Eurolanche

Stastny eager to face Slovakia

After 4 games played, Paul Stastny ranks 3rd among the tournament leaders in points with 2 goals an 5 assists (Stastny added one more goal on Saturday). The son of the legendary Peter Šťastný is without a doubt the biggest star of Team USA. Unsurprisingly, coach Sacco has named Stastny captain of the US side at the World Championship.

Believe it or not, Stastny’s wearing the C for the first time in his entire career. He welcomed the given opportunity to show his leadership abilities. „Having the C on my jersey is a reward for my work. Being the captain of your country’s team is a expression of national pride. I’m very honored to have it,“ said Stastny.

Paul isn’t the only national team captain in the Stastny family. His father Peter was the captain of Team Slovakia during his playing days. Thanks to this, the Avalanche center didn’t have to look far for advice. Other than being told to remain himself, he didn’t learn much. Peter Šťastný wasn’t yet in the stands when Paul played, but he watched every game on TV. „If everything goes well, they’ll come to see a game.“

This year’s World Championship is the 3rd Stastny played at. Stastny said that Team USA’s goal is to reach the quarterfinals. The team coached by Joe Sacco wants to win. The first two games against weaker opponents were certainly welcomed. The players had an easier transition to the bigger rink. In his own words, the Helsinki group is a very balanced one and he didn’t dare to predict the 4 teams that would advance.

During the lockout, Stastny played for Red Bull Munich. His brother Yan was the one who got him to play there. „He played in Nuremberg, which is like an hour-long drive away from Munich. I had other possibilities, but I ultimately chose Germany because of him.“ Unlike Paul, Yan isn’t on Team USA’s roster. „I didn’t put the team together. The coach won’t listen to players when making his decision regarding the roster,“ added Stastny with a smile. The fact that Joe Sacco’s the coach suits Stastny. He knows his system and knows almost every play in his playbook.

The similarities to his father don’t stop at the C. Just like his dad, Paul uses a Sherwood stick. It’s needless to say that he rather chose to play with the composite version, not the old wooden one. Talking about sticks, Stastny recalled a rather unpleasant story from last year’s championship. „I only took like 3 or 4 sticks to Helsinki last year. The manufacturer sent me the wrong type of stickblade. They were like little rotors. Fortunately, they had time to change them.“

The US lost to Slovakia 4-2 at last year’s tournament. Stastny was also part of last year’s squad. „I’m eager to face Slovakia! It’s really special when we play against them. Both of my parents are Slovak and I’m proud of my Slovak heritage. Needless to say, we still have to play 3 games before facing them.“

Team USA, including Stastny, Erik Johnson, Aaron Palushaj and Matt Hunwick will square off against Team Slovakia on Tuesday.

Sources: www.sport.sk, sport.sme.sk