great arena and really enjoyed travelling together as a group. Flying was a fun alternative to travelling by bus like we usually do for our domestic matches – journeys across the whole country to play in Karlovy Vary take forever…” he added.
The Šternberk native missed out on the first two matches of the CHL Group Stage, yet he ended up as the second-most productive player of Třinec with five points (1+4).
“I was pleased about that,” he said, “I really played well in our home match against Minsk and then we played well in Switzerland. We gained points, played well, so of course we were all disappointed to have missed out on the Playoffs. I personally would have been happier for the club to have made it than me personally,” finished the 177-centimetre-tall forward.
Before playing in the CHL Final with Sparta, Vrána gained experience playing for SHL side Brynäs, who hold 13 SHL Championship titles. But Vrána doesn’t cherish these times due to prolonged injuries he experienced there.
“I don’t like to think back to those times,” he started, “we moved from Russia because we thought it would be better for our family to live in Europe, but my season didn’t turn out to be what I expected. At the very start of the season I broke my jaw and was out for three months. After two weeks back on the ice I picked up an ankle injury and missed out on even more matches. I only ended up playing 26 games that year and spent most of the time getting into match form. So, from a professional point of view, I don’t really cherish these times. But life in Sweden was great. The facilities were amazing, and the club took great care of us. Everything worked and was at the highest level,” finished Vrána.
Halfway through the 2018/19 season Vrána moved from Sparta to Třinec and managed to play 12 regular season matches before lining up for the playoffs with his new club. On the way to their second-ever Extraliga title, Vrána helped Třinec make history by racking up 10 points (3+7) in 17 matches.
“I’m really happy to be staying here in Třinec. Last season was a bit of a rollercoaster– we dropped form a bit and it was all up and down. Due to Martin Růžička’s injury we lost one of our elite strikers and we really had a hard time filling in the goals he would score. In the end we finished second in the Extraliga Regular Season and were gearing up for the Playoffs that were sadly cancelled due to COVID-19. I wasn’t able to play in the Spengler Cup, but the boys played really well. The playoffs were cancelled, which is a real shame, because I think we would have made it to the Final,” he said.
After being crowned Extraliga Champion, Vrána signed a three-year contract with Třinec, rejecting offers from abroad in favour of staying there.
“After our Championship season I didn’t really think about my contract. Třinec were the only club I was in talks with from the Extraliga – when you win a championship you don’t really feel like moving elsewhere. Třinec have some of the best facilities in the Czech Republic,” said the player about his current contract situation.
That season was also a big sigh of relief for Vrána, as it was his seventh final in his career, but only the first he won.
“It was something that crossed my mind,” he admitted, “you play hockey to win. I have been lucky enough to have been in finals before, but I had never won up to that point. So, I told myself that it will be different this time. I could see my teammates believing in themselves, so I trusted them. We had the strength to win,” he finished.
Třinec may have dropped out as early as the Group Stage last season, but the 2020/21 CHL Playoffs draw has matched them up with a very familiar opponent – Yunost Minsk. Třinec certainly have some fond memories of them from last season and Vrána will certainly play a key role in their upcoming matches.