STOCKHOLM – Talent can be a blessing and a curse. It enables you to do things that other hockey players can’t, but it also raises expectations dramatically. Just ask Edmonton Oilers forward Ales Hemsky, now competing in his third Worlds for the Czechs.
A few years ago, Wayne Gretzky offered this evaluation of Hemsky: “He’s one of the elite players in the game. His skill is as good as anybody in the National Hockey League. He might be the best passer in the game. He sees the open guys as well or better than anybody at this level. I think he’s one of the best players in the game.”
Yet dealing with two surgically repaired shoulders has hampered the 28-year-old Pardubice native’s production recently. This season, he recorded just 10 goals and 26 assists in 69 games, his lowest offensive totals in anything resembling a full season in the post-lockout NHL. The Oilers showed some faith in the veteran right winger by giving him a two-year, $10-million contract in February.
“I had a little bit of a tough time with injuries the last couple of years,” Hemsky told IIHF.com after losing 4-1 to Sweden on Saturday night. “Hopefully I can start getting back to my form and helping the team win. We have a good young team in Edmonton. Hopefully we can make the playoffs next year and start making a push over the next couple of years.”
In the meantime, Hemsky is focused on rediscovering some chemistry here in Stockholm with an old Czech buddy, Petr Nedved. The 40-year-old centre was named the Czech Extraliga’s Player of the Year after piling up a league-best 61 points in 49 games with Liberec. (Nedved, a 982-game NHLer, became the second-oldest player ever to capture those MVP honours after superstar goalie Dominik Hasek, who was 45 when he won it in 2010.)
The duo clicked on a nice goal by Hemsky late in the second period of a 2-0 tournament-opening victory over Denmark. It proved to be the game-winner.
“I played with Petr back in Edmonton [2004, 2007], so it’s nothing new for me,” said Hemsky. “All year, he was the best player over in the Czech Republic. It’s nice to play with him again and spend some time together.”
If the Czechs can pile up enough wins to get into the quarter-finals, Hemsky may get a shot at another gold medal, like the one he earned in the lockout year of 2005. The Czechs went all the way with a stacked squad featuring Jaromir Jagr and Tomas Vokoun. In the final in Vienna, they threw a checking blanket over Canada and prevailed 3-0.
“Everything was great,” Hemsky recalled fondly. “We had a great team, and when you win, it’s always great memories. We had lots of fun that year. Great bunch of guys.”
Looking ahead to 2014, Hemsky is excited about the possibility of heading to Russia’s Black Sea coast for a couple of weeks. Not for a sunny vacation, but for the first Olympic hockey tournament ever held in Russia. Hemsky suited up in Turin in 2006, when the Czechs earned bronze, but was injured in 2010 and didn’t make it to Vancouver.
In Sochi, Hemsky could be facing super-talented, youthful Oilers teammates like Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Taylor Hall, all of whom are on the radar for Team Canada GM Steve Yzerman. That just adds an extra layer of intrigue.
“It’s always a great honour to represent your country,” Hemsky said. “Everybody from Europe, Canada, and the USA wants to play at the Olympics. It’ll be fun if I make it.”
Still in his prime, Hemsky has learned the value of persevering, and the best could still be yet to come for the super stickhandler.
For him, as with many other talented players, it’ll be about continuing to apply the following quotation of former U.S. President Calvin Coolidge: “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination are omnipotent.”
In terms of immediate goals, what is Hemsky expecting from Norway in the Czech Republic’s third game on Monday?
“They play a hard game,” Hemsky said. “Teams like that play great defence. They’ll play one-on-one defence in their own zone. It’s always tough. There are no easy games here. You have to stick with the game plan and be patient. Hopefully we can score the first goal and go from there.”
LUCAS AYKROYD |
