Future star? Šalé reminds Nečas, he must come, says the boss
The attention of Kometa hockey fans will be focused not only on great personalities such as Dominik Furch, Tomáš Kundrátek or captain Martin Zaťovič in the new extra-league height. Even the brilliant seventeen-year-old talent from Brno, Eduard Šalé, is increasingly in the sights of fans. The mainstay of the under-18 national team has long outgrown his peers and is claiming a place in the Komety A team. In the preparatory duel against Zvolen Šalé, he even jumped into the elite formation with Petr Holík and Martin Zaťovič.
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Eduard Šalé (pictured with helmet and basket) celebrates a goal in a duel with Zvolen inside.
| Photo: HC Kometa Brno/Ivo Dostál
“It is super. The boys give me advice and even if they screw me, I know that I mean it well and I try to take every word they say to me,” says the young striker from Brno about working with the star duo.
Šalé repaid the trust with a goal scored by Zaťovič in the duel with Zvolen. Šalé showed what a killer instinct adorns him. “He is a skilled young hockey player. He has the same momentum as Martin Nečas. Although both types are different, Eda is more of an end player, whereas Martin played a lot with the puck and we treated him like a toy. They were comparatively talented at seventeen,” Zaťovič said.
A comparison with Nečas is offered. Even the long-time player of Carolina attracted attention in Komet as a seventeen-year-old pheasant. In Brno, he had favorable conditions for growth when he started in the elite formation alongside Martin Erato and Marko Kvapil. “Just as we helped Martin, we want to help Ed as well. Youth is not a merit, but in terms of performance, I see him in the A team. If necessary, I will personally advocate that he does not have to return to the junior team,” offers club owner Libor Zábranský.
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Nečas was drafted into the NHL five years ago as overall, and two independent rankings currently rank Šalé at the same position for next year’s draft. You have to take them with a grain of salt, there is still time until the next draft and Šalé can either significantly improve or worsen. “I’ll try not to look at the fact that I’m playing for a high draft spot. I mainly want to firmly establish myself in the A team,” convinces the native of Brno.
In order to be more competitive among the extra-league guards, he needs to gain muscle mass. “He is thin, like Neči in his time, he has to come to terms with those personal battles and, above all, gain muscle, which our fitness trainer Martin Iterský is helping him with excellently,” Zábranský points out.
Šalé is also getting used to a cabin full of experienced players for the last time, so far he hasn’t shown much. “It’s not that I’m afraid of boys, but I respect them, I’m happy to learn,” mentions the star from Brno.
Šalé will probably get another chance to prove himself on Tuesday, when Brno will play the penultimate preparatory duel in Olomouc from six o’clock in the evening.
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