ZURICH – Being the child of a hockey idol must be special. Not always can they follow, nor do they want to follow in father’s footsteps. But there have been, there are, and there will be hockey families, where talent is a question of genes, and a breakthrough just a matter of time.
Since hockey has become more international in the past decades, the family situation among many hockey families did as well.
Stastnys spread over five countries
The Stastnys are a perfect example of an international family. Marian, Peter and Anton were born in the ‘50s in Bratislava. They represented Czechoslovakia and each started an NHL career in the early ‘80s with the Quebec Nordiques. Anton and Peter defected in 1980, Marian was allowed to leave one year later. A fourth brother, Vladimir Stastny, was also on international stage as an assistant coach of the Slovakian national team.
Peter also represented Canada in the Canada Cup and his sons play in North America. Paul and Yan have both American and Canadian passports, while their father was the only one to represent an independent Slovakia in the ‘90s. Peter is a member of the European Parliament while his sons represent the United States.
Marian ended his career in Switzerland before going back to Canada as a golf-club owner. Anton also continued his career in Switzerland, before ending his career with his native club Slovan Bratislava. His son, Thomas, got a Swiss licence and has started to play there with second-tier teams.
A family with relationship to five countries isn’t found easily but the nomadic life of professional hockey created some other father-son stories.
Andrei to play against father and fatherland?
Let’s take the Bykovs. While father Vyacheslav, one of the leaders of the Soviet national team in the ‘80s and ‘90s, won the last World Championship as the Russian national team head coach, his son Andrei represents Switzerland.
Andrei Bykov was born in Moscow while his father was playing for the legendary CSKA. The family moved to Switzerland when he was two, which also might explain why he feels Swiss. “I have all my friends here and we’re also very good friends in the locker room. Even though I try hard to speak Russian with my parents,” Bykov told IIHF.com in perfect French, mentioning that he tries his best to speak in Russian to his parents.
Growing up where his father finished his career, the 20-year-old has played all his life for HC Fribourg-Gottéron. He started with the junior organization and now plays with the National League A team.
Bykov sonly memories are of Switzerland. His father was playing for Fribourg for eight years, mostly in the line with his “twin” Andrei Khomutov he also played on the Soviet national team, with CSKA Moscow and in their native town Chelyabinsk. He even gave his son the same name as his then-best friend.
Slava, as the fans call him, was a hero and wizard in the eyes of the fans, a high-profile player who’ll be never forgotten. The Russian tsars led the club to the top of the standings and to the playoff final, even though the club never won the championship.
There are more similarities between father and son than the name. Both are not too tall, 173 cm, and known for their speed and agility. “I can’t say it was easier or harder to grow up as his son but I’ve never had problems. I had a quiet life. I grew up normally. So I can’t complain. It was awesome.”
Bykov has both passports and even played for the Russian U17 national team at the 2005 European Youth Olypmic Winter Festival in Monthey, Switzerland. One year later, before his first IIHF competition, he had to decide which nation he wanted to represent and opted for Switzerland. Since then, he has played in a World U18 Championship and two World U20 Championships. Now, at 20 years, he lost his eligibility to play international junior hockey. “I really liked to play in international competition, to compete with the best ones from other nations. Now I want to do everything that I can do the same with the big guys,” Bykov said.
Playing against the big guys would also mean playing against his father’s Russian team. “At the moment I don’t think about that. I’m not ready yet for the national team, there are a lot of better players, but I hope it will happen quickly,” Bykov says about his expectations for the future.
Right now he’s fully focused on Fribourg-Gottéron and doesn’t think about a possible career in his fatherland Russia, or in North America.
Tom Kühnhackl turns pro with 16
Perhaps an even younger player could land on the notepad of NHL scouts soon, even though he won’t be eligible for a draft before 2010. Tom Kühnhackl’s family name is well-known in hockey circles. He’s the son of Erich Kühnhackl, Germany’s hockey player of the century and an IIHF Hall of Famer, who recently started to work with the German association and the Organizing Committee of the 2010 World Championship.
Born in Czechoslovakia in 1950, Kühnhackl’s family moved to Bavaria in 1968. He became one of the all-time top players for EV Landshut and a legend on the German national team with 131 goals in 211 games. The numbers rank him as the top goal scorer in national team history. He played in ten World Championships and three Olympics, including the bronze-medal team at the 1976 Games. He was the scoring leader at the 1978 Worlds and the 1984 Olympics, and an eight-time top scorer of Germany’s professional league.
Tom, 16, is one of the best domestic scorers with the Landshut Cannibals of Germany’s second-tier league, with 16 points (9+7) in 25 games. Last season, the 187 cm tall forward had 21 goals and 21 assists in 30 games in Germany’s top junior league DNL.
“Originally, it was only planned to have games with the senior team if they have many players missing but after a first try-out week, the coach said it would be nice to keep me,” Tom Kühnhackl said of his quick start with the professional team. “It was a dream debut, and the players and the coach supported me very well.”
Being the son of Germany’s best-known hockey player and living in the Bavarian town he led a hockey team to success, it was given that Tom Kühnhackl will land in hockey too.
“My father took me on the ice when I was four or five years old,” Tom said. “I can often feel that my name is Kühnhackl, especially if there’s someone who doesn’t like me or from opposing fans, but that’s part of the game.”
Having the chance to play with experienced players at home, in a minor league that averages 2,000 spectators could help his development as the forward has big dreams.
“My dream is to play an NHL game. My favourite team is the Washington Capitals. Alexander Ovechkin is an incredible player, he has just everything a player can have. But I’m just 16, so I have to work hard,” says Tom, who hopes to debut on international stage at the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championship in the United States.
“It’s hard to analyze as a father but what I can say for sure is that he’s showing things as a player I was far away from when I was 16,” says Erich Kühnhackl, whose kids – two sons and a daughter – all play hockey.
“He grew up in a family where hockey played a big role. Then he also grew up in Landshut which is known for excellent juniors and then he was captivated by the sport early,” Erich said. “The family is following his development and we help him where we can but the most important things are that he stays down-to-earth and it’s also important as a player and person that he’s contributing to his development.”
Next Viktor Tikhonov conquest
Another well-known name appeared on international stage a year ago: Viktor Vasilyevich Tikhonov. The name of the Soviet coaching legend symbolizes the big era and coaching style of Soviet hockey in international competitions, and the “Red Army Team” that toured through North America, causing a mix of rivalry, admiration and fear. He first conquered his native country as a player of Dynamo Moscow, later as a coach of Dinamo Riga and CSKA Moscow, before he became the most successful coach on the international stage. The 78-year-old led the Soviets to three Olympic gold medals and eight national team titles.
Viktor Vasilyevich Tikhonov is also the name of a young player who debuted on the international stage at the World U20 Championship last year in the Czech Republic. He’s the grandson of the legendary coach, who cut players until the early nineties when he was afraid they could deflect.
Times changed. His son, Vasili, left Russia to be a coach in Latvia, the United States, Finland, and Switzerland before going back to his home country. Vasili’s son, Viktor, born in Riga, Latvia, grew up in California, where he started to play hockey before following his father to the other countries.
“My dad was coaching for the San Jose Sharks so I got to stick around after practice and practice for four hours so that’s probably how I grew as a player,” he says about his first steps.
Five years ago when Viktor was 15, the family moved back to Russia where he had the last part of his development. He joined the juniors of CSKA Moscow and last season he played in the Superliga for Severstal Cherepovets before becoming the Phoenix Coyotes’ first-round draft choice.
He doesn’t regret playing there where his family hails from. “If you can find a team in Europe that will let you play in a pro-level then it’s probably better to play in Europe, but otherwise, juniors would be a good way out,” the young Tikhonov explains.
However, after his stint in Russia, he did what his grandfather might never have dared to think about: playing in the NHL, on the other side of the former Iron Curtain. He made it to the Coyotes team, mostly as a checker-line role, with two goals and four assists in 34 games so far.
“It’s a dream come true, it’s been a long road to get there. I was ecstatic,” says Tikhonov, not with a Russian, but with a Californian accent.
He is thankful that his family helped him become what he is. “Obviously, they had the biggest influence. My grandfather gave me my first pair of skates and my dad has been my personal coach my whole life. I grew up in a hockey atmosphere. I’ve always been in lockers rooms and at games since a young age.”
Having a big name in hockey, he felt much pressure but on the other hand he thinks that it also made some things easier along the way. An opinion he shares with other players in a similar situation. All of them have in common that they might represent their families for one more generation on an international top-level hockey, and maybe pass their hockey genes on to a new generation successors.
MARTIN MERK
