TAMMERFORS. Johann Garbenlov did not receive the championship medal as captain of the national team Tre Kronor.
Caliph Sam Helm wants to defend him and build on the same business.
Success is of course important, says the 42-year-old, but it’s probably in cycles.
Johann Garbenlove He played his last match after three seasons as captain of the national team three crowns.
The match ended in the World Cup quarter-final against Canada, with Tre Kronor losing the lead 3-0 after two periods and taking a 3-1 lead with less than two minutes to go.
Now Sam Hallam has taken charge after ten seasons and three gold medals in Sweden as head coach of Växjö in the SHL.
“It will be very exciting.”
Although recruitment began on May 1, the national team captain’s job is in earnest now that the national team’s season is over.
– That’s definitely the case. It’s going to be very exciting, and I’m looking forward to this adventure with a new way of working,” says Sam Hallam.
He does not want to delve into Tre Kronor’s impressions of the World Cup in Finland.
– No, not really. Sam Hallam says: “I’ve been clear all along in terms of team management and players not to be the one to give opinions and ratings, good or bad.
‘hard ending’
However, he does not hide the fact that he was very emotionally involved in what happened at the World Cup.
– I sat at home on the TV sofa and was engaged like most of the others. At the same time, when it’s over, you don’t feel angry, but you feel for those involved. There is no doubt that I personally gave the gang that worked around Tre Kronor to finish the match with cooler matches. They were very close in the Olympics to playing for gold, and then they laid a very good foundation in this tournament. Sam Hallam says it was a tough ending, more than I can tell.
During the first week of the World Cup, he and assistant national team captain Stephan Kluker were on site in Tampere.
– I watched the Finland match in the national team shirt in the stands. I was as happy as all the other Swedish fans when we hit the Finns. I’ve chosen that approach now about watching the national team, and it makes me enjoy being a little fan, says Sam Hallam.
He wants to build on U18 gold
It’s been some tough years in terms of Tre Kronor’s results, what kind of work needs to be done moving forward?
– Regardless of whether you come or if Johann Garbenlov and that gang go on, I know you sit and watch every year. There is a lot that works very well in Swedish ice hockey, and what we haven’t achieved at the end of a few years is the result of the big tournaments at the senior level. We had an important victory in the U18 toilet with Småkronorna here earlier in the year. It sets the tone, these are the guys going forward after several wines that were close by. We all want to try and find a way to get to the big leagues. There is no difference between me and Johann Garbenlov, there is the same need and obligation around him.
How important do you think the success of Tre Kronor is to Swedish ice hockey and the Swedish ice hockey movement?
Of course, success is important, but I also think that it is a fact selected in parts. Because in such a case, Swedish hockey will be unbeatable at all levels after the double gold of the World Cup earlier. It will probably go through a bit in cycles, that’s all. Yesterday is one of the days that makes the work of a league captain so special. In fact, your work is summed up and judged over the course of a year of 60 minutes of hockey or an entire match. You always face a capable opponent. That’s her charm as well, that’s what I’ve tried to get into at certain moments sometimes last week and think about how I’m going to go into this match personally. Because you know there’s a lot at stake in one playoff.
I loved the Swedish way of playing
Johann Garbenlov has been criticized for his lack of success, but Sam Hallam wants to emphasize him as captain and coach.
He comes back to this in different ways all the time in his thinking.
– If you collect what basically all the players said throughout the year after the national team match, everyone praised the atmosphere, everyone enjoyed it and everyone felt proud. From the Karjala Cup through the Olympic Games and throughout the World Cup. They really expressed their honest feeling, and thought it was fun to come and play at Tre Kronor. Then it comes to results. I think everyone who is active in Swedish hockey wants the best results in all of our national teams, says Sam Hallam.
In June, he will begin the first meetings with other people working around Tre Kronor.
– We’ll put our little stamp on it. Love the way Tre Kronor played this year. It was a tight match and she won on the road. It’s not about being a major change act, we’re going to fine-tune a few nuances and change them up here and there. Then, of course, we’ll put together our own team during the year and find a framework that we’ll build on at the World Cup, says Sam Hallam.
“A very strong group”
How are we going to notice that Sam Hallam is the new national team captain for Trey Kronor?
– I don’t need to say anything about it, I’m not looking for voters. I don’t have to be a poppy politician and sell anything. It’s up to us to prepare a good base game and team match in the way we believe in to get results. may turn. It’s easy when you go into something new to get over what’s going to happen, but we don’t know yet because we haven’t fully sat down and put together a clear handbook of exactly how to act. I come from one style, Stefan Clocker comes from another style and we’re going to get more people into the union. It’s a dynamic job and we’ll be learning things through the year. Sitting and thinking about things from the outside is one thing, and putting your stamp on something is another. It must grow. We’ll be ourselves and try to build on the strengths of Swedish hockey with a very strong group, a lot of what we’ve seen Tre Kronor deliver so much during the year.
Sam Hallam will remain in his job as captain, starting at Växjö.
The contract is for four seasons, among others, the World Cup in Sweden 2025 and the Olympic Games in Milan 2026.